What's going on in the American League Central

Look what's going on in the American League Central Division.

Last years two bottom dwelling teams, the Cleveland Indians and Kansas City Royals, are a combined 15-8, with the Tribe holding a half a game lead over the Royals as play begins today.

Last years champions, the Minnesota Twins, lost yesterday...to the Royals, and are in the cellar, with a 4-7 record.

My team, the Tigers, one of three teams picked to contend, along with the Twins and the Chicago White Sox, got off to a terrible start, going 3-7 in their first ten games.

Two consecutive walk off wins against the powerhouse Texas Rangers have the Tigers, at 5-7, and have given us Detroit fans a glimpse of how good they can be.

Tigers closer Jose Valverde has yet to give up a run in 4 2/3 innings, with 2 saves, and a 0.

The Chicago White Sox are right there, as usual, in 3rd place, just a game behind the Tribe.

The Royals have slugged their way to second place, and have 4 of the top 11 hitters in the A.L., starting with Wilson Betemit, who's batting .379.

The other Royals off to a good start at the plate are Alex Gordon, .346, Chris Getz, .342, and Billy Butler, who continues to own the Detroit Tigers pitching staff, and is hitting .341.

The Indians are winning the other way, with pitching.

Cleveland's staff has the 5th best team ERA in the A.L., at 3.45, by far the best in the division, well ahead of the ChiSox, who's team ERA is. 4.06, AND HAVE A TEAM whip of 1.13, second best in the A.L.

The Tribe staff is lead by three right handers in  Justin Masterson, who's 2-0, with a 1.35 ERA, 9 K's,  Mitch Talbot, 1-0, with a ERA of 1.46, and 11 K's, and Josh Tomlin, who has a 2-0 record, a 2.63 ERA, and  a miniscule 0.88 WHIP.

The closer is Chris Perez, who's 4-4 in save opportunities this year, has a WHIP of just 0.63, and has yet to allow a run in 6 1/3 innings of relief.

The pitching of the Tigers and the Twins, on the other hand, has been less than stellar.

The Tigers are 13th, next to last in the A.L. in team ERA, at 5.28, and that's with Justin Verlander's 3.13 ERA in 3 strong outings.

The staffs of both the Tigers and Twins pitchers have allowed 13 home runs, and the Tigers staff has a un wanted high of 12 wild pitches through the teams first 12 games.

The White Sox are holding steady in 3rd place, just a game out of 1st place, with a respectable A.L.  4.06 team ERA, and ChiSox hurlers have allowed 115 hits in 115.3 innings pitched.

Ex-Tiger Edwin Jackson is 2-0 for the Sox, with a 2.89 ERA, and 24 K's(13 against the Rays on April 7th) in 3 starts.

Since the 2005 season the White Sox and Twins have dominated the division titles, but with the early results from Cleveland, KC,  and Detroit, the Central looks as competitive as ever.


As a Tiger fan, I'm hoping for a division pennant, one the team hasn't won since 1987, right before they lost to the dreaded Twins in the ALCS.


It's a long way to October, but I love seeing the Twins, even for a moment, wallowing in the cellar, struggling to find their way out.

Watching baseball on TV

On a very ugly day in downtown Detroit, the St. Louis Cardinals and their Hall of Fame bound pitcher, Bob Gibson, were destroying the Detroit Tigers in Game 5 of the 1968 World Series.

The Cardinals humiliated the Tigers, and their fans, 10-1, on National TV.

Now, you're probably asking yourself, why, as a Tigers fan, am I bringing up a horrible memory like that?

Well, it's the 1st game I remember seeing any Tiger game on TV...October 2, 1968, a Wednesday.

The reason I bring up my early TV baseball viewing is a well done article by the guys over at Baseball News and Scores about the current baseball packages offered by Major League Baseball.

When I was a kid growing up in the suburbs of Kalamazoo, Muskegon, and then Portage, Michigan, in the late 1960's and early 1970's, if the Tigers were on TV, it was an event.

