The Gist: The Tigers and Twins played a game for the ages and both teams followed the respective scripts of the past three weeks. For the Tigers, that meant squandering countless opportunities and watching a division lead evaporate. For the Twins: everything going their way. Rick Porcello was awesome, Miguel Cabrera showed up for the first part of the game and Fernando Rodney, while taking the loss, pitched almost brilliantly in what was assuredly his last Tigers performance.

The Quote: “No matter what we did, it seems like it wasn’t meant to be. This is the best game, by far, that I’ve ever played in no matter the outcome.” — Brandon Inge

The Stat: 1 – The go-ahead run scored by Don Kelly in the 10th. Oh, how I wish it would’ve held up…for his sake.

Up Next: Spring Training, Lakeland, Fla., February 2010

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Anyway, enjoy him, folks. He’ll be frustrating another team’s fans next year.

And now this:

• How well are things going for the Tigers? They at last moved into the top eight of The Sporting News‘ power poll (last week they were #10). Breaking through that barrier means the Tigers, at least for this week, aren’t a division-leader sitting behind better-rated, non-playoff teams. And maybe — maybe — Detroit is starting to gain some respect out there. TSN’s take:
  

  8. Tigers. The Tigers are finally starting to play like a team grabbing control of the division title instead of backing into the division title.

  Other polls: ESPN #7, last week #11; Fox Sports #9 (#10); SI #10 (#10); CBS SportsLine #11 (#13).

  On this morning’s ESPN Baseball Today podcast Peter Pascarelli gives the Tigers big props (he rates them #5 on his list) and he says he’d take Justin Verlander over Cliff Lee in a World Series matchup. On both points Eric Karabell disagrees — big time. Oh, and Karabell thinks the Rockies are a better club than Detroit. Pascarelli doesn’t buy that. Neither do I.

• Here are some notable Tigers historical nuggets from Baseball-Reference.com:
  • On this date in 1967, the Tigers moved into a first-place tie with the Twins. Eddie Mathews and Jim Northrup hit home runs and Mickey Lolich out dueled the White Sox’ Tommy John 4-1 at Chicago.

  • On Sept. 8, 1983, Yankees (and former Tigers) outfielder Steve Kemp was struck in the face by an Omar Moreno line drive during batting practice in Milwaukee; Kemp misses the rest of the season with a fractured cheekbone. Kemp hit just .242 with 12 home run and 49 RBI in the first year of his five-year, $5.45 million contract.

  • In 1995, the Tigers traded Juan Samuel to the Royals in exchange for a player to be named. A week later, the Royals sent Phil Hiatt to Detroit to complete the deal.

  • And on this date a year ago, Gary Sheffield hit a grand slam for the official 250,000th homer in MLB history. The blast is Sheffield’s second of the day and his 13th career grand slam. Magglio Ordonez, Miguel Cabrera and Mike Hessman also homer as the Tigers outslug the A’s 14-8. I was there for that game and, man, was it wet, cold and blustery.

If you’re a Twitter person, be sure to follow us and you’ll get Tigers birthdays, trivia and historical notes — all in a crisp 140 characters. Find us at @DailyFungo.

Doesn’t do much for you? Me either.

So instead of cursing the Tigers bullpen, let’s travel back 30 years to July 12, 1979 and revisit Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park, courtesy of Joe LaPointe’s article in yesterday’s New York Times.

Unlike the commonplace pyrotechnics of Zumaya/Rodney, this doubleheader included the on-field destruction of disco albums between games. Then things got, well, unruly. As Alan Trammell sums it up:

“The outfielders were definitely a little scared and Ronnie (LeFlore) wasn’t usually afraid of anything.”

The thing I remember most about that game was watching Sox owner Bill Veeck limp out on the field with his wooden leg — I had no idea he lost an appendage — to beg the rock-and-rollers to get off the field (and keep their rainchecks!). And I can still hear George Kell trying to describe the action without falling into a “kids-these-days” rant. (Or did he? Does anyone else remember?)

Even Dave Dombrowski, then a 22-year-old gopher for White Sox GM Roland Hemond, had a role in keeping the peace.

