Ian Kinsler knickers, is Nick Castellanos Greek, Drew Smyly ebola, Torii Hunter inflatable furniture: 2014 Tigers

http://www.freep.com/article/20140730/NEWS01/307300068/evan-reed-sexual-assault-charges

http://assets-s3.rollingstone.com/assets/images/story/jack-white-throws-first-pitch-at-detroit-tigers-game-to-santa-20140730/1000x306/jackwhite-500-1406725333.jpg

kind of unbelievable how scherzer has only thrown one complete game in his entire career.

joey pankake: .407/.470/.523 in 25 july games

Jim Leyland, is that you?

Davis 7
Carrera 8
Kinsler 4
V. Martinez DH
J. Martinez 9
Kelly 3
Castellanos 5
Avila 2
Romine 6

pinch hit for jd martinez

let don kelly hit

I'm watching the end of Jays vs Tigers and just finding out now about Joba Chamberlain's mountain man beard.

@Lynn_Henning
Ausmus concedes could be "mid-September" before Sanchez returns to Tigers rotation. Soria on DL, Nathan gassed: BP options today: Price CG.

So not the best day to go twelve innings then.

Never in a million years would I have done what Detroit just did--14th inning, man on second with two out, and they gave Cabrera and Bautista IBBs to load the bases. Ball one to Francisco, then he swings at what I think was ball two, hits a piddly little ground ball to second. The Jays have left the bases loaded three of the last five innings.

I have no idea how Munenori Kawasaki keeps his average above .225 (he's around .275 right now). Three times this game they've pulled the outfield in as shallow as you can, and three times he's hit little chip shots right into someone's glove. It's literally like he's up there with a sand wedge.

RIP everyone involved in this baseball game, apart from Brad Ausmus, who was ejected 15 innings ago.

So of course the Jays' game-winning rally in the 19th began with a Kawasaki chip shot to left...Melky Cabrera was on base eight times today (three hits, five walks--three intentional); Bautista was 0-7 until he got the game-winner.

@beckjason 10m
Pink backpack sits alone on bench in #Tigers bullpen.

robbie ray, i summon thee

I bad time to play a game with 23 players.

yikes Verlander

I ate ten tacos next to Justin Verlander last night

Ks are up.

this game might go on awhile as well

can't believe that don kelly didn't get the start in his hometown, tho

Smart of Verlander bunted at the first pitch after those two BBs to start the inning.

Also smart to send the catcher in the same (second) inning.

Just remembered Kinsler's sac bunt way back in the first.

is he hurt? i'm not actually watching

Verlander was pacing behind the mound between a lot of pitches. Had to have been taken out as a precaution, at the very least -- only one inning after the 19-inning game yesterday.

@beckjason
Verlander removed with right shoulder soreness. Will be further evaluated Tuessday.

Another weird thing is that there was a bunch of activity in the dugout prior to Verlander's second-inning at-bat. Looked like Scherzer thought he was being asked to hit...or something. Miller had been warming up in the pen. Maybe Ausmus knew Verlander was done but didn't want to waste a bench player.

In discussing the shoulder trouble that KO’d him, he said, “It’s been lingering for a little while.”

Asked to define “a while,” he declined to.

Oh?

Verlander pitching hurt all season long is the worst kept secret in baseball.

This will sound sarcastic, but it's not meant to be--sincere question: Do great pitchers ever just flat-out have lousy seasons, or is it that they're always trying to pitch through arm trouble? It seems to me that, almost without exception, when a great pitcher is having a bad year, at some point in the season they go on the DL. I know there must be examples of guys who weren't hurt but just couldn't get anybody out all of a sudden--who?

Ha -- Verlander in 2008! I think he attributed it to mechanical issues.

Mechanical and personal issues have probably contributed to a lot of bad seasons for good pitchers.

also luck, even in a sample as large as a season. maddux's era jumped 1.35 between '98 and '99, probably partly because his strikeouts were down, but also his babip made a weird jump from .262 to .324. nbd, still won 19 games, put up 5.6 fwar

i believe in cases where good pitchers have bad years and go on the DL we are talking about a different DL

THEY ARE PUT ON THE DISGRACEFUL LIST

OTM

David Schoenfield: "The Tigers are relying on Miguel Cabrera to hit like Miguel Cabrera. Not that he's having a bad year, but his .308/.366/.509 line is about the same as Melky Cabrera's (.318/.374/.480). The Tigers aren't paying Miggy to hit like Melky."

I just find the phrasing there funny. I'm hearing it in Jerry Seinfeld's voice: "Paying Miggy...to hit like Melky."

ha!

That's it?

http://beck.mlblogs.com/2014/08/12/verlander-mri-shows-inflammation-but-no-structural-damage/

who dis guy -- http://espn.go.com/mlb/player/stats/_/id/33627/buck-farmer

two months ago he was a midwest league (low-a) all-star

George Runie "Buck" Farmer

Strike thrower and avid hunter

buck farmer

alex avila and travis snider having a ycpb-off this week

Sterling defense from both teams tonight.

@TonyPaul1984
In the span of barely two weeks, Buck Farmer will have pitched for Single-A West Michigan, Double-A Erie, Triple-A Toledo and the #Tigers.

f u lakeland

Joe Nathan following his latest blown save the other day: "It's not gonna ruin my day."

When he entered the game last night, he got some boos. He walked the first two batters (more boos), gave up a hard-hit outfield liner, then lucked into a double play.

The boos evidently bother Nathan more than screwing up:

http://www.blessyouboys.com/2014/8/14/6001245/joe-nathan-hand-chin-flick-italian-gesture

@anthonyfenech
On a white board in the Tigers clubhouse, probably not written by Joe Nathan: "The Storm is Over!"

scherzer might fan 20 today

or 27

So he'll be out before the seventh and the bullpen...

Now with Jim Johnson. What could go wrong?

Complete game one-hit loss for David Price.