September 25, 2009

Game 153: Of Course

ESPN highlights available here. The Score: White Sox 2 – Tigers 0 The Gist: Eddie Bonine should still be out for a nice post-game dinner with his teammates after 6.2 innings of two-hit pitching. Instead, he takes the loss in yet another disaster in Chicago. But come on, didn’t you see this one coming? Both [...]

September 24, 2009

Game 152: Verlander Visits 7-11

ESPN highlights available here. The Score: Tigers 6 – Indians 5 The Gist: Justin Verlander struck out 11 over seven innings to give the Tigers a 6-5 win and a three-game sweep of the Indians. And Fernando Rodney tried to give it away. Well, not quite, but if you missed the game trust me when [...]

September 21, 2009

Monday Mankowskis: Magglio’s Durability, Leyland’s Tightrope and a Glass Half-Full

The Tigers must be enjoying their last day off this season, albeit in Cleveland. While they rest up for the final two weeks, we’re left to root for the White Sox to wear down the Twins over the next three days. But even under these circumstances I cannot support an Ozzie Guillen/A.J. Pierzynski-led team. Just [...]

September 19, 2009

Adding 327 Words to The Wordless Game Summary: Twins 6 – Tigers 2

Remember in Spring Training last year when Jim Leyland was concerned about some Tigers “taking off” at bats knowing that someone else in the powerful lineup would likely back them up? Maybe that’s what plagues the 2009 Tigers. Except for the powerful lineup thing. Other thoughts on the game: Don Kelly did not lose this [...]

June 22, 2009

Monday Night Lite

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Checking in from the land of Google and Apple, on the border of Mountain View and Cupertino, Calif.: It’s a shame that I read the USA Today only when I’m traveling, as I am today. There’s usually one or two outstanding pieces in each edition and this morning proved it: a [...]

May 12, 2009

This ‘n’ Tat

A few random thoughts on the recent play of the Tigers… 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 [...]

April 26, 2009

Sing It, Jimmy

I never gave much thought to whether or not Jim Leyland is a good singer. Well, now we know, thanks to this Free Press video (and article).

April 21, 2009

A Year Ago on The Fungo

Tigers fans are doing what they can to forget 2008, if they haven’t banished it from memory altogether. But seeing as things are looking much better (at the moment) for the 2009 club, let’s savor these moments even more by looking back on Fungo entries from April 21, 2008: Jim Leyland on ESPN’s PTI “Five [...]

April 17, 2009

The Curious Case of June 2, 1980: Tigers and Mariners Play to a Tie

In case you were wondering, here’s how the Tigers have fared against the Mariners since Seattle joined the American League in 1977: All-Time Record: 185-152-1 All-Time at Home: 104-64-1 All-Time at Comerica Park: 22-18 All-Time at Seattle: 81-88 Wait a second. The Tigers and Mariners played to a tie? In the 20th century? This little [...]

March 31, 2009

Tigers Tighten “Letting Another Player Wear Alan Trammell’s #3″ Policy

Last July 9 I attend a Tigers/Indians game at Comerica Park — the one when the Tigers came back from six runs down to win it in the ninth on a Miguel Cabrera line-drive homer — and found myself utterly transfixed on the father and son duo sitting in front of me. The dad, possibly [...]

March 7, 2009

2009 Player Profile: Adam Everett

Adam Everett #4 Height: 6′ 0″ | Weight: 180 2008 Stats: .213 – 2 HR – 20 RBI It’s difficult to get a clear picture of new Tigers shortstop Adam Everett based on his 2008 performance with the Twins. He had just 158 at bats (which produced a .213 average) and appeared in only 45 [...]

February 25, 2009

The Non Sequiturs Return: “Play Ball!” Edition

If you’ve been a long-time Daily Fungo reader, you know that I’ve posted a semi-regular series called The Non Sequiturs. More recently I’ve posted similar items under the Wednesday Walewanders banner (or Friday Fungoes, Three for Thursday, etc.). You may ask: What’s the difference? Truth is, there isn’t any. Just thought I’d come clean on [...]

December 30, 2008

The Top 10 Tigers Stories of 2008: #5 – The Emergence (and Trade) of Matt Joyce

When I began pulling together this list over the past month or so, it became clear that possibly the only positive story to come out of the Tigers season was the emergence of Matt Joyce. Joyce finished the 2008 season with a .252 average, 12 homers and 33 RBI in 92 games. At long last, [...]

December 26, 2008

The Top 10 Tigers Stories of 2008: #7 – Miguel Cabrera Can’t Field

Just three weeks into the season — or perhaps sooner — Jim Leyland realized that Miguel Cabrera was no Brandon Inge at third base and, at the same time, knew that Carlos Guillen was not Sean Casey at first. So what do you do when you have to immovable objects on the corners of your [...]

December 21, 2008

The Top 10 Tigers Stories of 2008

It’s the end of the year, so that means it’s time for Top 10 Lists galore. So I thought I’d add to the list of lists with my take on the 2008 Detroit Tigers. Actually, this top-10 list — which I will reveal over the final 10 days of 2008 — is for the calendar [...]