The Tigers were only on TV on Opening Day, of course, and then, if they were home, the team would show the Saturday home stand game, and that was the only chance, unless the Tigers got on the NBC Game of the Week, to see the Tigers play at Tiger Stadium.

We could see some Tigers games on the road, but not many, and it seemed like they always played lousy teams, like the Indians, and the Rangers, although I do remember some games against the powerful Orioles teams.

Today it's much different.

Today you can watch every game of your favorite team by subscribing to  MLB Extra Innings on your cable or satellite, or via your computer/ I pad, etc., with MLB.tv

There are also the ESPN Games of the week, usually on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, the TBS National Sunday afternoon game, and the FOX Saturday baseball coverage.

Lot's of baseball, anywhere, anytime.

It's simply amazing to me how many games, heck, even every Tigers game can be seen via either the TV, or on my computer.

There's just one problem though, with the TV packages of MLB.

The blackouts.

MLB has the right to black out ANY game, whenever they want.

If I want to watch a Braves game, MLB, for some reason, blacks out the Atlanta games.

Why?

Well, for some reason, Jacksonville, Florida, where I live, is in the Braves territorial reach, even though the last time I drove to Atlanta, it took me nearly 6 hours to get there.

MLB blacks out the MLB.tv Braves games in Jacksonville, even though we cannot watch them on cable TV.

Channel 54 on cable here in town, the CSS station, NEVER plays the Braves games, even though they show the previews.

So, you cannot watch the Braves, a big time draw in the south, on cable TV in Jacksonville, and you can't watch them on MLB-TV, channel 279(479 HD) either.

The blackout policy is silly, right?

I guess it's because of the Marlins and the Rays, channels 50 and 51,on Sun Sports, but it's just as long a drive, 5 1/2 hours+ to Miami, and 4 1/2+ hours to St. Petersberg, to watch those teams live.

Oh, and if the game you want to watch is on the FOX Saturday broadcast window, or the TBS Sunday window, then you cannot watch ANY OF THE GAMES.

I realize there are lots of $$$$$$ flying around, and that baseball is protecting the investments of FOX and TBS, however, the whole point of purchasing the games shown by MLB Extra Innings, or on MLB.tv, is to watch games in out of market areas.

So, if the Tigers are playing on Saturday afternoon at the same time FOX has one of it's 106 games showing either the Yankees or Red Sox, that's the only game I can watch.

That's the problem, as MLB unfairly blacks out games that you want to watch, and force feeds you the TBS or FOX games.

If your spending $179 a year, of your hard earned money, I think it's only fair that you get to watch what you paid for, regardless where you live.

It was so much easier back when I was a kid playing baseball with my friends.

We played baseball all the time, and we would play while listening to Ernie Harwell, Ray Lane, and Paul Carey, giving us the play by play of our beloved Detroit Tigers.

There is a lot of big league baseball on TV, and that's great, but I think MLB, who takes your money to watch your team, should let you watch your team, anytime, anywhere.

I enjoy watching games on ESPN, I like how they cover the game, but I get sick of watching the same teams, the Yankees, the BoSox, the Cardinals, the Braves, well, you get the idea.

While I do like to watch every big league club, I also want to follow the team I've loved since I was 7 tears old, and I'm sure you feel the same way.

Baseball fans want, and should, be able, if they're willing to pay, be able to watch any team, at any time of the day, anywhere.

Reds duo, Blue Jay's Arencibia receive Freehan catcher award for week one

The Cincinnati Reds had themselves quite a start to the season, continuing their come from behind ways of the 2010 baseball year, and it was their catcher, Ramon Hernandez, who hit a walk off 3 run HR as the Reds beat the Brewers on opening day.

 Ryan Hanigan, the other Reds catcher, went 5 for 7 over the weekend, and the duo are the co-winners of the Bill Freehan Award for the first week in 2011.

The American League winner is J. P . Arencibia, of the Blue Jays, who smacked the Twins pitching in the opening series, hitting .429, with 2 homers, and driving in 5 runs.

