DET. TIGERS 2008 REG SEASON SCHEDULE & SCORES

DET. TIGERS 2008 REG SEASON SCHEDULE & SCORES


TEAM RECORD
SEE POST # 2 FOR RECORD

Home Games BOLD
-ALL TIMES EST

Mon, 3/31 Royals 1:05p - LOSE 4-5 in 11 innings
Tue, 4/1 - off
Wed, 4/2 Royals 1:05p - LOSE 0-4
Thu, 4/3 Royals 1:05p - LOSE 1-4
Fri, 4/4 White Sox 1:05p - LOSE 5-8
Sat, 4/5 White Sox 3:55p - LOSE 3-5

Sun, 4/6 White Sox 8:05p - LOSE 2-13
Mon, 4/7 - off
Tue, 4/8 at Red Sox 2:05p - LOSE 0-5
Wed, 4/9 at Red Sox 7:05p - WIN 7-2
Thu, 4/10 at Red Sox 7:05p - LOSE 6-12
Fri, 4/11 at White Sox 8:11p - WIN 5-2
Sat, 4/12 at White Sox 1:05p - LOSE 0-7

Sun, 4/13 at White Sox 2:05p - LOSE 0-11
Mon, 4/14 Twins 7:05p - >>>> WIN 11-9 <<<<
Tue, 4/15 Twins 7:05p - >>>> WIN 6-5 <<<<
Wed, 4/16 at Indians 7:05p - >>>> WIN 13-2 <<<<
Thu, 4/17 at Indians 7:05p - LOSE 1-11
Fri, 4/18 at Blue Jays 7:07p - WIN 8-4
Sat, 4/19 at Blue Jays 1:07p - LOSE 2-3

Sun, 4/20 at Blue Jays 1:07p - LOSE 3-5
Mon, 4/21 at Blue Jays 12:37p - WIN 5-1
Tue, 4/22 Rangers 7:05p - WIN 10-2
Wed, 4/23 Rangers 7:05p - WIN 19-6
Thu, 4/24 Rangers 1:05p - WIN 8-2
Fri, 4/25 Angels 7:05p - LOSE 3-4
Sat, 4/26 Angels 3:55p - WIN 6-4

Sun, 4/27 Angels 8:05p - LOSE 2-6
Mon, 4/28 - off
Tue, 4/29 at Yankees 7:05p - WIN 6-4 \\\\\\
Wed, 4/30 at Yankees 7:05p - WIN 6-2 3 GAME SWEEP OF YANKS IN NY BREAKS 42 YR RECORD!
Thu, 5/1 at Yankees 7:05p - WIN 8-4 ///
Fri, 5/2 at Twins 8:10p - LOSE 1-11
Sat, 5/3 at Twins 7:10p - LOSE 1-4

Sun, 5/4 at Twins 2:10p - LOSE 6-7
Mon, 5/5 Red Sox 7:05p - LOSE 3-6
Tue, 5/6 Red Sox 7:05p - LOSE 0-5
Wed, 5/7 Red Sox 7:05p - WIN 10-9
Thu, 5/8 Red Sox 7:05p - LOSE 1-5
Fri, 5/9 Yankees 7:05p - WIN 6-5
Sat, 5/10 Yankees 3:40p - LOSE 2-5

Sun, 5/11 Yankees 1:05p Postponed: rain
Mon, 5/12 - off
Tue, 5/13 at Royals 8:10p - LOSE 2-3
Wed, 5/14 at Royals 8:10p - LOSE 0-2
Thu, 5/15 at Royals 2:10p - LOSE 4-8
Fri, 5/16 at Diamondbacks 9:40p - LOSE 3-4
Sat, 5/17 at Diamondbacks 8:10p - WIN 3-2