Oh, as for the games, the Tigers swept the double-dip 4-1 in the opener and then won the nightcap in a 9-0 forfeit. The victories brought the Tigers within 14 games of the division lead.

What are your memories of Disco Demolition Night?

The Cleveland Clinic: Justin Verlander is once again proving that when his stuff is on, there are few better in the AL… And Edwin Jackson has proved my (and others’) skepticism about this deal unfounded. He seems to be the pitcher everyone in LA and Tampa’s front offices thought he would be.  Score another coup for Dave Dombrowski…Can Curtis Granderson have a better weekend than he did in Cleveland? This one will be tough to top, but it’ll be a blast watching him try.

Rodney Being Rodney: Watching Fernando Rodney is infinitely more nerve-wracking than Todd Jones EVER was! Watching the Tigers game Sunday, I was just about to tell my dad that seeing Rodney come in from the ‘pen didn’t make my stomach hurt as much as it used to.  The he started to do Fernando Rodney things. My favorite is when he walks guys after getting them down 0-2.  He’s a free agent after this year. For the sake of my stomach, and my heart, I hope he tests the market.

He’s My Tiger: Can we please get some love for Ramon Santiago? I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Every time he plays, he does something to help the Tigers win a ballgame. Nothing against Adam Everett, but Santiago is more than the fill-in that Jim Leyland and the brain trust see him as. He deserves to be playing most of the time at short.

Tattoo You: Or me. On Saturday, I put my Tiger fandom where my…er…arm…is…

It’s real, folks.  What should my next one be?

• Height: 5′ 11″ | Weight: 220
• 2008 Stats: 0-6, 4.91 ERA, 13 Saves

In a bottom-line business like major league baseball, fans tend to overlook stats such as 49 strikeouts in 40 innings or 13 saves from a late-inning reliever like Fernando Rodney. Six blown saves and an ERA a whisker under five are more glaring and more representative of Detroit’s bullpen woes in 2008. Yet despite that lackluster campaign, the Tigers expect big things from Rodney in ’09.

Though he spent April and May on the DL, the ’08 season wasn’t all bad for the senior-ranking Tiger in the bullpen; he assembled stretches of lights-out appearances, including June and July in which hitters produced a .183 average against him. Over that same timeframe he fanned 37 in 27.1 innings pitched. The key to success for Rodney is a breathtaking changeup that, when near the plate, is difficult for hitters to resist. Of course, a high-90s fastball makes the off-speed pitches that much more tantalizing.

With Todd Jones’ retirement, Brandon Lyon’s arrival and Joel Zumaya’s (tentative) return, chances are that Rodney will begin 2009 as a setup man. If something goes wrong with Lyon or Zumaya and if Rodney can harness his pitches, develop consistency, and fortify his mental makeup, he could, in the end, be the Tigers’ answer at closer.

For a pitcher with Rodney’s track record, that’s an awful lot of ifs.

Zumaya was cleared to play in late June and appeared in 21 games (23.1 IP).

It all came crashing down again on August 12 against Toronto at Comerica Park:

The Tigers had a two-run lead with two outs in the seventh inning with the middle of the Blue Jays order coming up. All five batters he faced reached base safely, fueling a four-run rally in a 6-4 Detroit loss and fueling the speculation that something is wrong with Zumaya.

“We’re very suspicious that he’s not right,” Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. “I mean, enough’s enough. It’s not his fault. We’re just getting him checked out for precautionary measures.

“I know he’s not right. I don’t know if he’s hurt, but he’s definitely not right. I know that for a fact.”

A month after the disastrous appearance against the Blue Jays, Zumaya was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right shoulder.

He finished his truncated season 0-2 with a 3.57 ERA. He allowed 24 hits, 22 walks, 22 strikeouts and 13 runs (nine of them earned). And he blew four of five save opportunities.

When the season started, the Tigers weren’t counting on Zumaya for much of a contribution. But Todd Jones began to show his age and the speedy recovery by Zumaya changed everything.

Or so it seemed.

