GDT: 7/18/08 - DET (48-47) AT BAL (45-49) - 7:05 p.m. ET

BALTIMORE -- Jim Leyland went to the All-Star Game looking to honor the game and pay respect to the Hall of Famers. He came out with a hitting tip for Gary Sheffield.

He won't say who it was who gave him the idea, only that it was a Hall of Fame player. Nor will he credit the tip for Sheffield's performance Thursday night, in which he hit a two-run home run and nearly homered again until Jay Payton made a leaping catch at the fence. The important part, regardless, was that Sheffield looked a little more like his old self at the plate.

"I take advice," Sheffield said Thursday night. "Anytime they ask me to do something, I try to go out and implement it. Most coaches never really had to say much to me to try to help me out in certain situations. Like I tell a player, 'If you see something, just say something.' I'm not one of those that aren't approachable. I try to take advice like anybody else."

What's different now compared to earlier, Sheffield said, is that he is cutting down on his swing a little bit, staying on his back leg and trusting his bat speed instead of trying to compensate for his shoulder. It's another sign that he's feeling healthy after the shoulder problems that plagued him early in the season and improved once he went on the DL with a strained left oblique muscle.

Leyland said he and hitting coach Lloyd McClendon talked with Sheffield before the game.

"I had a couple conversations with people at the All-Star Game," Leyland said. "They'd watched, and they just made a couple suggestions. It's not a total [change], but they thought maybe a couple ideas might help Sheff. We just talked about it, suggested it. It wasn't a total adjustment for him. He lowered his hands a little bit. I thought it made a lot of sense, so I relayed the information to Sheff. It's a couple people I think he respects, obviously."

Part of the key in that is the trust factor that Leyland and Sheffield have with each other.

"He knows that if I think there's something that can help him, he knows I'm trying to help," Leyland said. "I'm not trying to get in the way. He knows that if I say something to him, and I know if he says something to me, that it means something."

If Sheffield can get on a second-half tear, it'll mean plenty to the Tigers, who head into Friday's game against the Orioles looking to move back to two games over .500. It could also make Leyland's job a little tougher trying to balance out all the hitters he currently has. With Magglio Ordonez back off the disabled list, Leyland now has to try to find playing time for four outfielders, not counting Sheffield at DH. Matt Joyce is expected to play Friday at some position against right-hander Jeremy Guthrie.



Pitching matchup

DET: RHP Armando Galarraga (7-3, 3.27 ERA)
After being recalled from Triple-A in mid-April, Galarraga comes into the second half as the Tigers' wins leader despite having made only 15 starts. However, he has struggled of late with a winless streak that covers his last four starts. His control has wavered lately as well, as he has walked almost three batters per game in his last three starts.

BAL:RHP Jeremy Guthrie (5-7, 3.49 ERA)
Guthrie entered the All-Star break tied for the league lead in quality starts (14), a statistic that serves as a better bellwether for how he's pitched than his record. The right-hander has completed seven innings in nine of his first 20 starts and has allowed three earned runs or less 15 times. Guthrie is 2-3 with a 3.51 ERA at home and 3-4 with a 3.47 mark on the road.

Tidbits

Edgar Renteria will be a pregame decision for the Tigers after the shortstop left Thursday's game with an aggravation of his injured left hamstring. He was clearly limited in his running while batting and was pulled for Ramon Santiago after hobbling on a ground-ball double play. Thursday was his first game in a week after he missed the final four games before the All-Star break. ... Carlos Guillen also is questionable for Friday's game. He was in Detroit on Wednesday and Thursday to be with his wife, who was hospitalized following complications from the birth of their daughter last week.

On the Internet

MLB.TV
Gameday Audio
• Gameday
• Official game notes

On television
• FSN-HD

On radio
• 97.1FM/1270AM

Up next

• Sat., July 19: Tigers (Nate Robertson 6-8, 5.26) at Orioles (Daniel Cabrera 6-5, 4.33), 7:05 p.m. ET

• Sun., July 20: Tigers (Justin Verlander 7-9, 4.15) at Orioles (Brian Burres 7-5, 5.02), 1:35 p.m. ET

• Mon., July 21: Tigers (Zach Miner, 3-3, 4.23) at Royals (Luke Hochevar, 6-7, 5.10), 8:10 p.m. ET

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LINEUP

Detroit AVG
:curtis: Granderson, CF .292
:placido: Polanco, 2B .304
:joyce: Joyce, LF .263
Ordonez, RF .305
Cabrera, 1B .282
:thames: Thames, DH .271
:pudge: Rodriguez, C .285
:edgar: Renteria, SS .258
Inge, 3B .221

Baltimore AVG
Roberts, 2B .295
Jones, CF .284
Markakis, RF .296
Huff, DH .287
Millar, 1B .242
Mora, 3B .236
Scott, LF .256
Hernandez, R, C .239
Fahey, SS .234

GO GALA

95 degrees in Baltimore right now

89 at Game Time; Humid


South Winds 11 mph

Still no Carlos. Hope Amelia is doing okay.

Joyce AND Maggs get to play today!!!

Let's get this party started!

catbox_9 wrote:

Let's get this party started!

Live Blog is open!

Matt Joyce batting 3rd?!?! I guess that's what a Player of the Week award will do for you.

Joyce K's.

bobrob2004 wrote:

catbox_9 wrote:

Let's get this party started!

Live Blog is open!

I'm there

Omg I cant even do the live blog. Since my brother is gay.
Can someone do a normal GDT?

gdennis59 wrote:

Omg I cant even do the live blog. Since my brother is gay.
Can someone do a normal GDT?

Sure

5-4 O's so far.

Shit.
Lets go Tigers!!!

Hello. Bottom of the 7th. One on, 2 outs. 5 - 4 bad people winning.

Huff batting. He'll huff and he'll puff and he'll blow your house in (or something. Sorry, I'm not good with nursery rhymes).

Hit batter. 2 on.

Okay theres the out and we are going to the 8th.

With Huff's AB the inning ain't not over!

catbox_9 wrote:

Huff batting. He'll huff and he'll puff and he'll blow your house in (or something. Sorry, I'm not good with nursery rhymes).

Are you threatening me :haha:

How did Gala do and whos pitching now?

Fossum was pitching. Gala did alright.

1 out. COME ON PUDGE.

pudge singles. Come on rent....

Out at second. Rent at first.

Wait no. Rent steals second.

Rent is old. Ill go play SS for em...

Hmm... okay. I can deal with that.

Grandy makes a nice play. 1 out. (oh yah, it's the bottom of the 8th now)

COME ON TIGERS!

Damn. Walk. Dolsi pitching, btw. Ahh, Leyland coming out. Seay pitching!

Lets go Tigers!!!!
I think Dolsi might be pitching the ninth. Thats just my prediction.

Damn, I seriously didnt know Dolsi was pitching, I must be good with this prediction stuff lol