Who will be the award winning catchers for week 2?

Make sure to check back on Monday to place your vote for your pick as the Bill Freehan Catcher of the Week.

Keith Olbermann catches the Yankees cheating

Over the weekend the New York Yankees played the Detroit Tigers in the opening series of the season, at Yankee Stadium.

The Yankees won the opening game against the Tigers, 6-3, against Justin Verlander.

The picture was taken by Keith Olbermann.

Bill Freehan Catcher of the Year Award, Week #1, 3/31-4/3/11

Welcome to the first ever balloting for the Bill Freehan Catcher of the Week Award.

In earlier posts I announced that I would be honoring by hero, former Detroit Tigers catcher Bill Freehan, by awarding, in his honor, a catcher of the week, of the month, and then of the year, from both the American and National Leagues.

This weeks nominees are listed below, if, however, you believe another catcher should be nominated, please fell free to write in a comment and your voice will be heard.

The first nominees in the American League are...

Carlos Santana, Cleveland Indians     

In 3 games the Indians backstop hit a robust .462, with 6 hits, a home run, 3 RBIs, and 9 total bases.

Russell Martin, Mew York Yankees

Martin is the every day catcher now for the Yankees as Jorge Posada winds down his career as a DH. Martin was 5 for 11 against the Tigers last weekend, a nice .455 average, with 3 RBIs and 9 total bases.

J.P. Arencibia, Toronto Blue Jays


Arencibia hit .429 vs. the Twins, smacking 2 HRs, driving in 5 runs, with 11 total bases, tops for all A.L. catchers the first week of the season. J. P also caught 2 complete games for Toronto this past weekend.

Matt Wieters, Baltimore Orioles

The Orioles catcher lead a terrific Orioles pitching staff to a 3 game sweep over the Tampa Bay Rays, hitting .300, including a 2-4 on Sunday, and defensively he threw out 2 of the 3 Rays base runners that attempted to steal, catching 27 innings for the Birds.

A.J. Pierzynski, Chicago White Sox

The long time backstop of the ChiSox was 5 for 13,  with 2 RBI's, guiding Chicago's pitchers to a Sox sweep of the Indians in Cleveland. 

The National League nominees are...

Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves

McCann and the Braves are off to a good start. McCann hit .462, with  6 hits, 5 RBIs as the Braves won 2 of 3 from the Nationals.

Ryan Hanigan, Ramon Hernandez, Cincinnati Reds

 Yes, we are joining the 2 Reds catcher together, and you'll see why.

The Reds swept the Milwaukee Brewers, and both Ramon Hernandez and Ryan Hanigan were right in the thick of the action.

Hernandez was the Reds catcher on Opening Day, going  4 for 5, with a game winning walk off HR to beat the Brewers.

Hannigan was the Reds catcher hitting .714, 5 for 7 at the plate, with 2 homers and 4 RBIs.in 2 games against Milwaukee.

The two Reds catcher combined for 18 total bases against the Brewers.

John Buck, Florida Marlins

Buck caught all 3 games of the opening series against the New York Mets, collecting 4 hits in 13 at bats, a .308 average, with a HR and 4 RBIs, and 9 total bases..

Nick Hundley, San Diego Padres


Hundley went 2-4 in both games he played in over the weekend, a .455 average, and driving in 2 suns for the Padres. Defensively Hundley threw out both attempted base stealer's, in 28 innings caught.


Miguel Montero, Arizona Diamondbacks

Montero was 5 for 8 batting, including a 3 for 5 on Friday, with a HR and 2 RBIs in 2 games against the Colorado Rockies. The teams game on Sunday was postponed.



So, we have our very 1st ever nominees, so please vote in the comment section for your choice.

If you don't like the choices above, feel free to write in your choice in the comment section below.

I will tally all the votes on Wednesday, with a 12 PM Eastern time deadline.

