Thank You! Burning Questions Are Next

To everyone who has stopped by this space every week to check out Monday Morning Manager, I thank you! It was another fun season, and boy did it go by quickly!

Next up: the playoffs, and that means---you guessed it---more Burning Questions!

Come back here the morning after every Tigers playoff game as I answer those BQs!

First edition: Sunday, October 5. See you then!!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 25

Last Week: 5-2
This Week:  at Min (9/23-25); at Mia (9/27-29)

So, What Happened?

The Tigers had a good week, but the Cleveland Indians played the Houston Astros, so the celebration in clinching the AL Central will have to come on the road, as the Tigers couldn't quite wrap things up before the final home stand of the year was complete.

The Tigers took five of seven games during the week, but the Indians swept the hapless Astros, four straight, from Thursday thru Sunday, thus not contributing to the whittling away of the Tigers' magic number, which this morning sits at two.

MMM can't write another word without mentioning Saturday's historic come-from-behind win, when the Tigers scored six runs in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game before winning it in the 12th.

The comeback marked the first time in some 66 years (against the Washington Senators) that the Tigers scored six runs in the ninth inning to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

The improbable win fittingly came on the night that the Tigers surpassed three million in attendance for the third straight year. But how many folks stuck around for the ninth inning heroics on Saturday?

MMM believes that, after spending money on tickets, parking, refreshments, etc., why on Earth not get your money's worth? Stay for the whole game! MMM thinks the only thing worse than spending all that money is to spend all that money and not see the biggest comeback at home in 66 years! Is avoiding some traffic worth it?

Victor Martinez caught another game as the Tigers tinker with getting his bat in the lineup should the team make the World Series and thus play three games in a National League park.

Jhonny Peralta worked out in left field last week in the Instructional League. He is eligible to play in this weekend's series in Miami to close out the season, after serving his 50-game suspension related to his involvement with the Biogenesis lab.

MMM wouldn't be surprised to see JP in left field in Game 1 of the ALDS, if the opposition throws a lefty.

Jose Iglesias is officially the team's starting shortstop, despite being hit on the hand with a pitch last week. The hand isn't broken, and it's just a matter of Jose dealing with the soreness.

Hero of the Week
Well, look who's back to being a .300 hitter.

Victor Martinez is hitting .303, with 81 RBI, as the season's final week is upon us. That is truly amazing.

V-Mart missed an entire season, then got off to a rocky start, his BA in the .230s as recently as mid-June.

What followed was one of the greatest individual comebacks in recent history.

Martinez started smoking the ball, and in the second half of the season his BA is actually higher than Miguel Cabrera's.

V-Mart was 10-for-24 last week with a homer and six RBI. He is positively on fire.

MMM is giving him the honors not only for what he did last week, but for how the week lifted him above .300 for the first time all season.

Honorable mentions: Prince Fielder (10 hits last week); Torii Hunter (nine hits); and Max Scherzer (20th victory on Friday night).

Goat of the Week
It got lost in the shuffle of a 5-2 week, but Austin Jackson scuffled.

A-Jax went 6-for-33 with eight strikeouts and scored just two runs. In a week where the Tigers offense did pretty good, the leadoff hitter didn't. But it shows the depth of the offense that it could survive a bad week from the leadoff guy and still win five games.

For all of his mechanics adjustments (losing the leg kick, etc), Jackson still strikes out far too often for a leadoff hitter (125 Ks in 528 AB). He has but eight stolen bases. Even on a team that isn't known for its small ball, this is a very low number for someone who bats first and has Jackson's speed.

MMM isn't angry with Jackson, but someone has to be the Goat, even in a good week, team-wise.

Under the Microscope
It's difficult not to place the aforementioned Jhonny Peralta under the scope.

Peralta's eligibility to return to the active roster begs all sorts of questions.

Will he be on the playoff roster? If so, who's the odd man out? Will he play left field, or start at shortstop and be replaced in the late innings by Iglesias? If he plays left field, will he still be lifted for defensive purposes in the late stages of close games? How is his timing at the plate? Can he return to form after just three tune-up games in Miami?

MMM is sure there are more questions related to Peralta.

The Tigers don't need distractions heading into the playoffs, but due to circumstances, Peralta provides one.

Upcoming: Twins, Marlins
After all the heartache the Minnesota Twins have put the Tigers through over the years, starting with the 1987 ALCS and more recently in 2006 and 2009, wouldn't it be nice if the Tigers could clinch the AL Central on the Twins' home field?

Even a lack of a swimming pool at Target Field shouldn't matter!

The Indians play the White Sox this week before ending the season against the Twins. It should be noted that the Indians have beaten the White Sox like a drum all year, so the Tigers' best bet to clinch in Minnesota is to win two games at Target Field.

The question in Minnesota is, will Ron Gardenhire still be the manager in 2014?

No manager in Twins history, save Tom Kelly, has done more winning and done more for the franchise than Gardenhire. But as we saw in Philadelphia (Charlie Manuel), all good things must end. It would be a shame if Gardenhire is let go after this season, but it may happen.

Tigers starters: Justin Verlander, Doug Fister, Max Scherzer.

The Miami Marlins are dreadful. Their new ballpark is like a library every night. The team lacks star power. And that's why they are closing in on 100 losses (they have 99).

The Marlins do have old friend Placido Polanco playing third base. But the 37-year-old is batting just .254 and is a shell of his former self.

The Tigers should thank the Marlins, however. After all, if it wasn't for Miami being in fire sale mode last year, the Tigers wouldn't have Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante on their roster.

MMM thinks the division will be wrapped up before the Tigers plane lands in Miami on Thursday, so the only intrigue should be related to Jhonny Peralta, and how the Tigers might set their rotation for the playoffs, as well as which team they will play in the ALDS.

Tigers starters: Rick Porcello, Sanchez, Verlander.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 24

Last Week: 4-2
This Week:  SEA (9/16-19); CWS (9/20-22)

So, What Happened?

The week began with the sky falling, apparently, but ended with it being partly cloudy, as it turns out.

After Monday night's loss to the Chicago White Sox and Chris Sale, the Tigers' lead in the AL Central had dipped to 4.5 games, where nine days ago it had been 8.5 games after two wins over the Cleveland Indians.

The Indians were (still are) charging, and the Tigers were lurching after a 16-2 win over the KC Royals on September 6 proved to be their only victory in six games.

The sky was falling!

MMM understands the uneasiness when an 8.5-game lead is cut in half in nine days, but with the Tigers starting pitching, it's difficult to fall apart.

Within 48 hours, the Tigers had beaten the White Sox twice, the Indians lost twice, and the lead was back to 6.5 games. It sits at five games this morning. The Indians swept the White Sox in four games in Chicago, and have now beaten the White Sox something like 44 consecutive times. And MMM is only slightly exaggerating.

Miguel Cabrera was kicked out of a game, mid-at-bat, in the first inning for the second time this season. He even holds records like that!

Max Scherzer is still stuck at 19 wins, as his run support has dried up. Alex Avila (gasp!) is heating up.

Hey, maybe the sky really IS falling!

No, that would only happen if Jim Leyland pinch runs for Prince Fielder, apparently. (BTW, MMM is OK with the decision not to pinch-run. Fielder wasn't in scoring position, and most players can score from first on a double with two outs, and Prince is one of them. The Royals just made a great play).

Hero of the Week
Hey, did someone tell Alex Avila that it's 2011?

MMM is thrilled to see the Tigers catcher perk up, and last week Avila did so to the tune of 6-for-17 (including 4-for-4 last Tuesday), with a pair of homers, both in Sunday's game, the latter of which was the game-winner in the eighth inning.

The strikeouts are still unsightly (100 in 297 at-bats) but the swing is getting back to that shorter, compact variety that helped AA produce an All-Star season two years ago.

A productive Avila makes the Tigers lineup all the more difficult to deal with, because Avila typically bats in the lower third, and if he's going good, suddenly the Tigers are ornery from one through nine.

MMM is still concerned that Avila may need to learn a new position in the next couple of years (LF?) because of all the physical abuse he takes behind the plate. But for now, it's lovely to see him look more like the hitter we all know he can be. Never before has a .222 BA been so good to see.

Honorable mentions: Prince Fielder (10 hits last week); Victor Martinez (nine hits); Rick Porcello (first career CG on Tuesday); and Doug Fister (7.2 scoreless innings but a loss on Saturday).

Goat of the Week
This may seem a bit punitive, but MMM is going with Drew Smyly.

Sorry, Drew, but in a 4-2 week it's hard to find a true Goat.

MMM selects Smyly because he let Scherzer's 20th win slip away on Sunday. A wild pitch enabled the Royals to score the tying run in the eighth inning. Yes, the Tigers won the game anyway, thanks to last week's Hero, Avila. That actually seems rather congruous to MMM.


Under the Microscope
Did you know that Miguel Cabrera hasn't had an RBI since September 7?

Just let that sink in for a bit.

MMM knows that Cabrera won't win his second straight Triple Crown, but the greater concern is, how is Miggy's health truly?

He seems to look a bit more nimble, but a 5-for-19, RBI-less week makes MMM wonder if Cabrera isn't still bothered by his hip and abdominal problems.

It might seem strange to put a player who is constantly in the spotlight Under the Microscope, but MMM has a feeling that lots of Tigers fans are with him on this one.

Upcoming: Mariners, White Sox
Question: what's the only thing better than seeing four home games with the Mariners on your schedule?

How about four home games with the Mariners in which Felix Hernandez pitches in none of them?

King Felix might be shut down the rest of the season due to an oblique strain, but there are also reports that he may be cleared to pitch Wednesday against the Tigers. So who knows?

Regardless, the Tigers should be licking their chops to play the Mariners, although any team can beat any other on any given night. But how about for four given nights? MMM will take the Tigers in three of those four nights.

The Mariners do present Raul Ibanez, who has a chance to hit more home runs in a season as a 41-year-old than anyone in history. Ibanez has 27 home runs this season. Ted Williams holds the record, with 29 in 1960.

Tigers starters: Porcello, Anibal Sanchez, Justin Verlander, Fister.

If it seems like the Tigers play the White Sox on a weekly basis, it's almost true. A scheduling quirk has pitted the Tigers and Chisox against each other 16 times after the All-Star break.

So it's another week, another series against Chris Sale, Paul Konerko and company.

The White Sox have a shot at 100 losses, and haven't won a game since last Monday, when Sale beat Scherzer. That's six straight losses, and 91 for the season with 13 games to play. A 4-9 finish is certainly within the White Sox' grasp.

