Tuesday, September 05, 2006

TUESDAY MORNING MANAGER: Week 22

Fitting That Tigers' Playoff Hopes Should Ride In The Metrodome

(my weekly take on the Tigers)

Last Week: 2-4
This Week: (9/5-6: SEA; 9/7-10: at Min)

Sports are full of ironies and coincidences and poetic justices -- and injustices.

Such were my thoughts when I looked at the Tigers' schedule this week and saw four games in that horror of horrors, the HHH Metrodome in Minneapolis.

How fitting that the Tigers' hopes of either doing some serious damage to the AL Central race or coming back to the pack should rely on the outcomes of these four games in Minny.

For years, the Metrodome has been, to understate things, unkind to the Tigers. Of course, mostly bad Detroit teams have flitted in and out of Minneapolis, but still -- the Tigers have even less success there than in any other AL city that they've tried to be competitive in. It's been, simply, a nightmare to play there, and strange things seem to happen.

The Tigers lost two of three in Minnesota in May -- including a rare Todd Jones blown save. Then, in late July, the Tigers were on the verge of a sweep, with Jeremy Bonderman cruising on a Sunday afternoon, when he and the team melted down in the eighth inning, robbing them of victory. That inning included a balk, an error, one maddening turf hit after another, and the usual deafening roar of the Twins crowd.

So now the Tigers will have to play four ballgames in that funhouse, with the expressed purpose of gaining at least a split. Notice how the talk isn't about winning three of four. In fact, some faithful just pray the Tigers don't get swept.

Bring your earplugs, for even on TV, the crowds are sure to be annoyingly loud.

Fitting, isn't it?


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