If you’re looking for a positive outlook to end your week, look elsewhere. Here’s a taste:

Aside from a younger, more athletic band of glove men, the Tigers need about a half-dozen new pitchers. Verlander and Galarraga figure to anchor a rotation that’s woefully shorthanded, with lefties Dontrelle Willis, Kenny Rogers and Nate Robertson turning into pumpkins and Jeremy Bonderman now more of a perennial injury risk than a future frontline starter. The bullpen is no better, with Todd Jones retired, Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney fighting to regain their lost command, and journeyman Aquilino Lopez the best of the 2008 bunch.

Now that hurts.

So, as I wait out this Tigers/White Sox rain delay from bright, sunny Phoenix, it’s time to weigh in on:

• Todd Jones’s Retirement. The decades-old joke in Detroit is that the most popular person in the city is the Lions’ backup QB and/or the Red Wings’ backup netminder. I think we can now add the Tigers’ setup man to that punch line. Detroit is unusually cruel to its closers. Less than a year after Willie Hernandez won the 1984 Cy Young and MVP awards, he started getting booed and it’s never stopped. Mike Henneman did too, but to a much smaller degree. The Tigers were so unwatchable during Todd Jones’s first tour of duty in Detroit, that often he was the only bright spot. Come to think of it, he was a welcome sight then because it mean the Tigers were in line for a rare win.

  But what was it about Jones in his second stint as a Tiger? What made it so infuriating? Sure, he got 93 saves in just under three seasons but his ERA was always around four and … ah, what’s the use? Jones is a good guy and I’m sure he’ll be missed by his teammates. I guess. For me, though, I’ll never be able to forgive him for not being Joe Nathan.

• Inge Returns to Third. This move makes the Tigers’ infield defense significantly better next season. With the range he covers, Inge is essentially a third baseman and a half. So even if they decide to bring back Edgar Renteria, Inge makes the left side if not a plus than definitely not a minus. Now, about that average…
• Guillen to Left. As I wrote here, I think it’s more likely that we see Carlos Guillen back at short than in left field. Why? If they put Guillen in left and a light-hitting guy at short, the Tigers lose the potential production of Matt Joyce. And, if you put Guillen in the cavern that is Comerica Park’s left field, what are the odds on him pulling a hamstring before May 1? Not good.
• Chuck Hernandez Firing. I know that Doug and others have been calling for Hernandez to lose his job as a result of the pitching staff’s tank job. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a wuss when it comes to firing coaches or managers. The rhetorical question I always ponder is: How much impact does a coach have — or can a coach expect to have — at this level? Was Hernandez, the genius of 2006, suddenly a lousy coach? I don’t think so. He was nothing more than a vessel caught in the perfect storm of Jeremy Bonderman’s injury, Dontrelle Willis’s loss of … everything, Kenny Rogers‘ age, Justin Verlander’s growing pains, and Nate Robertson’s wrought-iron physiology.

  I suppose the decision was also based on the bullpen’s lackluster year. Where do you start there? In fact, I think Hernandez should get a raise for having to deal with Fernando Rodney, Joel Zumaya, Aquilino Lopez and the rest. According to an article in the Free Press, Jim Leyland wants to go with a pitching coach and bullpen coach from the within the organization. I’m sure Joe Coleman, A. J. Sager and Ray Burris are good coaches, but if the Tigers want to show their serious, go after rockin’ Leo Mazzone or Rick Peterson.

• Jeff Jones’s Firing. I remember when Lloyd McClendon was named the Tigers’ bullpen coach for 2006. My reaction was “What does he know about a bullpen?” The answer, it would seem, was nuttin’. And if you read into this comment from Leyland, that’s precisely what the skipper wanted:
  

  “It was a weird situation, and I won’t say for sure, but I doubt that I’m going to have a pitching coach as my bullpen coach. It’s worked very well in some places, but I think it makes people uncomfortable from time to time.”

  Hmm. I would’ve thought being a pitching coach would help in guiding the bullpen. But now that I think about it, it probably makes about as much sense as having two hitting coaches – one for day games, one for night. Well, maybe not that example but perhaps there was some yin-and-yang between Hernandez’s approach and that of Jones which made Bobby Seay incapable of retiring a left-handed hitter?