If things play out well for the Tigers, the weekend series with Chicago could feature the division-clinching game.

Tigers starters: Scherzer, Porcello, Sanchez.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 21

Last Week: 4-2
This Week:  OAK (8/26-29); CLE (8/30-9/1)

So, What Happened?

MMM isn't sure who said it first, but it has been oft repeated.

"Momentum is tomorrow's starting pitcher."

Now, that shouldn't necessarily be taken literally. MMM takes it to mean that in baseball, what a team does the day before shouldn't be counted on as a predictor of what is to come today.

Certainly not series to series.

Take last week, for example.

The Tigers struggled at home against the stinky Twins, dropping two of three. The New York Mets, meanwhile, were winning two of three from the Twins (makeup game) and the Braves.

And then came the weekend series between the Tigers and the Mets.

The Tigers manhandled the Mets, for the most part. The team that went 1-2 earlier in the week slaughtered the team that went 2-1.

Here's another example of baseball's fickleness, also involving the Mets.

In late-May, the Mets beat the Yankees four straight games. Then the Mets went to Florida to play the God awful Marlins and got swept, three straight.

Joe Garagiola was right: baseball is a funny game.

The Tigers, led by Miggy Cabrera (who else?) stormed into New York and with apologies to Kevin James, became the Kings of Queens.

It was a clean sweep of the hapless Mets, who are once again looking at a crossroads with yet another manager. Terry Collins' contract expires at the end of the season.

Victor Martinez played catcher in two of the three games, and he performed admirably. MMM can't see a scenario by which the Tigers would keep V-Mart's bat out of the lineup in a National League ballpark should they make it to the World Series. So, expect Victor behind the plate in the Fall Classic if the Tigers are in it.

It should be noted that Alex Avila continues to have headaches related to his concussion. He was lifted out of a rehab game last week because of it.

In other news, Justin Verlander continues to vex us, Max Scherzer improved to 19-1 and showed some batting skills (RBI double) and those damn Indians won't go away.

Hero of the Week
It takes quite a week these days to knock Miguel Cabrera from the HotW perch.

Victor Martinez did it, though.

MMM could have, once again, gone with Miggy here, but V-Mart impressed by pulling catcher duties in New York while continuing to hit.

For the week, Martinez was 7-for-21 and while he netted just two RBI, MMM likes that he returned to catching like a duck to water. And in those two games in which he caught, Martinez got a couple of hits and was every bit the quarterback behind the plate. And, he handled all his fielding chances flawlessly.

Austin Jackson and Miggy may have had a more dazzling week stat-wise (and Cabrera's home run on Sunday was quite the bomb), but MMM is going with Martinez for once again showing what a great pro and teammate he is.

Honorable mentions: Cabrera (enough said); Austin Jackson (12-for-28, two homers on the heels of being named the Goat last week); Scherzer (a win and an RBI double).

Goat of the Week
Justin Verlander, MMM is sorry.

But the Goat label is worn by JV, who had yet another foul outing last week against the Twins.

Ten hits, six runs in seven innings. He didn't get the loss, but it doesn't matter. It was the rubber game of a series and JV didn't get it done.

Yes, Verlander's year, overall, is one that many starters would take. But JV isn't "many starters."

Verlander says he hasn't quite figured things out yet. Well it's late August so the question begs: WILL he find it this year?

That is a question that can't be answered now, but in the meantime, Verlander is GotW.

Under the Microscope
He's not activated currently, but MMM is concerned about Alex Avila, mainly because he isn't activated currently.

Avila continues to fight his concussion-related symptoms, even as he tries to rehab down in Toledo. Despite the surprisingly good year that backup Brayan Pena is having, MMM doesn't think it's a good thing when your starting catcher's physical well-being is up in the air as September approaches.

Does this uncertainty mean the Tigers should consider starting Martinez at catcher more often?

In a word, yes.

Meanwhile, keep a close eye on any reports of Avila's progress. They could have many implications come playoff time.

Upcoming: A's, Indians
It's a big home stand this week.

First, the Oakland A's come to town for a four-game set. Then, those pesky Indians visit over the weekend.

The Tigers' magic number to seal the deal in the Central is 27. A good week could whittle that number into the teens. When that starts to happen as September rolls around, you're in good shape.

Oakland is in a dogfight with the Texas Rangers for AL West supremacy. The Tigers haven't seen the A's since April, but they are pretty much the same team: a flair for the dramatic, clutch hitting and strong bullpen arms.

USA Today recently touted Oakland's Josh Donaldson as MVP over Cabrera. MMM is not making this up.

Donaldson is batting .292 with 19 HR and 74 RBI.

USA Today uses something called an MVP tracker. It ranks players by what percentage their individual WAR is of their team’s total WAR. Then a point is deducted for each game the team trails in its division race and in the wild-card race.

Apparently the above metric places Donaldson (17.1) above Cabrera (15.8).

Talk amongst yourselves.

Tigers starters: Anibal Sanchez (quietly on Scherzer's tail for Cy Young honors), Verlander, Doug Fister, Scherzer.

MMM tips his hat to the Cleveland Indians, and especially manager Terry Francona.

After the Lake Erie Massacre a few weeks ago, when the Tigers took four straight from the Tribe in Cleveland, MMM was ready to write this season off as another second half collapse for the Indians.

But Tito got his team to regroup and the Indians are playing some pretty good baseball. They remain six games behind the Tigers, but they are far from collapsing.

MMM believes the Tigers starting pitching is the biggest separator between the two teams, but even though the Indians can't beat Detroit this season, they nonetheless have yet another shot at making noise in the division race, if they can sweep the Tigers.

Unlikely? Absolutely.

But, see MMM's Joe Garagiola reference.

Tigers starters: Rick Porcello (another Tigers pitcher with a base hit over the weekend), Sanchez, Verlander.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 20

Last Week: 4-4
This Week:  MIN (8/20-22); at NYM (8/23-25)

So, What Happened?

You don't see eight-game weeks very often, but that's exactly what the Tigers had last week.

Thanks to an earlier rainout, the Kansas City Royals came to town and a four-game series turned into a five-gamer. The Royals have been hot after the All-Star break, and the upstart team from Kansas City was looking to "make a statement" in their weekend visit to Detroit.

The Royals came to town 7.5 games out of first place, and after a doubleheader sweep of the Tigers on Friday, they had visions of leaving Detroit 4.5 games back.

But some guy named Miguel Cabrera had other ideas.

Miggy, simply the best hitter on the planet, socked a walk-off homer on Saturday night, then on his first swing on Sunday, smacked a two-run homer to stake the Tigers to a 2-0 lead as they went on to a 6-3 win.

The result? The Royals' fantasies of taking four of five turned into dust. The Tigers shoved the Royals 8.5 games back, and in the process distanced themselves from the second place Cleveland Indians to the tune of seven full games.

Race over?

MMM is hesitant to declare the AL Central to the Tigers, because this is baseball and crazy things can happen, but a prolonged slump/collapse seems unlikely by the Motor City Bengals.

This isn't 2009, when a flawed Tigers team blew a seven-game lead in September and lost a one-game playoff to the Minnesota Twins. The 2013 Tigers are a much more complete team, and loaded with starting pitching.

The Royals still have six games with the Tigers on the schedule, but MMM feels that they simply won't matter all that much. But again, we'll see.

The week began with a disappointing 1-2 record in Chicago against the Pale Hose, making the Tigers 2-4 since their 12-game winning streak. But the Royals series happened, and so did a 3-2 mark.

The week's games were tainted with the revelation that Prince Fielder filed for divorce from his wife Chantel in late May. Naturally, social media and talk radio blew up with amateur psychologists who theorized that Fielder's impending divorce has played a significant role in his struggles since, well, late May.

MMM admits that Fielder's nosedive in BA and power coincided with the filing date, but why can't this be just a coincidence? And if it's not, so what? Pro athletes aren't robots---no matter how much money they make.

Hero of the Week
MMM is considering changing this section to "Miggy's Heroics of the Week."

Seriously, what's going on here?

MMM has seen his share of clutch performers in Detroit. Baseball-wise, Kirk Gibson and Jack Morris come to mind. But nobody comes close to what Miguel Cabrera is doing these days.

MMM wants to pick a different HotW, but Cabrera just keeps doing heroic things.

He's playing hurt, number one. We all know that. Then he does something like win Saturday's game with a walk-off home run, and follows it with a homer on the first pitch he sees on Sunday, which got the Tigers rolling. So two pitches, two big home runs, at a time when the feisty Royals had visions of getting to within 4.5 games of first place.

Honorable mentions: Fielder, for a big home run in the first inning on Friday as the news of his impending divorce caused a stir on talk radio and the Internet; Max Scherzer (18-1); and backup catcher Brayan Pena (filling in very admirably for the concussed Alex Avila).

Goat of the Week
When you go 3-for-28 while you are supposed to be the catalyst, you earn GotW "honors."

Austin Jackson, you are MMM's Goat.

A-Jax was virtually invisible, getting two of his three hits on Sunday---his only two hits in the Royals series. His BA slipped to as low as .258 at one point.

The Tigers managed to win three of five from KC, but they lost two of three to Chicago and MMM can't help but wonder if Jackson's vanishing act last week kept the Tigers from another win or two.

Jackson's overall year has been disappointing. MMM had Jackson penciled in for .300 and 12-15 home runs and 20+ steals.

Not gonna happen. Good thing MMM used pencil!

Things are going pretty good at this point, what with a seven-game lead in the division and all, but MMM would like to see Jackson get on base more frequently. Certainly more than 3-for-28.

Under the Microscope
Is Matt Tuiasosopo this year's Quintin Berry?

MMM wonders if this is so. Berry, the speed demon who captured fans' hearts last year when he filled in for an injured Jackson starting in May, has returned to his previous status as a career minor leaguer.

Tuiasosopo had a great spring training, made the big club, and got off to a terrific start. His BA rose to over .330. But he has come crashing back to Earth, and it's doubly tough for him because he doesn't play everyday. MMM noted with interest that even with the lefty Bruce Chen starting on Sunday, Andy Dirks started in LF over the right-handed hitting Tuey.

With cries for the Tigers to call up prospect Nick Castellanos (who is being groomed as a corner outfielder), will they do so before August 31, thus making Castellanos playoff eligible? And what does this do to Tuey's status?

Hence Tuiasosopo being UtM.