Sun, 5/18 at Diamondbacks 4:10p - LOSE 0-4
Mon, 5/19 - off
Tue, 5/20 Mariners 7:05p - WIN 12-8
Wed, 5/21 Mariners 7:05p - WIN 9-4
Thu, 5/22 Mariners 1:05p - WIN 9-2
Fri, 5/23 Twins 7:05p - LOSE 4-9
Sat, 5/24 Twins 7:05p - WIN 19-3

Sun, 5/25 Twins 1:05p - LOSE 1-6
Mon, 5/26 at Angels 9:05p - LOSE 0-1 IN 12 INNINGS
Tue, 5/27 at Angels 10:05p - LOSE 2-3
Wed, 5/28 at Angels 10:05p - WIN 6-2
Thu, 5/29 - off
Fri, 5/30 at Mariners 10:10p - WIN 7-4
Sat, 5/31 at Mariners 3:55p - LOSE 0-5

Sun, 6/1 at Mariners 4:10p - WIN 7-5
Mon, 6/2 at Athletics 10:05p - LOSE 2-3
Tue, 6/3 at Athletics 10:05p - LOSE 4-5 IN 11 INNINGS
Wed, 6/4 at Athletics 3:35p - LOSE 2-10
Thu, 6/5 - off
Fri, 6/6 Indians 7:05p - LOSE 2-4
Sat, 6/7 Indians 3:55p - WIN 8-4

Sun, 6/8 Indians 1:05p - WIN 5-2
Mon, 6/9 Indians 7:05p - LOSE 2-8
Tue, 6/10 White Sox 7:05p - WIN 6-4
Wed, 6/11 White Sox 7:05p WIN 5-1
Thu, 6/12 White Sox 1:05p - WIN 2-1 SWEEP
Fri, 6/13 Dodgers 7:05p - WIN 5-0
Sat, 6/14 Dodgers 3:55p - WIN 12-7

Sun, 6/15 Dodgers 1:05p - WIN 5-4 SWEEP
Mon, 6/16 at Giants 10:15p - LOSE 6-8
Tue, 6/17 at Giants 10:15p - WIN 5-1
Wed, 6/18 at Giants 3:45p - WIN 7-2
Thu, 6/19 - off
Fri, 6/20 at Padres 10:05p - LOSE 2-6
Sat, 6/21 at Padres 10:05p - WIN 7-5

Sun, 6/22 at Padres 4:05p - WIN 5-3
Mon, 6/23 - off
Tue, 6/24 Cardinals 7:05p - LOSE 4-8
Wed, 6/25 Cardinals 7:05p - WIN 8-7
Thu, 6/26 Cardinals 1:05p - WIN 3-2
Fri, 6/27 Rockies 7:05p - WIN 7-1
Sat, 6/28 Rockies 7:05p - WIN 7-6 TIGERS ARE NOW 40-40

Sun, 6/29 Rockies 1:05p - WIN 4-3 SWEEP
Mon, 6/30 at Twins 8:10p - WIN 5-4
Tue, 7/1 at Twins 8:10p - LOSE 4-6
Wed, 7/2 at Twins 1:10p - LOSE 0-7
Thu, 7/3 at Mariners 10:10p - WIN 8-4
Fri, 7/4 at Mariners 4:10p - LOSE 1-4
Sat, 7/5 at Mariners 10:10p - LOSE 2-3

Sun, 7/6 at Mariners 4:10p - WIN 2-1
Mon, 7/7 - off
Tue, 7/8 Indians 7:05p - WIN 9-2
Wed, 7/9 Indians 7:05p - WIN 8-6 SWEEP SERIES
Thu, 7/10 Twins 1:05p - LOSE 6-7 IN 11 innings
Fri, 7/11 Twins 7:05p - LOSE 2-3
Sat, 7/12 Twins 3:55p - LOSE 5-6