The votes of you, by you,  the followers of this blog, will be counted, and along with my vote, we will name a winner of the 1st Annual Bill Freehan Catcher of the Week Award.

Thanks for participating, and please pass along our award on your blog, with either a mention, or a link to the page.

Thanks again to all the readers of my blog, it is much appreciated.

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Baseball is back!

It's finally here baseball fans, the start of the 2011 big league baseball season.

The season begins today with the Detroit Tigers facing the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, with Justin Verlander of the Tigers facing C.C. Sabathia of the Yankees in the American League Opener.

In the National League, the tradition of the Cincinnati Reds and Opening Day continues as the Reds take on fellow N.L. Central Division foes, the Milwaukee Brewers.

In other games today the Atlanta Braves traveling to our Nations capital to face the Washington Nationals, the Los Angeles of Anaheim will be in Kansas City to take on the Royals, the St. Louis Cardinals are hosting the San Diego Padres, and the nigh concludes with the World Series Champion San Francisco Giants playing in Chavez Ravine against their most hated rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

"You look forward to it like a birthday party when you're a kid. You think something wonderful is going to happen." -- Joe DiMaggio

Countdown to Opening Day, by the Numbers...the number 11

As Opening Day is less than 24 hours away, we have reached the #11 in our look back at baseball and the numbers that make it so special.

#11, in baseball...

Toby Harrah of the Texas Rangers, catcher Don Slaught of the Pittsburgh Pirates, and Minnesota Twins Chuck Knoblach.

#11 is the 1995 National League MVP, Barry Larkin of the Cincinnati Reds, and Jim Fregosi of the California Angels.

The Nationals 3rd baseman Ryan Zimmerman wears #11, as does the Yankees Brett Gardner, and Jimmy Rollins, the 2007 N.L. MVP.

The Hall of fame is well represented by the number 11, with the great screw ball pitcher of the New York Giants, Carl Hubbell, and the ChiSox terrific shortstop, Luis Aparicio.

The #11 was worn by the Seattle Mariners Edgar Martinez, arguably the best designated hitter in baseball history,

Garry Sheffield, Jeff Kent, Hal McRae, Tim McCarver, and Royce Clayton all wore #11 in their big league careers.

#11 means more to me than any other baseball number, because it was the number worn by my hero, Detroit Tigers catcher Bill Freehan.

Freehan was a bonus baby, signed out of the University of Michigan, where he played both baseball and football.

When Freehan left Michigan for the Tigers, he held the single season Big Ten record for batting average, hitting .585 in 161. As of 2010 that record still stands.(Big Ten record book)

                                                          Highest batting average:
                                         .585 Bill Freehan, C, MICH, (24-for-41), 1961

Bill Freehan came up to the Tigers briefly in 1961, wearing uniform #19, and then after a season in the minors he came back to Detroit in 1963, and he would never leave.

For the most part of his14 big league seasons Bill Freehan was the best catcher in the American League, is not in all of baseball.

Freehan was the first catcher to win five consecutive Gold Gloves, from 1965-69, and when he retire his .993 fielding percentage was the best in the history of the baseball, and it's a record that would stand for 20+ years after his final year in baseball.

An 11 time All-Star, Freehan collected 1,591 hits and smacked 200 home runs in the big leagues, and was a member of the Tigers World Series Championship team in 1968.

In game 5 of the '68 series, the Tigers were losing to the St. Louis Cardinals 3-0, and were down 3 games to 1 when Freehan cemented his reputation as the best defensive catcher in baseball.

Lou Brock had doubled leading off the Cards 5th inning, and as he tried to score the 4th run of the afternoon for the Cards, Freehan received left fielder Willie Horton's throw, and blocking home plate, tagged out Brock, who tried to score standing up, and keeping the Tigers in the game. 

The Tigers would go onto win the game, 5-3, and they would then go on to St. Louis and win games 6 and 7 to win the World Series.

I loved Bill Freehan, and I would copy the way he played baseball, both as a catcher, and as a hitter.