Upcoming: Twins, Mets
Remember the Minnesota Twins?

The Tigers have been so busy playing the other teams in the Central, that the Twins have been put on the back burner in recent weeks.

Well, in case you need a quick refresher, the Twins still stink. They just got beaten three straight by the last place White Sox, to show you.

The Twinkies invade Comerica Park Tuesday-Thursday, though when it comes to the Twins, "invade" may be too strong a word. How about...daintily visit?

OK, OK. MMM shouldn't get too cocky.

Tigers starters: Rick Porcello, Anibal Sanchez, Justin Verlander.

The weekend has the Tigers back in New York, but to play the Mets.

The Mets stink, too.

But MMM is eager to see Saturday's game, which promises to match Scherzer with Mets pitching sensation Matt Harvey, who started the All-Star game for the NL.

The Mets still have David Wright, who is having another good season (.309/16/54). Wright's stint on the 15-day DL (hamstring) is due to expire today, so we'll see if he's back in the lineup when the Tigers visit CitiField.

Another interesting player is Marlon Byrd. The right fielder has 19 homers and is hitting a solid .286.

The Mets never really got going this year. They are 56-66 and playing out the string.

Tigers starters: Doug Fister, Scherzer, Porcello.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 17

Last Week: 6-1
This Week:  WAS (7/30/31); CWS (8/2-4)

So, What Happened?

First, MMM would like to say that it's great to be back after a week off, and he appreciates the readers who are sticking around and who have stuck around for the past several years! Thank you all!

Now, on to this week's update...

In 1906 the Chicago White Sox were known affectionately as the "Hitless Wonders" because they managed to win a World Series without much of an offense.

MMM has a nickname for the 2013 White Sox: The Hitless Blunders.

The Tigers took 3 of 4 from the White Sox last week in Chicago, as the South Siders, who are themselves offensively challenged, played some pretty ugly baseball.

The three wins were by scores of 7-3, 6-2, 6-2, and while that looks like a tennis mismatch, it was indeed a baseball massacre. The Tigers handled the White Sox with such ease, it's hard to fathom that Chicago took two of three from the Bengals the week prior.

MMM is salivating at all the games still remaining with the Chisox.

Justin Verlander faltered in the finale on Thursday afternoon. MMM has noticed that this wasn't the first time this season that JV has had a chance to pitch the Tigers to a sweep and has failed mightily. The 10-8 Verlander is again making Tigers fans wring their hands, after a few starts where it looked like he was figuring things out.

Then came the Phillies, and MMM almost feels sorry for their fans. The Phils came to town riding a five-game losing streak and they left with that streak in tact, at eight games.

Sunday's sixth inning, when the Tigers scored eight unearned runs on just two hits, may have been the ugliest display of baseball by a big league team that MMM has ever seen---and he's old enough to remember some pretty bad Tigers teams (i.e. 1975, 1989, 1996 and 2001-03).

MMM doesn't know how Phillies manager Charlie Manuel didn't blow his brains out watching his team soil the field during that sixth inning, which included poor throws, bad decisions, dropped fly balls, wild pitches and a grand slam. The half inning took about 30 minutes to complete, and the Tigers were well on their way to a three-game sweep in which they outscored Philly, 25-4.

Miguel Cabrera, who missed four games last week with a sore hip flexor, was tossed out of Sunday's game in the third inning by a cranky Chad Fairchild, who leads all umpires in ejections this season with eight. The ejection, after Cabrera mumbled and grumbled after two questionable strikes with the bases loaded, stunned everyone, including MMM. Let's hope MLB takes a look at this incident (Fairchild has to submit a report, as all umpires do following ejections) and counsels Fairchild, because that ejection was off the charts.

Hero of the Week
Technically, Victor Martinez is MMM's Hero for the second straight week (no update last week).

V-Mart went 10/28 with eight RBI, lifting his BA to .270. Another .300 season is suddenly back in play, which would be incredible given Victor's slow-as-molasses start.

Martinez's hot July runs parallel to the team's. The Tigers are 16-8 in July, and it's no coincidence that this runs concurrent with Martinez catching fire. There is definitely a cause and effect here.

Now, with V-Mart patching the lineup, the Tigers can hurt you from 1-6 in the batting order (.300 hitter Jhonny Peralta typically hits behind Martinez). Notice how there hasn't been as much talk about the Tigers unable to put teams away offensively? Martinez is a big part of that non-discussion.

Honorable mentions: Doug Fister (shutdown start Friday); Max Scherzer (ditto on Monday and Saturday); Cabrera (if only for swatting a home run on his first swing on Saturday after missing four games).

Goat of the Week
MMM is tempted to name umpire Fairchild here, and so he will.

Look, it was a 6-1 week, so to find a goat would be nitpicking (not that MMM hasn't been known to do that!). So it's a great time to pounce on Fairchild and call him out for a ridiculous example of an umpire being power hungry.

Here's Fairchild's explanation of Cabrera's ejection, per the Detroit Free Press.

“I called strike one, and he began to argue balls and strikes,” Fairchild said. “I warned him to stop, but after the second pitch, he began to argue balls and strikes again — and was removed from the game. What exactly he said will be in our report."

Cabrera could be seen mouthing "That's horrible" on TV replays, which matches what the slugger told FSD after the game. Miggy said that the umpire took that to mean "You called me horrible," and tossed Cabrera out.

MMM has had the opportunity to talk to two big league umpires about ejections in the past (the late Durwood Merrill and Dave Pallone) and they both told MMM that you can have some wiggle room as long as you don't personalize things.

In other words, it should be OK to say "THAT's horrible," but if you say, "YOU'RE horrible," then you can hit the showers.

MMM is eager to see if there's any fallout from this incident.

Under the Microscope
MMM is a little nervous about Austin Jackson.

A-Jax is batting .271, which isn't "horrible" (ha ha), but MMM sees Jackson as a .300 hitter who is underachieving. Jackson was hot just after coming off the disabled list a few weeks ago, but has settled back into a .250-type hitter since the All-Star break.

This week's UtM is a soft one, granted. MMM isn't overly concerned about Jackson, but the center fielder goes under the scope just the same.

Upcoming: Nationals, White Sox
If you like good pitching matchups on paper, you'll love this mini two-game series with Washington at Comerica Park.

The Nats will send Stephen Strasburg (who the Tigers have never faced) and Gio Gonzalez to the mound on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. The Tigers will counter with Anibal Sanchez and Justin Verlander.

Nice!

The Nationals, as you probably know, are among baseball's biggest disappointments in 2013. They continue to muddle along below .500 and are fading from the NL playoff picture. They beat up on the Mets over the weekend, but Washington is still not where they thought they'd be at this point.

The issue has been a lack of consistent hitting.

Only one National is batting over .300 (Jayson Werth, .305). The starting pitching has been a strength (both Strasburg and Gonzalez have an ERA of below 3.00, and Jordan Zimmerman is at 3.19), and closer Rafael Soriano has been solid, despite an awful outing last week against the Pirates (0.1 IP, 2 H, 4 ER).

The Nationals have struggled at the plate, and they have wasted some good pitching performances. Sounds like the Tigers of May and June.

Tigers starters: Sanchez, Verlander.

After Washington's brief appearance (and a second day off in the week), those lovable White Sox return to Comerica Park.

What more can you say about the White Sox? They pretty much only score by hitting home runs. Their defense is leaky, when last year it was pretty damn good. The starting pitching after Chris Sale is suspect. They deserve to be in last place.

The Tigers need to keep beating up on these Hitless Blunders.

Tigers starters: Fister, Scherzer, Rick Porcello.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you in two weeks!

(note: as MMM was writing this, the Tigers acquired Houston Astros closer Jose Veras for minor league OF prospect Danry Vasquez and a player to be named)

Monday Morning Manager: Week 15

Last Week: 4-3
This Week:  All-Star break; at KC (7/19-21)

So, What Happened?

The Tigers played win, lose, win, lose, to the tune of a 4-3 week, which was enough to remain in first place, though the streaky Cleveland Indians are hanging tough, just 1.5 games behind Detroit.

Max Scherzer (gasp!) actually lost a game, but Justin Verlander made up for that by flirting with his third career no-hitter, AGAIN. The Tigers signed a familiar name to a AAA contract (RHP Jeremy Bonderman), and their six-man All-Star contingent hopped a plane to New York following Sunday's game.

MMM wasn't thrilled with a series loss to the Chicago White Sox, but nothing compared to the anger exhibited by manager Jim Leyland, who went ballistic on Thursday afternoon after relief pitcher Luke Putkonen was ejected for throwing behind Chicago's Alexei Ramirez.

So the Tigers week looked like this: WLWLWLW. Not terribly thrilling, but MMM will always take a winning week.

Hero of the Week
MMM is getting that 2011 feeling. Specifically, when it comes to DH Victor Martinez.

V-Mart continued his torrid (lately) hitting with a 12-for-27 week, which included a homer and six RBI. He has raised his average, which has been in the tank all year, to .258.

In fact, Martinez smacked 10 hits in his first four games last week, truly making the Tigers 3-4-5 hitters something to fear, as was hoped back in spring training.

Martinez is back to spraying the ball to all fields and he appears locked in. MMM kind of wishes the All-Star break wasn't here, given V-Mart's hot bat as of late.

The performance is reminiscent of two years ago, when Martinez followed Miggy Cabrera in the batting order and racked up over 100 RBI.

Honorable mentions: Verlander (for his bounce back start on Sunday after falling apart late in Tuesday's outing); Cabrera (as usual); and Torii Hunter.

Goat of the Week
It was another non-productive week for Andy Dirks, who has had a lot of them this season.

Dirks was 1-for-11 and is not showing any signs of being able to lift his BA out of the .240s.

Dirks peaked at .251 briefly last week, but has sunk back to his more regular .243.

Meanwhile, Dirks' tag team partner in LF, Matt Tuiasosopo, continues to make the most of his playing time---which has been mainly against LHP. "Tui" delivered a big single with two outs on Sunday, on an 0-2 count, to drive in a run and give Verlander some breathing room. And, bonus: it came against a RHP.

MMM was glad to see Leyland refrain from lifting Tui for Dirks in that situation.

Dirks was supposed to have a breakout year and seize control of LF. Hasn't come close to happening this year. MMM placed Dirks Under the Microscope last week, and the 1-for-11 demoted Andy to Goat status this week.

Dishonorable mention: the umpiring crew on Thursday, which totally botched the Chris Sale-Fielder-Putkonen-Ramirez deal.