• Sheff’s 500th Homer. The most entertaining parts of the weekend series against the Rays was watching Gary Sheffield’s family — including Uncle Dwight Gooden — stand up and wave homemade signs for every at bat. My favorite: “Gramma Says 500″. I sure hope Sheff gets number 500 today in Chicago. There’s been no player in my years of following the Tigers on which I’ve turned 180° like Gary Sheffield. (By the by, I loved Leyland slotting Sheff in the two spot in the order on Sunday.)

Finally, I relied heavily on DirecTV’s Extra Bases Game Mix channel over the weekend to track the playoff races. It’s one screen with eight games shown at once. I kept going back to the Mets and Marlins game, hoping to see the Mets force a playoff with the Brewers. That didn’t happen, of course, but what I did see was Cameron Maybin catch the final out at Shea Stadium.

The Score: Tigers 8 – Rangers 7

The Gist: Gary Sheffield hit his 493rd career jack and went 3 for 5, and Curtis Granderson drove in four as the Tigers escaped with an 8-7 win in Arlington. Kenny Rogers eeked out a win thanks to two four-run outbursts by his teammates in the seventh and eighth. (And Rogers struck out seven in his six innings…usually a sign of impending doom. But not on Monday.) Kyle Farnsworth, a model of consistently sub-optimal pitching since his return to Detroit, made it too interesting in the eighth but Fernando Rodney pitched not awfully and sealed the deal.

The Quote: “[I]t would be the biggest mistake of his life if he goes on the mound hoping to show the Rangers something. That’s high school [stuff].” — Jim Leyland on Tuesday’s starter and former Rangers farmhand Armando Galarraga.

The Stat: 12. The number of errors by Edgar Renteria so far this season. He leads all A.L. Central shortstops in flubs — but not by much. Orlando Cabrera and Jhonny Peralta each have 11. The Twins’ trio of Adam Everett, Nick Punto and Brendan Harris average about six. KC’s Tony Pena (8) and Mike Aviles (6) roundout the Central.

Up Next: Tigers @ Rangers

Armando Galarraga (11-4, 3.11) vs. Vincente Padilla (12-6, 4.85)

• The Tigers-Pudge relationship “had run its course.”
• Jim Leyland told him that the Tigers can’t run Zumaya and Rodney out there every night and the team needed bullpen depth.
• The Tigers believe Brandon Inge is ready to take over behind the plate.
• “On that stage in New York” Pudge will be inspired to play great.

When you think about it, the fact that Pudge has remained in Detroit this long is astounding. So unhappy was he during the Alan Trammell Era (especially 2005), most wouldn’t have been shocked at a trade back then.

The Score: Tigers 8 – Indians 5

The Gist: Armando Galarraga is to the Indians as Paul Byrd is to the Tigers. Well, not quite, but Galarraga beat the Tribe for the third time this year, Tigers hitters were spared batting practice and turned it on, you know, during a game. But back to Galarraga: three runs over 5.1 innings to earn his ninth win of the year — more than Justin Verlander, folks. (For now.) Brandon Inge stroked three hits including a two-run homer and a double. Miguel Cabrera also went yard as he, Placido Polanco, Carlos Guillen and Matt Joyce collected two hits apiece.

The Quote: “We keep winning, we can come in at 6:15 every night for all I care. The guys liked it, so we’ll have a little fun with it and keep them fresh at the same time.” — Jim Leyland on the Tigers skipping BP on Tuesday night.

The Stat: 20. The combined number of balls thrown by Freddy Dolsi and Fernando Rodney — out of a total of 36. Both threw 18 pitches, eight of them strikes. Sigh.

Up Next: Tigers @ Indians

Nate Robertson (6-8, 5.63) vs. Cliff Lee (14-2, 2.29)

The Score: Orioles 11 – Tigers 10

The Gist: The Tigers were up 6-0. Again they couldn’t hold pile on until it was too late. Not sure if tacking on three runs counts as “piling on”, though. Nate Robertson was awful — 2.1 IP, 8 hits, 7 ER (but no walks) — and Placido Polanco had a four-hit game. The rest you know about — i.e., the blown call at the plate in the 10th inning. The Tigers dipped under water with the loss. Oh, it’s worth mentioning that Fernando Rodney was excellent over 1.1 innings pitched.