I demanded that I wear uniform #11 in Little League, and when we played sandlot games with our friends, I was always William Ashley Freehan, my hero, my idol.

I always resented that the Detroit Tigers never retired #11 for Freehan, and when the team announced this year that they would retire #11 for the late Sparky Anderson, my emotions got the better of me, and I began to cry.

I loved what Sparky did for the Tigers, taking a team that were second division finishers, and leading them to a World Series title in 1984, but I never forgave the Tigers for letting another person to wear #11.

I have created a Facebook page, #11 Belongs to Bill Freehan, and I hope that my efforts, along with support for Tiger fans, will allow my hero, Bill Frerehan, to be honored, along with Sparky, when Old English D uniform #11 is retired later this year.

#11 and the game of baseball.

Do you have a favorite #11?

Did I forget someone?

Feel free to leave a comment, and if you agree with me that Bill Freehan deserves to be honored when #11 is retired, please click on the link above and join our effort to get the respect that Bill Freehan deserves.

Countdown to Opening Day, by the Numbers...10 out of 10

I've been looking forward to the start of the baseball season by looking back, back at the numbers of baseball, because, as baseball fans, we all know how important numbers are to the National Pastime.

Today I look at the number 10.

The #10 is the Cubs 3rd baseman Ron Santo, clicking his heels after a win at Wrigley Field, and yes, Ron Santo belongs in the Hall of Fame.

#10 Rusty Staub, who has his #10 retired by the Montreal Expos.

#10 is Indians Coco Crisp, the Rockies Dante Bichette, and the Orioles Miguel Tejada.

10 is how many American League Pennants the Detroit Tigers have won.

10 is how many World Series Championships have been won by the St. Louis Cardinals.

10 is how many Gold Gloves were won by the legendary Al Kaline playing right field for the Detroit Tigers in the 1950s and 1960s.

The #10, Leon Durham of the Cubs, and the "Big Cat," Johnny Mize of the Cardinals.

#10 is "The Hawk," Andre Dawson of the Expos and the Cubs, swooping into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

#10 is the Atlanta Braves 3rd baseman Chipper Jones, the 1999 N.L. MVP, the Blue Jays Vernon Wells, and the great Cardinals 2nd baseman and future Manager, Red Schoendienst.

#10 is outfielder Justin Upton of the Diamondbacks, and catchers Jeff Torborg of the Dodgers, and Bob Montgomery of the Red Sox.

The number ten is a special number to many fans, and teams have retired #1o for men who made the #10 their own, men like...

Hall of Fame manager of the Big Red Machine, the late Sparky Anderson, who guided the Reds to 4 National League Pennants, and back to back World Series titles in 1975 and 1976.

To Royals fans, the #10 is the late Dick Howser, their skipper that led them to the 1985 World Series win over the Cardinals.

Yankee fans will tell you that the #10 is, well..."Holy Cow, look at that," the voice of "The Scooter," Phil Rizzuto.

Ten...a perfect 10 out of 10...who's your favorite #10?

 

Bill Freehan Catcher of the Year Award

Baseball season is here, and so I thought I'd remind readers of the 1st annual Bill Freehan Catcher of the Year Award, my way of honoring my boyhood hero and the best catchers each week during the 2011 season.

Every Monday I will post the best that was in catching in the big leagues, and then ask you to vote for the catcher who you believe had the best week.

I will have a weekly winner in both the American and National Leagues, then the Monthly Award, and then, at the end of the season, we will crown the best of the best with the 1st ever Bill Freehan Catcher of the Year.

Remember to come back ever Monday to vote for your choice as catcher of the week,

Time for another season of Detroit Tiger baseball

"Detroit Tigers Baseball is on the air..."

Man am I getting old. 


This Thursday is the start of season number #110 of Detroit Tigers baseball, and, as a fan, my 44th.

I say 44 because my Uncle Bob told me he first took me to Tiger Stadium in 1967, and even though I have no recollection of that as a 7 year old, I use it as my "official' birthday as a fan of my beloved Tigers.