Under the Microscope
(with only three games this week, MMM will skip UtM in this update)

Upcoming: Royals
The Kansas City Royals did the Tigers no favors this past weekend, getting swept in Cleveland.

But as MMM has pointed out in the past, the Royals never seem to be a pushover for the Tigers, especially in Kansas City.

MMM looks at the first week or so of games after the All-Star break like he does an NBA game after halftime. In the NBA, whichever team controls the start of the third quarter often wins the game. In baseball's case, the team that comes out of the All-Star break slumping, usually dooms itself in the pennant chase.

The Indians have had issues post-All-Star break the past two years. The Tigers, under Jim Leyland, used to have a bad reputation for being second half scoundrels.

The Tigers could really use a 2-1 weekend (or better!) in Kansas City, when their pack of All-Stars reunite with their teammates.

Tigers starters: Anibal Sanchez, Verlander, Doug Fister.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you in two weeks!

(Note: there will be no MMM next Monday, since the Tigers are only playing three games this week)

Monday Morning Manager: Week 14

Last Week: 5-2
This Week:  at Cle (7/8); CWS (7/9-11); TEX (7/12-14)

So, What Happened?

Remember just a week ago, when the Tigers' lead in the Central Division had evaporated, and the 11-game road trip had gotten off to a 1-3 start, and it looked like your world was collapsing around you?

That was SO last week.

Since then, the Tigers went on a five-game winning streak, assured themselves of a winning record on the road trip, and re-established their might in the division.

Not bad.

Max Scherzer went to 13-0, Miggy Cabrera continues to be a hitting machine, and Torii Hunter flirted with a cycle. Justin Verlander might be back on track. Victor Martinez is hitting. Omar Infante is sitting.

SIX Tigers (there might be a seventh, if Joaquin Benoit wins the fan vote) made the All-Star team, which was announced over the weekend.

What a week it was!

Hero of the Week
Usually when a guy is going for the cycle, the last hit he needs is the hardest one---the triple.

But Torii Hunter needed only a single in Saturday's game to achieve the rare feat.

Hunter didn't get it---he grounded out in his final at-bat---but that doesn't change the week that he had, which was outstanding.

Maybe he got stoked by being hit by a pitch in Toronto, which really ticked him off. MMM doesn't ever remember Hunter getting that enraged on the field.

Regardless, Hunter went 12-for-27 for the week, scored five runs, smacked two homers and had 11 RBI.

That's a Cabrera-like week.

Hunter looked every bit the All-Star he was named, functioning as the perfect No. 2 hitter behind Austin Jackson and ahead of Miggy.

Cabrera had awesome numbers as well last week---frankly, maybe better ones than Hunter---but we all know what Miggy does for the Tigers. The team's success is more tied to the supporting players like Hunter. Cabrera can't win the division by himself.

Honorable mentions: Cabrera; Verlander, Martinez, Rick Porcello (fine outing Friday).

Goat of the Week
What is going on with Douglas Fister?

Fister seems to be the weak link in the Tigers' rotation of late.

For the second straight start, Fister allowed six runs, in Sunday's loss in Cleveland. Granted, the Tigers came back with a fury to tie the game 6-6 after falling behind 6-1, but still...

Fister admits that something is wrong.

"It’s obviously something that needs to be addressed,” Fister said. “I’ll sit down with Jeff (the pitching coach, Jeff Jones) and get his opinions. I’ll look at video.”

Fister needs to get it fixed, because with the Tigers' offense being consistently inconsistent, they need all hands on deck when it comes to their starting pitchers.

Under the Microscope
Will the 2012 Andy Dirks please stand up?

Dirks, the Tigers scuffling left fielder, continues to be mired in the .240s and showing no real signs of breaking out. He had an OK week last weekm closing 5-for-13 in Cleveland, but Dirks has just six homers, and MMM was expecting much more; Dirks should be a 15-20 home run guy.

MMM is placing Dirks UtM because the Tigers need more offense from their left fielder.

The situation bears observing because the trade deadline is about three weeks away. Might the Tigers deal for a veteran hitter to play LF?

It's not terribly likely, because Dirks is cheaper and he is still young. The Tigers certainly believe he can return to his 2012 form (.322 BA, .370 OBP). Currently he's at .249/.313.

Still, MMM is putting Dirks under the scope because it's not early anymore; Dirks has 265 at-bats this season.

Upcoming: Indians, White Sox, Rangers
The Tigers, even if they lose Monday in Cleveland, are assured of a winning road trip. They sit at 6-4 right now.

But to win Monday would be huge; it would give the Tigers a 3.5-game lead over the Tribe, as opposed to 1.5 if the Indians win.

Scherzer goes for 14-0, and what a way to get it, if he does---by ending a road trip with a 7-4 record and a 3.5-game lead in the division.

After the game in Cleveland, MMM would like to re-introduce you to that team that plays on the South Side of Chicago.

Yes, the White Sox really do exist. They're not a rumor.

It's easy to forget the Chisox. First, the Tigers have yet to play them this season in a weird scheduling quirk. Second, the Sox are buried in last place. They are on pace to lose well over 90 games.

But they really do exist. Which is more than MMM can say about their offense.

The White Sox struggle mightily to score runs. If they don't hit home runs, they usually don't score at all. It's a mess that might cost second-year manager Robin Ventura his job; stay tuned.

Tigers starters: Verlander, Porcello, Anibal Sanchez (who pitched well in his first start on Saturday, after spending time on the DL).

The Texas Rangers are in a dogfight in the AL West.

The Rangers are one-half game behind the first-place Oakland A's and playing solid baseball. The Rangers took three of four from the Tigers in Texas earlier this season.

As usual, the Rangers will come to town loaded with big bats, strong pitching---especially their bullpen---and exceptional defense. And they still carry the stigma in Detroit of being the team that ousted the Tigers from the playoffs in 2011.

Tigers starters: Fister, Scherzer, Verlander.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 13

Last Week: 1-5
This Week:  at Tor (7/1-4); at Cle (7/5-7)

So, What Happened?

Many years ago, when John McKay was wisecracking his way through the back end of his football coaching career, guiding the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he spoke of the difficulties his team was having in both away and home games.

"We will go at them next week at Tampa Stadium. We have now proven that we can't win on the road or at home. So we would like to play at a neutral site."

The same could be said of the Tigers. Last week they proved that not only do they have trouble on the road (17-21), they now can't play at home either, apparently (swept by the Angels).

So maybe our Tigers could use a neutral site?

Not gonna happen, as the 11-game road trip continues in full bore. It ain't gonna get any easier, folks.

Last week the Tigers got swept at home by the Angels, who despite being well under .500 are 6-0 against Detroit this season, with several blowout victories included. Then it was a 1-2 weekend in Tampa, which included some mini-fireworks when it comes to beanballs, in the matter of Miguel Cabrera being brush backed on Saturday by Tampa's Fernando Rodney and Ben Zobrist getting plunked in the first inning by Rick Porcello on Sunday.

It added up to a 1-5 week with a still leaky bullpen, an offense still scuffling (especially after the seventh inning) and a fan base wringing its hands over a 5.5-game lead that has totally dissipated thanks to the hot Cleveland Indians.

And seven road games this week against two sizzling teams.

Squirming in your seat yet?

Hero of the Week
Thank goodness for Max Scherzer.

If there were any questions as to who the Tigers new (albeit maybe temporary) ace is, they were answered last week, as Scherzer recorded the team's only win of the week and improved to 12-0.

It was good enough for MMM to name Max the Hero for the second week in a row.

Scherzer was strong once again in Tampa on Friday, although he did nearly fritter away a 4-0 lead. But he made the pitches when he needed to make them, struck out another bunch of hitters, and showed why he might be, at the moment, the best pitcher in baseball.

MMM wonders if the Tigers would have gone 0-6 had Scherzer not been one of the starters last week.

Honorable mentions: Miguel Cabrera, who hit two homers on Friday and another bomb on Sunday, giving him five roundtrippers for the week; and Brayan Pena, who continues to play solid baseball as the de facto #1 catcher in Alex Avila's absence.

Goat of the Week
There are some low hanging fruit that MMM could pick after a 1-5 week.

Phil Coke, for losing the extra innings game on Thursday afternoon. The defense, for a six-error atrocity in another of the games in the Angels series. Prince Fielder, who is not-so-quietly having an annoying season. Andy Dirks, who is regressing.

But MMM is going with the Tigers offense as a whole.

The team is among the bottom feeders when it comes to run production from the seventh inning and beyond. That kind of puzzling lack of success, combined with the tricky bullpen, is why the Tigers have lost 10 games this season in which they held the lead in the seventh inning or later. They're like the reverse 1968 Tigers in that regard.

It's not a recipe for success, if you consider yourself a World Series contender.

The Tigers will score 10 runs one game, and one the next. Or maybe they'll just score three or four runs several games in a row. Regardless, it's not an offense humming along right now. Here's another stat: the Tigers are averaging 4.3 runs per game on the road. That's not going to cut it, especially with such a hefty payroll. Owner Mike Ilitch didn't sign off on all those big checks to get this kind of piddly offense.

In fact, if you take away that big four-game offensive series in Houston, the Tigers are averaging about 3.5 runs per game on the road.

Last week the team couldn't get a clutch hit to save its soul, especially in the late innings. The Tigers, with Thursday's loss, fell to 2-9 in extra innings games, and that's not a phony, funky stat. They have earned that 2-9 record with a lack of clutch hitting from the seventh inning on, and a bullpen that often surrenders the go-ahead/winning runs in the 10th inning, not giving the offense a real chance to win the game.

Under the Microscope
MMM is annoyed with Prince Fielder.

The overall numbers for Prince look OK (13/62/.274/.840 OPS), but MMM can't help but think there should be more in the power department. Fielder is slugging .469, and that's pretty good. But he only has 12 home runs, which is a pace for about 25 or 26.

Didn't you expect 30+ homers from Prince this year?

MMM knows there is still an entire second half of the season to play. And, the overall numbers are solid. But the batting average is about 30 points lower than it was in 2012, so there is definitely something tangible to be concerned about.

MMM considered putting Andy Dirks under the scope, but Fielder's worth is much greater, so when he's off, it affects the team more.

Fielder should be lighting it up more in the home run department. And he's a better hitter than .274. The fact that the man behind him, Victor Martinez, isn't on fire shouldn't matter, because last year Martinez wasn't there at all. Guys like Delmon Young were hitting fifth last year.