The Quote: “When he tagged me, I already had my entire foot on the plate.” — Polanco on the call at home.

The Stat: 10. The number of triple-digit pitches by Joel Zumaya.

In fact, indulge me while I use a line from my favorite movie, “Midnight Run“, in which Robert DeNiro tells Charles Grodin:

“You’re in this mess because you’re in this mess. I didn’t put you in this mess.”

There are countless reasons why the Tigers are in this mess. The poor start. The inconsistent hitting. The Little-League caliber defense. You know the rest. But I think one of the main reasons the Tigers are in a mess for the rest of the season is the closer role.

Easy target? Yep. Todd Jones is actually too easy a target, I’ll admit it. But in tonight’s loss to the Twins, you could feel the difference between the two teams as the game wore on. The difference, of course, is the Twins closer, Joe Nathan. The guy simply doesn’t blow saves.

Okay, he’s blown two this season (the same number as Jones. Ahem). But against Detroit in his career Nathan’s a perfect 24-for-24. Opponents know that he’s lurking out there waiting to come in, usually in the ninth inning, to close out the game, often in 1-2-3 fashion.

Let’s face it, the Tigers bullpen, outside of setup man Joel Zumaya, maybe, scares no one. These days, opponents are practically giddy when “Bobby Seay, Bobby Don’t” or Fernando Rodney enter a game.

If — a monumental if — the Tigers somehow hang around to make late noise in the division there will be tight games left and right, and the margin for error, particularly in the standings, will be just about zero.

How confident are you that Todd Jones can save important games down the stretch?

Same here. Discuss.

Triple digits returned to the desert on Sunday — a mere 104. Today the temps approached 110.

Big whoop. If you can’t handle the heat, don’t dish out The Non Sequiturs.

Or something like that.

• Charley Steiner spoke with national baseball writer Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune this morning on XM and Rogers’ parting shot regarding the Tigers was stinging at best, dripping in reality at worst:
  

  “The Tigers have a better chance of finishing last than finishing first.”

  Yowza. (Check out Rogers’ power poll here.)

• Happy 31st Birthday to Brandon Inge. I’ve come around to the Inge-at-Third line of thinking and believe it’ll happen at the All Star Break. How all the pieces fall into — or out of — is anyone’s guess.

• I’m overdue for a game recap of the Tigers game from Sunday but will offer a short one here. Randy Johnson was totally beatable — they hit the ball hard off the gimpy southpaw all game long. But when you walk the number-eight hitter to face Johnson at the plate and proceed to walk him as Nate Robertson did, you’re not going to beat anyone.

• Speaking of the Diamondbacks, I finally got to see why they’re beating ever team in sight these days. However, if the Tigers had had Joel Zumaya or Fernando Rodney to come in and blaze some heat when Jeremy Bonderman and Robertson faltered, maybe… Oh, what’s the use?

• It would seem pretty obvious for Freddy Dolsi to be sent back to Erie when Dontrelle Willis is activated soonly, but what happens when or if Zumaya and Rodney return? Methinks that if Zach Miner’s ERA is still over eight, he’ll be sent out. One thing would seem fairly certain: Armando Galarraga stays.

Finally, Happy Birthday also to one-season Tiger Luis Salazar. He played 130 games in 1988 and hit .270 with 12 homers. (And wore number 12.) Salazar turns 52 today.

The Gist: Game #37 featured a terrific outing from #37 Kenny Rogers, three hits from Pudge Rodriguez and ridiculous ninth inning from Todd Jones. Luckily, and most importantly, it all added up to a Tigers’ 6-5 win over the Yankees. Rogers gave the Tigers a quality start — 6 IP, 9 H, 2 ER, 3 K — and, in the second inning, picked off the 92nd runner of his career, Wilson Betemit. Ryan Raburn, getting the start in center, went 2 for 2 with a pair of runs scored.

