For all the hype they get, the last three weeks or so have been somewhat telling for the Detroit Tigers.
Starting on July 18th, they lost 3 out of 4 to the Cleveland Indians.
Then won 2 out of 3 against the woeful Arizona Diamondbacks.
Lost 3 of 4 to a really good LA Angels team.
Lost 2 of 3 to the mediocre Chisox.
Swept 3 from the lowly Colorado Rockies.
By my count, they went 8-9 during that time. The Washington Generals would gladly take that record against the Harlem Globetrotters, but 8-9 isn't exactly dominant stuff against teams the Tigers are supposed to be far better than -- with the exception of the Halos.
But then came the showdown in the Big Apple versus the Yankees, though the Bronx Bombers have become a shell of their former selves for various reasons. The Tigers had their Cy Young winners lined up to mow them down.
After all, Max Scherzer, newly acquired David Price, and Justin Verlander were slated to start the first three games. Piece of cake, right?
Evidently not. Scherzer got beat in the opener. Price was long gone before the Tigers squeaked out a 12th inning win in game 2, and Verlander once again got rock and rolled in game 3. He gave up a couple home run shots reminiscent of Mickey Mantle. WAY outta here, and the Fastball Flakes man's season record now stands at 10-10. The very definition of mediocre.
So there it was. Three Cy Young award winners up, three Cy Young award winners down, with not a single win to show between them. And this is against a team that recently lost superstar Robinson Cano to free agency, has slugger Mark Teixeira on the DL, and A-Rod is still serving his drug related suspension. They've got guys in their line-up most people have never heard of -- and a pitching staff much the same -- but they stared down three Detroit Tiger Cy Young winners in a row, and allowed none of them to chalk up a "W".
As was stated earlier in this space (see Detroit Tigers. A snapshot), the Motowners appear fortunate indeed they play in the weak American League central division. They maintain a semi-comfortable lead over their division rivals because, frankly, none of them are very good. Were they in any other division, the Tigers would be fighting for their playoff lives.
We keep hearing about how good Detroit's starting pitching staff is and how Miguel Cabrera remains a beast with a bat. Throw in DH Victor Martinez, amongst the league leaders in hitting, new sensation J.D. Martinez, and recently acquired All-Star second baseman Ian Kinsler.
Well OK. Their bullpen remains about as shaky as a mideast peace treaty, and they won't win any Olympic track meets on the basepaths. Yet all in all, the Tigers are supposed to be better than the modest .558 winning percentage they've put up so far this year. The team says so. Their local media continues to hype their greatness. And most of their fans continue to believe it. They keep pouring into Comerica field game after game.
You have to give the organization credit. Owner Mike Ilitch certainly hasn't shied away from forking out big bucks to get great players. And GM Dave Dombrowski has done a masterful job of procuring them through some slick dealings.
But for a team that supposedly has so much going in its favor, it seems odd they can be rather mediocre for such long stretches of time. Three Cy Young winners in a row failing to get a win against an average team is not a particularly good sign.
By most accounts the Tigers have talent here, talent there, talent everywhere. They're supposed to be amongst the best in all of baseball.
They only have one little job left to do.
Prove it when it matters in October. Let's not forget the Tigers haven't won a World Series since 1984. Before cell phones and the internet. In that year, Clara Peller wondered "where's the beef" on classic fast food commercials. J.R. Ewing got shot. Alex Trebek first hosted Jeopardy!. And the Cosby show was #1 on TV.
Let's just say it's been quite a while. In their two Fall Classic appearances in recent years, the Tigers have posted a woeful 1-8 record in the most important games of them all.
So enough with talking the talk about how great they are.
If they can't walk the walk in October -- then all the silly Sabermetrics and hype in the world won't have made the slightest difference.
Actually, they never have and never will. It's just numerical gibberish talking points for people that get paid to give their opinions on the Tigers, be it in print, online or on TV.
In the end, only one thing matters. Either the Tigers become champions or they don't.
Pretty simple. All the rest is just noise......
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