Upcoming: Blue Jays, Indians
As MMM said earlier, the schedule isn't taking any pity on a Tigers team that has lost its way---and its division lead.

Seven games in Toronto and Cleveland are proof of that.

Both of the Tigers' opponents this week are hot.

The Jays recently had an 11-game winning streak, though they have cooled off slightly after that. The Indians have won 14 of 19.

And both teams will sure to be not so generous hosts, if they can help it.

The Tigers are coming to town---limping and licking their wounds.

The question MMM has for you is this: Will the Tigers still be in first place, or tied for it, when MMM prepares next week's update?

Despite their recent heat, the Jays remain in last place in a tightly bunched AL East. They got off to such a bad start, they are having difficulty digging themselves out. The 11-game winning streak only served to get Toronto above .500, albeit briefly (they are 40-41 now).

The big guns for Toronto, as usual, are 1B/DH Edwin Encarnacion (23/66/.270/.887 OPS) and RF Jose Bautista (19/49/.254/.852). Don't forget 1B Adam Lind, who's batting .327.

The Jays signed off on one of the most risky free agent signings last winter when they gave big money to veteran knuckleballer R.A. Dickey. After a horrific start, Dickey has settled a little, but is still only 7-8 with a 4.72 ERA. However, in his last start at Tampa, Dickey threw a complete game, two-hit shutout.

But Dickey's 4.72 ERA is actually the lowest of the Jays' regular starting pitchers.

Tigers starters: Jose Alvarez, Doug Fister, Scherzer, Justin Verlander.

A "wrap-around" series is next, in Cleveland (Friday thru Monday).

The Indians must have this upcoming series circled on their calendar.

You don't win a division in July, but you sure can make a statement. MMM is well aware of the Tribe's propensity for second half swoons, but you can't count on that every year. Right now the Indians have righted themselves after a late-May nosedive.

Cleveland's Jason Kipnis is quietly turning in a fine year. The 2B is hitting .299 with 12 homers (same amount as Fielder!) and 51 RBI. Kipnis also has 19 stolen bases in 24 attempts. He strikes out a lot, but his .917 OPS is nothing to sneeze at.

Nick Swisher might be a nice addition for his veteran savvy and playoff experience, but the switch-hitting 1B/OF is just at 8/29/.235/.739 for the year.

Tigers starters: Porcello, Alvarez (unless Anibal Sanchez is cleared), Fister.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 12

Last Week: 4-3
This Week:  LAA (6/25-27); at TB (6/28-30)

So, What Happened?

The Tigers played two of the best and hottest teams in the American League and came away with a 4-3 record. MMM will take that and run. The Tigers hold a solid four-game lead in the AL Central over the getting-hot Cleveland Indians.

MMM was a little uneasy, however, when the week began with the Tigers dropping two of three to the Baltimore Orioles, including a 13-3 blowout in Wednesday's series finale. Maybe our Bengals aren't ready for prime time, after all, MMM wondered.

Those fears were quelled when the Tigers bounced back, big time, to swipe three of four games from the Boston Red Sox over the weekend, scoring 27 runs in the process after plating just 10 runners in the three Orioles games.

Papa Grande, aka Jose Valverde, got the much requested (by fans) DFA (designated for assignment) on Friday. This means that if Valverde isn't claimed off waivers by today, he either will accept a minor league assignment at Toledo, or he can request his release.

In the meanwhile, manager Jim Leyland kinda, sorta, named Joaquin Benoit as his new closer, if the stars and the moon align the right way that particular day.

Questions still surround the perplexing Justin Verlander, who turned in two "meh" performances last week.

And at least one Red Sox player knows what Calvin Johnson must feel like when it comes to "completing" a catch.

Hero of the Week
All hail Mad Max!

Pitcher Max Scherzer won two games last week in impressive (again) fashion, to run his season record to 11-0. Max became the first Tigers pitcher to start a season 11-0 since George Mullin did it in 1909---and one of those Mullin victories came in relief.

Scherzer's blossoming, combined with Verlander's struggles, has seemingly vaulted Max into the ace's role, albeit certainly without the actual title---so far. Right now, it's kind of being whispered, as if the fans don't want to tick off JV.

Scherzer took care of the Red Sox on Saturday night, pumping the strike zone and turning in another intimidating performance.

You need a ton of luck to be 11-0, and in Max's case, it starts with run support. For whatever reason, whenever Scherzer toes the rubber, the Tigers score a LOT. The team is averaging over seven runs per game in games started by Mad Max.

But the irony is that Scherzer doesn't really need all those runs. His ERA is a quiet 3.05, with a thin WHIP (walks + hits/per innings pitched) of 0.91. His strikeouts-to-walks ratio is an incredible 122-to-24.

MMM thinks Scherzer should be the starter in the All-Star Game for the American League, even if the choice would be made by his own manager, Leyland, who is skippering the squad.

How can you argue with 11-0?

Of course, the ASG is several weeks away, and Scherzer's bubble could burst by then. But as of now, Max gets MMM's vote, for whatever that's worth.

Honorable mentions: Prince Fielder, for breaking out of a mini-slump in the clutch on Sunday; Victor Martinez, for a well-timed grand slam on Saturday and a whale of a defensive play on Sunday; and Austin Jackson, who continues to play great baseball after his lengthy absence due to his hamstring.

Goat of the Week
Guess what? No Valverde or Alex Avila in this space this week!

Valverde's implosion on Wednesday wasn't crucial---all it did was turn a 9-3 deficit into a 13-3 one. So that's not enough to make him last week's goat. And Avila was placed on the DL after being hit by a pitch a week ago Sunday.

So MMM turns his lonely eyes to pitcher Doug Fister, who didn't give the Tigers a chance at winning on Friday night with this line: 3.1 IP, 11 H, 6 R/ER, 0 strikeouts.

The poor outing raised Fister's ERA from 3.21 to 3.66, just like that.

Fister fooled no one on Friday, and even though that's a fine Red Sox lineup, Fister wasn't close to keeping the game in hand.

Under the Microscope
Even manager Jim Leyland is acknowledging that Justin Verlander is having command issues.

“It’s not a stuff issue or anything else," Leyland told the press on Sunday after Verlander's latest shaky outing (5 IP, 7 H, 4 R/ER). "It’s command issues. Today, none of the repertoire was really getting it where he wanted it to go.”

Verlander agreed with his manager's assessment.

“The command is definitely not there,” Verlander said. “Just trying to find it. It’s one of those things where you have to find it, and when it clicks, it clicks. Don’t try to press too much. Just go out there and continue to do the work that I know has made me the pitcher that I am.”

All of it adds up to Verlander being placed under MMM's scope for the second time in recent weeks.

How can Verlander not be under the scope? We're almost through June and JV's ERA is inching toward 4.00. He's not making hitters buckle with his devastating curve ball, nor does he have that same swagger, which was pointed out by FSD's Rod Allen during Sunday's broadcast.

Yet Verlander is still 8-5 and could still win close to 20 games if he returns to his old self soon.

But to watch Verlander labor through start after start---he seemed to have gotten it together two starts ago in Kansas City---makes MMM wince. This simply isn't the Justin Verlander we're used to seeing around these parts. 

Here's hoping Verlander's second stay under the scope does the trick.

Upcoming: Angels, Rays
The Tigers owe the Los Angeles Angels.

The Halos swept the Tigers out west in April. This week, the Angels invade Detroit for a three-game set that starts on Tuesday.

It's OK, though, to feel a little sorry for the Angels. Starting with Albert Pujols and ending with C.J. Wilson and Josh Hamilton, the Angels have spent money like mad and have very little to show for it.

The Angels are 33-43 and Hamilton, specifically, is a big reason why the club is struggling.

Hamilton is being jeered by Angels fans, and with good reason. He is hitting .207 with 10 homers, 25 RBI, and 76 strikeouts in 275 at-bats. He is a shadow of his MVP-type self of just a few years ago. Hamilton's OPS is a very pedestrian (and shocking) .640.

Pujols isn't much better (.258/13/47/.777). He is another expensive free agent signee who is clearly on the back end of his career.

Mike Trout is still being Mike Trout, but the Angels simply are not a good baseball team right now.

Tigers starters: Rick Porcello, Jose Alvarez, Fister.

MMM gets nervous whenever the Tampa Bay Rays are the opponent.

The Rays roster never really bowls you over, but they always manage to stay in the hunt because of three things: pitching, Evan Longoria and skipper Joe Maddon.

The Rays are 39-37 and tied for last in the AL East, but they are only five games out of first place in that packed-like-sardines division.

Longoria (.304/17/47/.930) is having another fine year. The series in Tampa this weekend will give the Tigers their first look at much-ballyhooed rookie Will Myers, whose first MLB homer was a grand slam in Yankee Stadium off CC Sabathia last week.

Don't forget 1B James Loney, who came over as a free agent and is batting .304. Loney is a severe upgrade from last year's 1B production for Tampa---Carlos Pena and his .197 BA in 2012.

The big story last week in Tampa (other than Myers' grand slam) was the condition of starting pitcher Alex Cobb, who was felled by a line drive to the head a week ago Sunday and who was placed on the 7-day concussion DL.

Cobb (6-2, 3.01 ERA) texted teammates after the scary incident (hit in right ear by a line drive off the bat of KC's Eric Hosmer) that he was doing fine, other than a headache.

Maddon continues to be at the head of the class (or near the head) when it comes to active big league managers. He alone is a big reason why the Rays manage to stay in contention despite being in a tough division.

Tigers starters: Scherzer, Verlander, Porcello.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 11

Last Week: 3-3
This Week:  BAL (6/17-19); BOS (6/20-23)

So, What Happened?

MMM would like to ask: do you see the glass as half full or half empty?

If you do the latter, then you are likely still grumbling over a 3-3 week that could very easily have been 4-2. If you do the former, then you're fine with a .500 road trip.

MMM doesn't believe in crying over spilled milk. In a 162-game season, there are going to be plenty of games you win that you maybe shouldn't, and vice-versa. You'll drive yourself crazy if you play the "we should be 4-2 instead of 3-3" thing.

Still, MMM empathizes with those still reeling over Jose Valverde's malfeasance last Wednesday.

Papa Grande's stunning (even for him) blown save on Wednesday in Kansas City---surrendering a two-out, two-run, game-tying homer to Lorenzo Cain on an 0-2 pitch---which eventually led to a 10th inning walk-off loss, sent Tiger Town into a tizzy. MMM thought Twitter was going to crash.