Sun, 7/13 Twins 1:05p - WIN 4-2
Mon, 7/14 - off

Tue, 7/15 ALL STAR GAME – YANKEE STADIUM

DET. TIGERS 2008 REG SEASON SCHEDULE & SCORES
CONTINUED


FINAL 2008 TEAM RECORD
WINS - 74, LOSSES - 88

Home Games BOLD
-ALL TIMES EST

Wed, 7/16 - off
Thu, 7/17 at Orioles 7:05p - WIN 6-5 (WP: Rogers (7-6))
Fri, 7/18 at Orioles 7:05p - LOSE 7-4 (LP: Galarraga (7-4))
Sat, 7/19 at Orioles 7:05p - LOSE 10-11 in 11 innings (LP: Dolsi (1-4))

Sun, 7/20 at Orioles 1:35p - WIN 5-1 (WP: Verlander (8-9))
Mon, 7/21 at Royals 8:10p - WIN 19-4 (WP: Miner (4-3))
Tue, 7/22 at Royals 8:10p - WIN 7-1 (WP: Rogers (8-6))
Wed, 7/23 at Royals 2:10p - WIN 7-1 ROYAL FLUSH (SWEEP) (WP: Galarraga (8-4))
Thu, 7/24 - off
Fri, 7/25 White Sox 7:05p - LOSE 5-6 (LP: T. Jones (4-1))
Sat, 7/26 White Sox 7:05p - LOSE 6-7 - Negro Leagues Celebration (LP: Verlander (8-10))
Sun, 7/27 White Sox 1:05p - WIN 6-4 (WP: Miner (5-3))
Mon, 7/28 at Indians 7:05p - LOSE 0-5 (LP: Rogers (8-7))
Tue, 7/29 at Indians 7:05p - WIN 8-5 (WP: Galarraga (9-4))
Wed, 7/30 at Indians 7:05p - WIN 14-12 IN 13 innings (WP: Fossum (2-0))
Thu, 7/31 at Indians 12:05p - LOSE 4-9 (LP: Verlander (8-11))
Fri, 8/1 at Rays 7:10p - LOSE 2-5 (LP: Minor (5-4))
Sat, 8/2 at Rays 6:10p - LOSE 3-9 (LP: Rogers (8-8))

Sun, 8/3 at Rays 1:40p - LOSE 5-6 in 10 innings (LP: Rodney)
Mon, 8/4 - off
Tue, 8/5 at White Sox 8:11p - LOSE 8-10 in 14 innings (LP: Zumaya)
Wed, 8/6 at White Sox 8:11p - LOSE 1-5 (LP: Verlander (8-12))
Thu, 8/7 at White Sox 8:11p - WIN 8-3 ( WP: Miner (6-4))
Fri, 8/8 Athletics 7:05p - LOSE 2-4 (LP: Rogers (8-9))
Sat, 8/9 Athletics 7:05p ¡Fiesta Tigres! WIN 10-2 (WP: Galarraga (10-4))

Sun, 8/10 Athletics 1:05p - WIN 6-1 (WP: Robertson (7-8))
Mon, 8/11 Blue Jays 7:05p - LOSE 2-7 (LP: Verlander (8-13))
Tue, 8/12 Blue Jays 7:05p - LOSE 4-6 (LP: Zumaya)
Wed, 8/13 Blue Jays 7:05p - LOSE 3-4 (LP: Rogers (8-10))
Thu, 8/14 Blue Jays 1:05p - WIN 5-1 (WP: Galarraga (11-4))
Fri, 8/15 Orioles 7:05p - LOSE 2-11 (LP: Robertson (7-9))
Sat, 8/16 Orioles 7:05p - WIN 5-3 (WP: Verlander (9-13))
Sun, 8/17 Orioles 1:05p - LOSE 8-16 (LP: Fossum)
Mon, 8/18 at Rangers 8:05p - WIN 8-7 (WP: Rogers (9-10))
Tue, 8/19 at Rangers 8:05p - WIN 11-3 (WP: Galarraga (12-4))
Wed, 8/20 at Rangers 8:05p - LOSE 1-9 (LP: Robertson (7-10))
Thu, 8/21 - off
Fri, 8/22 at Royals 8:10p - WIN 4-3 (WP: Verlander (10-13))
Sat, 8/23 at Royals 7:10p - WIN 4-0 (WP: Miner (7-4))