The Quote: “Todd had the [leadoff] guy 0-2, and if he gets him, the game probably ends without any excitement.” — Jim Leyland on the Yankees’ half of the ninth inning.

The Stat: 5. The number of consecutive games the Tigers have played without hitting a home run.

My Two Cents: Watching Kerry Wood smoke the Diamondbacks in the top of the ninth inning this afternoon at Wrigley Field made me long for the return of Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney. You know, guys who can hit 95+ on the gun. I’ll admit that railing on Todd Jones seems so 2006, yet I can’t help but wish aloud that Tigers had a flamethrower at the back end of the bullpen.

But what, pray tell, if it’s not?

I, for one, refuse to buy into the bullpen as Achilles’ heel conspiracy theory, and here are three reasons why:

1. Healthy starters
2. Dave Dombrowski
3. Zach Miner

1. Healthy starters. Among the many problems last season, the one that stands out most prominently for yours truly is the regularity with which Jim Leyland had to go to his bully in the sixth inning or sooner. Not only did it wear a path from the dugout to the hill, it prevented the bullpen from getting the rest required to be fresh when it was really needed. Instead, by Aug. 1 the Tigers bullpen was spent and Joel Zumaya’s return proved to be too little, too late.

Oh, we’re all concerned that the Tigers staff has lingering questions including Kenny Rogers‘ age and ability to pitch deep into games — and the season. There’s concern over Dontrelle Willis‘ declining stats the past two seasons and whether he’ll pitch closer to 35 rather than his actual age. And, let’s not forget Fungo-favorite Nate Robertson. Can he at last shed the Tough Luck Nate label and win some close games?

By all acounts, Jeremy Bonderman’s elbow is sound and should be helped by the change-up he’s supposedly improved — if not mastered. That leaves Justin Verlander. So far, so good and let’s keep it that way.

In all, the only health concerns surround Rogers and he appears good to go. The healthy outlook of the starting five should mean more quality starts, more starts lasting into the seventh or eighth innings and a more-rested relief corps.

2. Dave Dombrowski. Let’s assume — for a moment — that the bullpen underachieves. Then what? I’m betting that Dave Dombrowski will find the right arms (or, I suppose, left arms) to keep the bullpen afloat until either Zumaya or Fernando Rodney get healthy.

By now hasn’t Dombrowski proven to Tigers fans that, with the exception of Neifi Perez, he’s pulled the trigger on the right deals for the Detroit Nine?

And let’s not forget that Dombrowski has a potentially rock-solid chip to parlay into bullpen depth: Brandon Inge. Whether it’s May 1 or July 31, Inge will be gone and you can bet in return the Tigers will have acquired the reliever they need.

And who knows, Francisco Cruceta might have resolved his visa issues by then and logging valuable work in the seventh and eighth.

If I had to have GM at the wheel in this scenario, I’d want it to be the Tigers’.

3. Zach Miner. I’m a Zach Miner Fan Boy. There. I said it. Miner, in my view, is the Tigers most versatile and under-appreciated pitcher. All he’s managed to do since he came to Detroit is eat innings and fill the roles of spot starter and middle-relief guy with aplomb. Sure, he cratered in the second half of the 2006 season — his first in the bigs — but according to Baseball Prospectus 2008:

Miner kept the ball down on the way to an effective [2007] season, posting a 2.3 G/F [groundball to flyball ratio] and allowing just 14 extra-base hits in 232 opponent plate appearances. Miner was also effective with runners on, stranding 24 of the 30 he inherited. Of the Tigers three garbagemen, Miner has the most upside.

(In their assessment of Miner, BP included Chad Durbin and Jason Grilli as the others in the Garbage Time Trio.)

Granted, it’s not a rousing endorsement but if nothing else, the Baseball Prospectus folks do their homework. If they thought Miner was a dog, they’d say it.

Bottom line: If the first two in my recipe fail to hold up their end of the bargain, I feel considerably better knowing that Zach Miner is around to start, mop up or close shop.

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