The blown save robbed Justin Verlander, who pitched magnificently, of a victory, but more importantly it seemed to really deflate the Tigers. MMM didn't like the body language after the Cain homer, and the feeble at-bats in the top of the 10th reinforced the thinking that the team had given up on that game, having had their heart ripped out yet again.

The rest of the week was pretty good---a series win in Minnesota and more well-pitched games by the starters. There was a bit of a concern, when Anibal Sanchez, who had skipped a turn due to shoulder stiffness, was a shell of himself on Saturday. His velocity was barely 90 on his fastball, and he was wild. He didn't make it through the fourth inning.

Torii Hunter slammed his 300th career homer on Sunday, and there was much irony. Hunter's first career home run came in Detroit, as a member of the Twins. His 300th came in Minnesota as a member of the Tigers. MMM loves that kind of stuff. Very cool.

Oh, and Austin Jackson returned from his lengthy absence due to his hamstring issues.

Hero of the Week
Hold on to your Tiger hats. MMM is about to name Don Kelly as HotW.

How about this for a two-week HotW run at MMM: rookie pitcher Jose Alvarez and 24th man Don Kelly?

MMM thinks you'd have made a bundle on that, had you bet it in Las Vegas---not that Vegas will touch an MMM line.

So why Don Kelly?

Kelly went 4-for-7 last week in limited playing time (Kelly's playing time is always limited). He again played well defensively, and each of his four hits seemed to come at the right time. Kelly only had one RBI, but he kept innings going and he wasn't a feeble, easy out (*cough* Alex Avila *cough*).

Besides, how can you not like a guy who plays the game with a perpetual "Aw, shucks" grin on his face?

Kelly's good week is actually a trend. His BA is up to .227, which may not seem like much, but for a while it was in the low .100s. He is 7-for-18 in his past 10 games.

MMM says to the Kelly haters: shove it up your sanitary hose!

Honorable mentions: Jackson, who gathered four hits over the weekend in his return from injury; Doug Fister, who brought a no-hitter into the sixth inning on Sunday; and Ricky Porcello for his fine start on Friday night.

Goat of the Week
Sigh.

MMM is considering just rotating Alex Avila and Valverde in this space, week to week.

Actually, last week's goat was Valverde, so MMM is eschewing the rotation and naming Pape Grande the goat two weeks in a row.

Why not? Wednesday's blown save was brutal. The 0-2 pitch to Cain was like a batting practice pitch, and gave MMM ghoulish thoughts of the ninth inning of Game 1 of the 2012 ALCS in New York.

Losses like Wednesday's, if you have too many of them, can ruin clubhouse harmony.

MMM also thinks that if Valverde is GotW, then GM Dave Dombrowski is the assistant goat.

It is DD, after all, who puts the roster together. And it is DD who took owner Mike Ilitch's star-studded, expensive roster and put its faith in the hands of a rookie closer. When that didn't pan out in spring training, the Tigers were stuck. They ended up re-signing Valverde, who no one else in MLB touched with a 10-foot pole. Now, here we are.

Under the Microscope
It's never good when a starting pitcher is under the scope. It's even worse when it's due to something physical.

But MMM sadly places Anibal Sanchez under the scope because of his curious shoulder.

MMM was very concerned when Sanchez couldn't top 90 mph on the radar gun Saturday in Minnesota. It was Sanchez's first start since skipping one due to "tightness" in his shoulder.

Even scarier, Sanchez says he feels fine physically, i.e. he feels no pain. Yet he dropped about four mph on his fastball. Very strange.

Even manager Jim Leyland concedes that he's "concerned" about Sanchez, he of the very expensive off-season contract.

As of this writing, the Tigers haven't said whether Sanchez will be skipped this week (he is scheduled to start Thursday against Boston), but MMM wouldn't be surprised if a trip to the DL awaits the right-hander.

Stay tuned.

Upcoming: Orioles, Red Sox
NOW it's baseball season!

With all due respect to the Indians, Royals and Twins, this week is what it's all about.

Seven games against two beasts of the East---the Orioles and Red Sox---at Comerica Park. The kids are out of school. Please place your trays in the upright position and make sure your seatbelt is fastened!

THIS is baseball at CoPa!

The Orioles and the Red Sox are two teams that can pitch, can hit, and can beat the stuffing out of you if you're not going to bring your "A" game. That they are playing the Tigers in Detroit, where visitors have a tough time winning, won't bother these teams. Baltimore is 20-15 away from Camden Yards, while the Red Sox are 21-15 on the road.

The Orioles are led, offensively, by 1B Chris Davis, who is the O's version of Miguel Cabrera.

Davis is .335/23/60 and has on OPS of 1.111. He is 27 years old and could be a scary guy for a long time. But, unlike Cabrera, Davis strikes out a lot---about once every 3.5 at-bats.

3B Manny Machado (.327) is also dangerous, as are young veterans like Adam Jones, J.J. Hardy and Nick Markakis.

Starter Jason Hammel (he starts Tuesday) has won seven games, but his ERA is north of 5.00. Chris Tillman is the O's other seven-game winner (3.61 ERA).

Tigers starters: Max Scherzer (trying to go 10-0), Justin Verlander, Porcello.

The Red Sox (42-29, first place in the AL East) come into town for, as George Kell would say, "a big four-game weekend series."

Boston got off to a jackrabbit start in April, cooled a bit in May, but are back to playing good baseball again. They hold a 1.5-game lead over the second place Orioles.

Big Papi, David Ortiz, has 14 homers and is showing no signs of age catching up to him. Dustin Pedroia is batting .319 and is still arguably the Red Sox' heart and soul.

The Red Sox average over five runs scored per game and their batting order is filled with outs that you have to earn.

Boston has their own 9-0 pitcher---Clay Buchholz, whose ERA is 1.71. But Buchholz has a neck injury, hasn't pitched since June 8, and could be headed for the 15-day DL. So he may not face the Tigers this weekend.

The Red Sox starting rotation, after Buchholz, is spotty, but has veterans John Lackey, Ryan Dempster and Jon Lester in it. These are professional pitchers who don't panic.

No closer issues in Boston, where Andrew Bailey (eight saves, 2.95 ERA) is doing just fine.

These are not your 2012, dysfunctional Red Sox. Mainly because they are not being managed by Bobby Valentine.

Tigers starters: Sanchez (maybe), Fister, Scherzer, Verlander.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 9

Last Week: 2-5
This Week:  TB (6/4-6); CLE (6/7-9)

So, What Happened?

First, MMM would like to apologize for his absence last week. The Memorial Day holiday proved too much, so hence the lack of an update last week. As Jim Leyland said after Sunday's loss in Baltimore, "This one's on me."

Now, on to this week's update!

It wasn't the best of weeks.

The Tigers' inability to get a clutch hit cost them early in the week, and the inability to get a clutch out proved their demise as the week ended.

The result: some 2-5 nastiness, and what's worse, it could very easily have been 5-2, if not better.

The sometimes leaky bullpen and this team's maddening inconsistency on offense were on full display last week.

MMM looked longingly at the arms out of the bullpen the Pittsburgh Pirates trotted out for four games and became quite jealous---though it's debatable whether the Bucs' pen can keep up the pace for 162 games.

The Tigers come home for six games this week. They are 17-9 at home and 13-16 on the road.

Hero of the Week
MMM wants to give a shout out to Jhonny Peralta.

JP has probably had better weeks than the one just passed (10-for-27, 5 RBI, .370) but the Tigers shortstop continues to fly under the radar, so it's time for some love. He has settled nicely into the #6 slot in the batting order by virtue of his .332 average. He strikes out a lot, but that's more than made up for by his nifty OBA of .378 and his OPS of .865.

As for his glove, Peralta exudes quiet calm and a deadly accurate arm.

He started the week by going 4-for-4 against the Pirates last Monday and ended it with back-to-back two-hit games against Baltimore.

MMM is naming Peralta HotW not only for his performance last week, but as a way to give a nod to a player whose production has done a great job of extending innings and making the entire batting order look more intimidating, one through nine.

Honorable mentions: Tigers starting pitchers in general; Prince Fielder (HRs in consecutive games in Baltimore).

Goat of the Week
MMM appreciates Leyland wanting to take the blame for Sunday's loss, but MMM isn't taking the bait.

Instead, MMM is hurling his ire at 2B Omar Infante, who labored through a 4-for-26 week.

MMM feels bad, because Infante has been terrific this season. But this is a weekly "award," and using that as the measuring stick, Infante didn't get it done.

Infante is a great fastball hitter, but last week he missed on some and got discombobulated on breaking balls. The week started 0-for-11 for him, and got a little better, with a 4-for-15 finish.

MMM wonders if Infante's being moved from his standard no. 9 position in the batting order, in light of Austin Jackson's injury, is impacting his hitting approach. Just a thought. Infante has batted lead-off and no. 2 in A-Jax's absence. Regardless, the Tigers need Jackson back, badly.

Dishonorable mention: Jose Valverde, for his meltdown on Friday night in Baltimore.

Under the Microscope
MMM is loathe to do this, because it's like saying Red Wings goaltending is UtM during the playoffs (a hackneyed phrase), but it's hard not to place Jose Valverde under the scope.

Not only did Valvderde blow Friday night's game in grand fashion (two homers and four runs), his reliance on one pitch has people nervous, and rightly so.

Valverde debuted with the Tigers in 2013 when the weather was still cold and nasty. Hitters were sometimes having trouble in such conditions. Now, things are warming up and hitters are having better luck with Papa Grande's fastball.

If you think the Tigers' closer situation is settled for the rest of the year, MMM says you might be chewing too much tobacco.

Keep your good eye on Valverde. You won't be alone.

Upcoming: Rays, Indians
An interesting week awaits the Bengals.

First it's those pesky Tampa Bay Rays, who just keep finding ways to win enough games (31-25) to remain very relevant in a tight AL East, despite losing starter James Shields.

Part of that ability to win games is due to starters Matt Moore (8-0) and Alex Cobb (6-2).

Both have ERAs well under 3.00, and their combined 14 wins account for nearly half of the team's total.

The Tigers are scheduled to see both the lefty Moore and the right-hander Cobb this week.

Offensively, it always starts with 3B Evan Longoria, and this year is no exception. Longo is hitting .305 with 10 HR and 34 RBI. 1B James Loney, signed as a free agent during the off-season, paces Tampa with a .326 BA.