Sun, 8/24 at Royals 2:10p - LOSE 3-7 (LP: Rogers (9-11))
Mon, 8/25 Indians 7:05p - LOSE 3-4 (LP: Glover (1-3))
Tue, 8/26 Indians 7:05p - LOSE 4-10 (LP: C. Lambert (0-1))
Wed, 8/27 Indians 7:05p - LOSE 7-9 (LP: Verlander (10-14))
Thu, 8/28 - off
Fri, 8/29 Royals 7:05p - WIN 6-3 (WP: Miner (8-4))
Sat, 8/30 Royals 7:05p - LOSE 3-13 (LP: Rogers (9-12))

Sun, 8/31 Royals 1:05p - WIN 4-2 (WP: Glover (2-3))
Mon, 9/1 Yankees 1:05p - LOSE 9-13 (LP: Verlander (10-15))
Tue, 9/2 Angels 7:05p - LOSE 4-5 (LP: Rodney (0-4))
Wed, 9/3 Angels 7:05p - WIN 9-6 (WP: Farnsworth (2-2))
Thu, 9/4 Angels 1:05p - LOSE 1-7 (LP: Rogers (9-13))
Fri, 9/5 at Twins 8:10p - LOSE 2-10 (LP: Galarraga (12-5)
Sat, 9/6 at Twins 3:55p - WIN 6-4 (WP: Rapada (3-0))

Sun, 9/7 at Twins 2:10p - WIN 7-5 (WP: Lambert (1-1))
Mon, 9/8 Athletics 7:05p - WIN 14-8 (WP: Fossum (3-1))
Tue, 9/9 Athletics 7:05p - LOSE 2-3 (LP: Rodney (0-5))
Wed, 9/10 Athletics 1:05p - LOSE 2-5 (LP: Galarraga (12-6))
Thu, 9/11 - off
Fri, 9/12 at White Sox 8:11p - Postponed: Rain
Sat, 9/13 at White Sox Game 1 - 3:55p - Postponed: Rain
Sat, 9/13 at White Sox Game 2 - Postponed: Rain

Sun, 9/14 at White Sox - Game 1 - LOSE 2-4 (LP: Verlander (10-16))
Sun, 9/14 at White Sox - Game 2 - LOSE 7-11 (LP: Seay (1-2))
Mon, 9/15 at Rangers 8:05p - LOSE 8-11 (LP: Farnsworth (2-3))
Tue, 9/16 at Rangers 8:05p - LOSE AGAIN 4-5 (LP: Rodney (0-6)(BS 6))
Wed, 9/17 at Rangers 8:05p - WIN 17-4 (WP: Garcia (1-0))
Thu, 9/18 - off
Fri, 9/19 at Indians 7:05p - LOSE 5-6 (LP: Dolsi (1-5))
Sat, 9/20 at Indians 7:05p - LOSE 3-6 (LP: Verlander (10-17))

Sun, 9/21 at Indians 1:05p - LOSE 5-10 (LP: Willis (0-2))
Mon, 9/22 Royals 7:05p - LOSE 2-6 (LP: Miner (8-5))
Tue, 9/23 Royals 7:05p - LOSE 0-5 (LP: Garcia (1-1))
Wed, 9/24 Royals 7:05p - LOSE 4-10 (LP: Robertson (7-11))
Thu, 9/25 Rays 1:05p - WIN 7-5 (WP: Galarraga (13-6))
Fri, 9/26 Rays 7:05p - WIN 6-4 (WP: Verlander (11-17))
Sat, 9/27 Rays 7:05p - WIN 4-3 (WP: Lopez (4-1))

Sun, 9/28 Rays 1:05p - LOSE 7-8 (LP: Lambert (1-2))
Mon, 9/29 at White Sox 2:05P -LOSE AS USUAL 2-8 (LP: Galarraga (13-7))

I still can't believe they are playing a Friday Afternoon game against the White Sox!