The Tigers are a good squad this year, and I'm hoping for a superb run for the guys from Motown, a winning record for sure, and hopefully, a division crown in the American League Central, and a trip to the post season.

I love the Tigers, they are the team of my youth, the very first team to acquire my love and devotion.

Being a fan of the Tigers hasn't always been isn't easy, that's for sure, but I'm back year after year, after year, dreaming of another World Series trophy for the boys in Detroit.

We've seen great players in the olde English "D", from the powerful right arm of Al Kaline in right field, to the powerful bat of Miguel Cabrera, from the Gold Gloves of Bill Freehan, Lance Parrish, and Pudge Rodriguez behind the plate.

We have also seen great teams, from the 1968 and 1984 World Series Champions, to the 2006 American League Champions, and with the A.L. East Champs of 1972 and 1987.

It's not easy though, because being a Tigers fan has also meant the not so good, as in 13 consecutive losing years, from 1993-2005, the miserable teams of '75, '96, and, of course, 2003, when the Tigers lost an A.L. record 119 games.

The Tigers have never been dull, that's for sure, and even when they weren't wining in the 1970's, they gave us the exhilaration of a run for the pennant in '72, the magic of Mark "The Bird" Fidrych in '76, and Ron LeFlore , who left the Michigan State Penitentiary to play center field and lead the American League in stolen bases.

I have always thought the fans who follow teams like the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers, and St. Louis Cardinals have had it way to easy, they follow winners, teams who have won countless championships.

The Tigers have played in 10 World Series. 

The St. Louis Cardinals have won 10 World Series.

That's what makes baseball so grand, and why spring means so much to baseball fans.

On Opening Day, it's all brand new, time to start over, a time when every fan, from Boston, to San Diego, from Seattle down to Tampa Bay, from Baltimore up to the Motor City, every fan dreams of the upcoming baseball season, and a chance to see their team play winning baseball.

The Tigers have a wonderful blend of youth and big league experience, guys like Will Rhymes, a terrific looking young 2nd baseman, Austin Jackson, the Tigers center fielder and lead-off hitter who seems to run down every fly ball and line drive hit between left and right field.

Justin Verlander is the Tigers #1 pitcher, and he has made it his mission this year to be that #1 guy from the moment he takes the mound this Thursday at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx against C.C. Sabathia.

Jim Leyland is the Tigers manager, and even though the Tigers have had their problems in the 2nd half of the last few years, I like how he manages the club.

Leyland is a terrific skipper, and I hope Tiger fans realize just how good we have it to have a man like Leyland in charge of our team.

Brennan Boesch, a young kid with a lot of power, who I absolutely think will be a terrific player, hopes to bounce back from a bad second half in 2010.

Brandon Inge is the Tigers 3rd baseman, just as he's been for 11 years now.

Inge, in my opinion, is the "Charlie Hustle" of our time, if I may reference Pete Rose.

No one plays harder, on ever single play, than Inge, and if Rose isn't a good analogy, than sue Bobby Higginson, who played hard every play, in every game, in the Tigers outfield, and on the bases, in the 1990's.

Miguel Cabrera, the best player in the A.L., has been given some tremendous help in Victor Martinez, whom the Tigers signed as a free agent the past winter.

Martinez is a proven big league hitter, and he will DH and catch, backing up young Alex Avila, and giving the Tigers hitters protection, weather they hit in front, or behind him.

The Tigers were 81-81 last year, and yet, with the changes in the off season, I like the Tigers to win 90+ games, and contend in the division.

I'm not one to forecast, or project what a baseball team will do, after all, the players are in control, not me, but I love the start of baseball season, and I am excited what the Tigers are doing, and believe in this team.

Being a fan of the Tigers, I wouldn't trade it for all the rings, the awards, all the fame of any of the big boys, be it from the Bronx, the Windy City, or the City of Angels.

I love the Detroit Tigers...play ball!