Longoria, Kelly Johnson and old friend Matt Joyce all have 10 HR for the Rays.

Tigers starters: Anibal Sanchez, Doug Fister, Max Scherzer.

After the Rays, the Tigers' 2013 nemesis, the Cleveland Indians, arrive for a weekend set.

It looks like if any team is going to challenge the Tigers for AL Central supremacy this season, it will be Cleveland.

The Indians, despite a suspect starting rotation, are being allowed to hang around. The Tribe hasn't exactly been playing lights out baseball lately (4-9), and MMM still can't believe that 42-year-old Jason Giambi is Cleveland's DH. But the Indians sport young talent like Michael Bourn, Michael Brantley, Carlos Santana and Jason Kipnis. And the Tribe's bullpen, especially in the eighth and ninth innings, is as good as it gets (although closer Chris Perez will miss the series, as he is on the DL).

And look who's hitting .296 for Cleveland---Ryan Raburn!

But MMM can't get past that Indians starting rotation.

Eight pitchers have already started games for Cleveland, including re-treads like Scott Kazmir and Brett Myers. The anchor is Justin Masterson (8-3, 3.07), who the Tigers will see this weekend. But other than Masterson and Zach McAllister (4-5, 3.43), the Tribe's rotation is suspect at best.

Tigers starters: Justin Verlander, Rick Porcello, Sanchez.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 7

Last Week: 3-4
This Week:  at Cle (5/21-22); MIN (5/23-26)

So, What Happened?

Toto, I don't think the Tigers are playing Houston anymore.

The Tigers are 6-1 against the Astros, and 23-19 overall. MMM will save you the math. That's 17-18 against the rest of baseball.

Not ridiculous, but maybe a little troubling?

Last week was a microcosm of sorts. The Tigers went 2-1 against Houston, 1-3 against the rest of baseball. Correction---the best of baseball.

Gee, those Texas Rangers can hit, eh?

The Rangers looked at the Tigers' glorified starting rotation and gave a Texas-sized laugh.

The Rangers scored 29 runs against our boys last weekend, and that's numbing, considering Justin Verlander, Anibal Sanchez and Doug Fister combined pitched about 11 innings in their starts.

That's impressive hitting.

Before the horrid weekend in Texas, the Tigers beat down the Astros twice more before finally losing to Houston on Wednesday afternoon, when the Stros managed two runs in the top of the ninth to win, 7-5.

Oh, and some guy named Cabrera hit three home runs on Sunday night, each more impressive than the previous one. The Tigers still lost in one of the most frustrating games MMM has ever watched.

To make matters worse, the Tigers fell out of first place. The (gulp) Cleveland Indians are in the catbird's seat, by two games.

Hero of the Week
MMM was struck by something FSD's Rod Allen said during a recent broadcast.

Allen said he was chatting with Tigers legend and Hall of Famer Al Kaline. Allen asked Kaline if he'd seen anyone like Cabrera---whether teammate or someone Kaline played against. Now, we're talking 60 years of MLB (Kaline debuted in 1953).

Kaline flatly told Rod that no, he's never seen anyone who can do the things with the bat that Cabrera can do.

MMM thinks that if someone like Al Kaline puts you in a class by yourself, then that's saying something.

MMM is making Miggy HotW largely for his three-homer effort on Sunday, but he had a good week other than that. Heck, Miggy always seems to have a good week, eh?

Cabrera went 12/28 (.429) with four homers, seven RBI and seven runs scored.

Just another week at the office.

Cabrera's performance on Sunday night was amazing.

The third homer, especially---a pitch that jammed him near his wrists, yet was driven over the CF wall---was jaw-dropping. The ESPN announcers, Orel Hershiser and John Kruk, were beside themselves.

"Aw, heck, he's just better than everyone else. Let's just go with that," Kruk said finally.

Miggy is, and he was again for the Tigers last week.

Honorable mentions: Don Kelly (for filling in admirably in CF and knocking a homer); rookie RHP Evan Kelly (two strong outings in Texas).

Goat of the Week
Where would you like MMM to start?

There was suspect fielding, bad pitching, and questionable decisions---and most of that happened in the seventh inning on Sunday night alone.

It wasn't the greatest of weeks.

MMM is going to name, as a trio, Verlander, Sanchez and Fister as co-Goats.

The Tigers' Big Three of Four (don't forget Mad Max Scherzer) simply didn't get it done against Texas. They didn't come close to slowing the Rangers down, and JV and Fister had leads with which to work and let their respective games slip away.

Ugly starts from those three guys.

The bullpen, as a result, got drained, and thank goodness for Monday's off day, to allow those arms to rest.

Look, the big boys have to be the big boys and they have to take the heat when they don't get the job done. Verlander, Sanchez and Fister let the Tigers down, big time, in a "measuring stick" series.

Under the Microscope
MMM is too lazy to pore over the archives, but this week may be a first.

Justin Verlander, meet the microscope.

Twitter and MLive's comments section are aflutter with worries about JV. Is his velocity down for a reason? Why have his last two starts been so bad? Is he going south?

MMM would like everyone to exhale, but still thinks Verlander should be scrutinized.

Why?

Well, the last two starts have been rough. Thursday's was downright ridiculous.

Plus, the storied fastball seems to have abandoned Verlander, mainly from a command standpoint.

MMM thinks that Verlander gets too amped up sometimes, and the much-ballyhooed match-up between JV and Texas' Yu Darvish on Thursday qualifies as one of those "big games" that sometimes gets Verlander to do too much.

He overthrows. He walks guys (walked in TWO on Thursday). He throws too many pitches. He gives up hits on 0-2 counts. And so on.

That's what happened on Thursday, and JV wasn't all that sharp against Cleveland the start before that.

His ERA jumped from 1.93 to 3.17 after the debacle in Texas. He is 4-4.

MMM doesn't think it's necessarily alarming, but still enough to place JV's start on Wednesday UtM.

Besides, MMM is curious to see how Verlander's countenance is in his first start after his Texas-sized meltdown.

Upcoming: Indians, Twins
Back to the AL Central salt mines this week.

Wait---are those the Cleveland Indians in first place? Do MMM's eyes deceive him?

Yes, the Tribe is hot. They are 17-4 in their past 21 games, and have surged from 8-13 and last place to 25-17 and first place.

But we've seen this before, haven't we?

The Indians have been a pretty good April to June team in recent years. But when the temps get hotter, the Tribe gets colder.

Their second half collapses are well-noted.

But for now, with some new players, the Indians are enjoying a great run. And they host the Tigers in a two-game mini-series this week.

MMM doesn't think Cleveland has the horses to stick around all summer, but who the heck knows?

Tigers starters: Scherzer, Verlander.

After the quick trip to Cleveland, it's back to the good side of Lake Erie for four games against the slumping Twins at CoPa.

The Twinkies have lost five straight and have sunk to the depths of the division at 18-22.

Joe Mauer's 15-game hitting streak was stopped Sunday against Boston.

The Twins were stopped several games prior to that.

For about 35 games, the Twins raised some eyebrows with their .500 play and their general nuisance they were causing in the division. Now, they are back to being the team most thought they were prior to the season.

Remember, this is a team that didn't even settle on who was in their five-man rotation until AFTER spring training, and didn't name an Opening Day starter until less than a week before the game.

But Mauer is back to the Mauer of old. He's batting .342 and he has 17 doubles. But he is striking out once every four at-bats, which is not like the Mauer of old. Still, .342 is .342.

The Twins' bugaboo is their starting pitching. No one in the rotation has an ERA lower than 4.66, and three of their starters have ERAs of 5.85-plus.

Tigers starters: Porcello, Sanchez, Fister, Scherzer.

The Tigers need a big week. Yes, it's May, but the team is wobbly now. They are 4-8 in their last 12 games, and the Indians are feeling good about themselves. As Mickey Redmond would say, time to "get 'er goin'."

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 6

Last Week: 1-4
This Week:  HOU (5/13-15); at Tex (5/16-19; Sunday on ESPN)

So, What Happened?

The Tigers ran into two teams playing their best baseball of the year last week.

First it was the Washington Nationals, who are on a roll after a sluggish start. The Tigers dropped both games of a two-game series, though they certainly weren't outclassed by the Nats. Just couldn't get over the hump in the Nation's Capital.

Hey, Doug Fister got an RBI single! Alas, MMM thinks Fister could have gotten an RBI single off himself, with the way Fister's command was lacking on Thursday afternoon.

Losing two to the Nats didn't really bother MMM. What did get under MMM's skin was dropping two of three to the Cleveland Indians---another very hot team (15-5 in their last 20 games).

The Tribe made the two-out hit their personal calling card all weekend. It was amazing how many of those the Indians rained on the Tigers. And that's why Cleveland left town in a first-place tie with our Motown Bengals.

Hero of the Week
Although MMM is getting a little sick of the graphic that Fox Sports Detroit (FSD) keeps putting on the screen extolling this week's Hero's abilities, the nod goes to 2B Omar Infante.

FSD likes to shove it down our throats how good of a No. 9 hitter Infante has been this season. OK, we get it! He's having a good year! And MMM is taking nothing away from Omar in complaining about that.

Last week---a week in which the Tigers won just one game---Infante was again magnificent.

Infante went 8-for-19 (.421), including two doubles and a triple, the latter drawing the Tigers closer against the Indians on Saturday night. Even though the Tigers lost that game, it was a big two-run triple at the time.

For the season, Infante is at .317 and strikes out just once every 10 at-bats. His play in the field has been mostly stellar.

Last week, Infante again did a good job in turning the batting order over from his ninth spot, which is integral in getting the top four at the plate one more time every game.

Honorable mention: Matt Tuiasosopo, who hit a pinch-hit, three-run jack in Washington, and who has been a nice addition to the bench; Jhonny Peralta, whose solid season continues to fly under the radar.

Goat of the Week
You would think that in a 1-4 week there would be Goat candidates galore.

But MMM doesn't think the Tigers played bad baseball, necessarily. The other guys just managed to do a little bit better all week.

Still, as MMM said last week, the GotW space shall never go unoccupied!

MMM could pick low hanging fruit and designate Jose Valverde the Goat for blowing Sunday's save in a game the Tigers eventually lost in 10 innings. But that's a little too trite for MMM's liking, and not esoteric enough.

So MMM is going with manager Jim Leyland. Some might say this is just more low hanging fruit.

