Archive for March, 2008

After about 36 hours of nonstop computer rehab, I’m back online and putting my time and energy to good use: following the never-ending trail of minutiae available from the Internet. Settle in, friends, and follow me on this one.
Back in December I wrote that the date of the Willis/Cabrera trade, Dec. 4, was a popular [...]

Gobs of Tigers (and ex-Tigers) birthdays today starting with Eulogio De La Cruz (24), Zach Miner (26), Craig Dingman (34), Ruppert Jones (53) and Larry Rothschild (54).

While the bullpen has received most of the attention this spring, and not for good reasons, the rotation has been rock solid. Through the Tigers’ first 16 games of [...]

On this date six years ago, former Tigers outfielder Al Cowens passed away after suffering a heart attack. What better time to look back on his unremarkable career in Detroit than today?

Cowens came to the Tigers on May 27, 1980, from the Angels for first baseman Jason Thompson. That also was the day my heart [...]

…The Special Veterans Committee announces the election of George Kell to the Hall of Fame. In case you’ve forgotten, Kell batted over .300 nine times, was a 10-time All-Star, and topped American League third basemen in fielding percentage seven times during a 15-season career.
— From Baseball-Reference.com

If I have any complaint about sitting through Cactus League games here in the Phoenix Valley it’s this: no Tigers action. But that’s it. (I certainly can’t complain about the weather: 75 and sunny.)

Today I took in the Brewers and Cubs game at the very nice Maryvale Baseball Stadium in the not-at-all-nice area of Phoenix’s [...]

Welcome to The Detroit Tigers Podcast, the podcast for Tigers fans, by Tigers fans. This is Episode #40, a 38-minute podcast about the Detroit Tigers recorded live from Scottsdale, Ariz.In this episode we’re joined by Dan Gordon, co-author — along with Mickey Bradley — of Haunted Baseball: Ghosts, Curses, Legends, and Eerie Events.Download the [...]

We all knew that Jim Leyland would not abide by the Tigers worship taking place in the media this spring. Here’s a reality check from the skipper in this afternoon’s Freep update:
Leyland said designated hitter Gary Sheffield has had leg cramps, third baseman Miguel Cabrera has a tight quadriceps, and shortstop Edgar Renteria has a [...]

I spent the afternoon at Surprise Stadium watching Cactus League action — Royals vs. Diamondbacks — from the press box. After the game I interviewed former Tigers outfielder (1984-85) and current Royals first-base coach Rusty Kuntz in the Royals clubhouse.

While I waited for Rusty, I read the nameplates above the lockers and found myself [...]

Happy 30th Birthday to Mike Hessman and a Happy #51 to former Tigers pitcher Jerry Ujdur.

Ujdur pitched in 49 games for the Tigers from 1980 through 1983. His best year was 1982 when he posted a 10-10 record in 25 starts with a 3.69 ERA.

And it’s also the 148th birthday of the long-since-departed Sam Thompson. [...]

My Cactus League Spring Training tickets arrived this afternoon, courtesy of the Milwaukee Brewers. I may have mentioned this last year so forgive me if I did, but the Brewers and Cubs (and other teams, I’m sure) charge $3 for mail delivery of tickets. Not so strange. But how about this: a $3 charge for [...]