MMM was listening to Sunday's game while walking the pooch, during the Tigers' half of the ninth inning, after the Indians had tied the score 3-3 in the top half (see Valverde reference above).

A lead-off single by Andy Dirks was cause for optimism. But then Leyland struck.

The manager put the bunt sign on for Torii Hunter, he of the .340+ average and an expert at hitting the ball to right field, as in during a hit-and-run try.

Hunter, by the radio accounts, looked awful in his first try at laying down the sacrifice, something Hunter is not known for in his career. Yet Leyland kept the bunt sign on, and again Hunter made a pathetic try.

By now, Hunter was down in the count 1-2 and couldn't be his usual, aggressive self. He had to be more defensive. As a result, Hunter tapped weakly to pitcher Joe Smith, who started a 1-6-3 double play.

Granted, Indians SS Asdrubal Cabrera, one of the more underrated players of his time, had to make a fantastic play to twist the DP, given Smith's horrible throw. But that's not the point.

MMM didn't like the decision to bunt Hunter for a couple of reasons.

One, Hunter is a terrible bunter.

Two, even if Hunter had been successful, Indians manager Terry Francona would have walked Miggy Cabrera and taken his chances that Smith could induce a DP from Prince Fielder.

MMM says let Hunter hit in that situation and let the chips fall where they may! This way, even if Hunter makes an out, you still have two chances (presumably) to get perhaps a game-ending HR or double from either Cabrera or Fielder.

The double play, following two weak bunt attempts, let Smith get out of the inning with only having to retire Cabrera (not that that's easy), and not Fielder as well.

Under the Microscope
It's funny that Leyland is this week's goat, because the Marlboro Man was UtM last week.

But that's mostly coincidence, right?

The Tigers placed CF Austin Jackson on the 15-day DL with a tight hamstring, leaving (potentially) a gaping hole at the top of the lineup.

Normally Leyland puts Dirks at the leadoff spot when giving A-Jax the day off. It is presumed this is how it will go while Jackson is out of commission.

So naturally, this puts Andy Dirks Under the Microscope.

It's nothing personal, Andy---MMM just wants to pay close attention to how you do batting leadoff with all those great hitters following you.

The good news is that Dirks has been swinging a better stick as of late, after a less-than-magnificent start.

And, frankly, Jackson's BA has sunk into the .270s after a hot start.

Now, will Leyland keep Dirks in LF and put Don Kelly in CF?

The Tigers recalled Avisail Garcia to take Jackson's spot on the 25-man roster. Garcia isn't a CF by trade. Come to think of it, this whole situation should be UtM!

Upcoming: Astros, Rangers
It's Tigers vs. the state of Texas this week.

First the Astros come calling. Yes, those adorable 10-28 Astros that the Tigers swept in four games in Houston a week or so ago. But even the Astros won more games last week (two) than the Tigers managed to win.

Still, this is a team the Tigers should take two of three from, at least---and right the ship, because after that series (drum roll please), it's on to Texas for four games against the very good and very first place Rangers.

Seriously, no one is even making it interesting for the Rangers in the AL West. Texas is six games ahead of the second place Oakland A's. The Rangers (24-13) are the only team in the West playing above .500.

Clearly, the loss of former MVP Josh Hamilton and slugger Mike Napoli has had no effect on the Rangers, negatively.

That's because always tough out Ian Kinsler is batting .322, Nelson Cruz and Adrian Beltre have combined for 17 home runs, and the pitching has been lights out.

The Rangers have the league's best team ERA (3.39) and four of their five starters have an ERA of 3.45 or less. Yu Darvish came one out away from a no-hitter in the second game of the season. OK, it was against the Astros, but still!

MMM sees this as an interesting week. Two series against teams that are on the opposite ends of the baseball spectrum in the AL. Should be a riot. Note: Sunday's game is on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball.

Tigers starters (Astros): Anibal Sanchez, Fister, Max Scherzer.

Tigers starters (Rangers): Justin Verlander, Rick Porcello, Sanchez, Fister.

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!

Monday Morning Manager: Week 5

Last Week: 6-1
This Week:  at Wsh (5/7-8); CLE (5/10-12)

So, What Happened?

Thank God for the Houston Astros.

More accurately, thanks to the powers that be at MLB who made the decision to put the Astros in the American League.

The Tigers---and the rest of the league---are much obliged.

The Tigers gained their first four-game sweep on the road since victimizing Kansas City in 2006, when they destroyed the pathetic Astros, outscoring them 37-8 along the way. As if putting an exclamation mark on the weekend series, Justin Verlander flirted with another no-hitter, making it one out into the seventh before former Tiger (and a whole lot of others) Carlos Pena drilled a clean single to right, almost tomahawking it.

Before the Houston Massacre, the Tigers took two of three from the surprisingly-OK Minnesota Twins at Comerica Park.

The Bengals have won 9 of 11, 14 of 20, and the bats are booming. Mix in some excellent starting pitching, a calming down bullpen and some nifty defense, and it's no secret why the Tigers are on a roll.

Even scarier for the AL is that the few Tigers bats that were scuffling are starting to feel it now. The team is literally getting contributions from 1-9 in the batting order.

Hero of the Week
Was that Miguel Cabrera who MMM saw flashing some serious leather on Sunday, temporarily saving Verlander's no-no?

Absolutely. Take that, Miggy defense bashers!

Cabrera turned in a whale of a play in the fifth inning, when he dove to his left to snag a hard shot off the bat of Brandon Laird (Gerald's younger brother), and rolled to his left and threw the baseball while on his tushie. The ball skipped but made it to first baseman Prince Fielder in plenty of time.

It was a play that made you think a no-hitter might be in the offing.

“When I saw him dive for it, I was hoping he would be able to get up quickly and make a nice throw. But when I saw him roll over and throw it like a grenade, I’m like, I don’t know if that’s going to get there,” starting pitcher Justin Verlander said to laughter after the game.

MMM would have been tempted to name Miggy HotW for that play alone, but there is so much more to like about Cabrera's week.

How about 11-for-26 with three homers, eight runs scored and 10 RBI?

For the season, Cabrera's OPS (on-base plus slugging) is a ridiculous 1.080. He is batting .385. He has 36 RBI in 30 games. So far he's MMM's Hero of the Year.

But in a week where the Tigers went 6-1 and blasted base hits all over the diamond, Cabrera---as he often does---stood out among the rest.

Honorable mention: Prince Fielder, Verlander, Andy Dirks and Max Scherzer (MMM loved the way Mad Max put his foot on the Astros' necks and wouldn't let them breathe, despite all the run support he got on Saturday night).

Goat of the Week
Leave it to MMM to find a Goat in a 6-1 week.

Hey, this space shall never go blank. Never!

But MMM is gonna cheat a little and give the GotW to Houston's Carlos Corporan. This may be a first-ever: giving the Goat to a non-Tiger.

But did you see how Corporan hot dogged his home run on Saturday night? A home run that made the score 12-1? Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, Corporan laced an RBI single in the ninth (that made the score 17-2) and punctuated that with some swagger, too.

MMM is old enough to know that had Corporan tried such nonsense against guys like Don Drysdale, Bob Gibson, Stan Williams or Dick Radatz, Carlos would find his rump in the batter's box dirt his next time up.

On today's Tigers, maybe Verlander has the temperament to knock a guy on his keister after such a display.

MMM's message to Corporan: Dude, you're on a team that is 8-24 and may seriously challenge the 1962 Mets and the 2003 Tigers for ineptitude. Don't hot dog---especially in a game that your team lost by 15 runs.

Under the Microscope
Allow MMM to gloat a bit.

Two weeks ago, MMM put Victor Martinez under the scope, and V-Mart responded, big time.

Last week, here's what MMM wrote about Alex Avila's being placed UtM: BTW, Victor Martinez appeared in this space last week, and V-Mart "responded" with a solid week at the plate. Here's hoping!

Thank you, thank you!! MMM is on a roll with the scope!

Avila woke up, and blasted a game-winning, two-run homer in the top of the ninth on Friday night. He sprinkled in some other hits, too, before sitting out Sunday's game due to a stomach ailment.

So what will MMM do to complete his hat trick?

How about Jim Leyland?

The skipper has to do without a DH this week in the two games at Washington. That means no Martinez in the starting lineup. Leyland has hinted that V-Mart might see some action at first base (not as a starter), but dismissed the idea of catching V-Mart.

MMM is interested to see how Leyland uses his bench in the first inter-league road action of the year.

Upcoming: Nationals, Indians
Get ready to hear it. MMM guarantees you're going to get sick of it.

"This Nationals-Tigers series could be a preview of the World Series."

How many times will you read and hear that this week? Plenty.

The Nationals kind of stumbled out of the gate, but they are 6-4 in their last 10 games, and are 17-15 for the season, two games behind the first place Atlanta Braves in the NL East.

The Nats' problem has been an offense that has taken a while to get going. Only young Bryce Harper is hitting .300. Our old pal Denard Span (nee the Twins) is having a solid year (.278, five SB).

Pitching-wise, the Nationals are strong, as usual.

An interesting match-up will be on Tuesday, when the Tigers' big bats meet Jordan Zimmerman.

Zimmerman, a righty, has allowed just three hits and one walk in his past 17 innings. His ERA for the season is 1.64, with a WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched) of a measly 0.75.

Tigers starters: Anibal Sanchez, Rick Porcello (unless skipped due to two off days this week; then, Doug Fister).

After the Nats, it's Hello, Ryan Raburn!!

Our old pal is in a zone with the Indians.

Raburn is hitting .344 with 4 HR and 10 RBI (64 AB). He's still striking out a lot (18), but apparently a change of scenery has done him a world of good.

MMM doesn't begrudge Raburn his success. It was clearly time for Raburn to become an ex-Tiger. It just wasn't working out, and his relationship with the fans had become toxic. It was Brandon Inge, redux.

As for Raburn's new teammates, the Indians are on a roll of sorts. They have won six of their past seven games to climb to .500 (14-14). The Indians sport a new look, with veterans like Nick Swisher and Mark Reynolds joining the offense. The starting pitching is still an adventure, as usual. Ubaldo Jimenez has an ERA of 7.13, and newcomer Brett Myers is even worse (8.02).

Don't forget that the Indians are now managed by Terry Francona, a darling of the Jim Leyland haters.

Tigers starters: Fister, Scherzer, Verlander (OR, Scherzer, Verlander and Sanchez if Porcello is skipped in Washington).

That's all for this week's MMM. See you next week!