If they can play a Sunday Night Game in April , they can play on Friday Night.


Not very fan friendly having 4 weekday games and an 8:05 game on a Sunday Night to kick off the season

PRINTABLE DET. TIGER 2008 SEASON SCHEDULE


ADOBE ACROBAT FORMAT:
Printable Detroit Tigers pocket schedule (294KB) »

03/31/2008 8:05 PM ET
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Tigers drop opener in extra innings
Verlander tires late; Guillen's eighth-inning homer not enough
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- The fireworks came from Miguel Cabrera in his first game as a Tiger. The heroics came from Carlos Guillen and Brandon Inge.

By the end of Opening Day, the focus was on the Tigers' bullpen, rightly or wrongly. Todd Jones clearly felt it was the latter.

"The storyline's been set by everybody," Jones said after Kansas City shortstop Tony Pena singled in the go-ahead run in the 11th inning of Detroit's 5-4 loss to the Royals on Monday at Comerica Park. "Everybody wants to take their shots at the bullpen and make fun of them and stuff like that. It hurts, because these guys down there, we're trying to do the best we can.

"Everybody wants to make a knock-knock joke out of our bullpen, and I think it ticks me off. You can look at it any way you want to, but we just have to try to go out there, make pitches and try to get guys out."

That Jones feels that strongly isn't a surprise, since he's one of the veteran leaders in the bullpen. That he feels that way this early in the season speaks to the scrutiny Tigers relievers face going into it.

Jones knows a thing or two about scrutiny in his role, but it's the entire bullpen facing the challenge of preserving wins without Fernando Rodney and Joel Zumaya. As manager Jim Leyland has said, every pitcher will be counted on for big outs at some point, and the biggest out of the game could be in the early or middle innings, not the late ones. It comes down to pitchers who have been pitching in different roles than usual.

"It's something easy to point at," Jones said. "Your lineup's what it is, and your rotation's what it is. Any bullpen judged by that comparison is going to be looked at as a red-headed stepchild. People build storylines, and so the casual fan says the bullpen blew it again. But they didn't see that it wasn't that. We lost today, and so the easy answer is that there goes the bullpen again. But the tough answer is the Royals did a pretty good job of winning this game today."

Part of that, ironically, was a credit to the Royals' bullpen, which rebounded from Carlos Guillen's game-tying home run in the eighth to retire 12 of Detroit's final 14 batters. That included five strikeouts, including Joakim Soria's nasty slider to send down Edgar Renteria swinging with the potential tying run on third and one out in the 11th before Alex Gordon make a diving stop to rob Placido Polanco of a game-tying hit and end the game instead.

Still, the total effort from the Royals equaled a comeback from a 3-0 Tigers lead on what had been shaping up to be a good day all around in Detroit. The Kansas City victory tempered that.

Cabrera became the first player to homer on Opening Day in his first game as a Tiger since Ivan Rodriguez and Rondell White did it in 2004. His launch leading off the bottom of the fifth extended Detroit's lead to that three-run margin.

Verlander, making his first career Opening Day start, didn't allow a hit until yielding one to Billy Butler in the fourth and retired eight consecutive batters at one point until hitting Mark Grudzielanek with a pitch leading off the fourth. He retired five hitters in a row after Butler's hit before Grudzielanek came back up and singled.

Gordon sat on a 3-1 pitch and drove it deep to right for a two-run homer, whittling the lead to a run.

"I didn't want to bring the tying run to the plate," Verlander said. "That was a contact pitch. I wanted him to hit it. I just got it up in the zone a little bit, and he capitalized."

Once Verlander walked Mark Teahen leading off the seventh and gave up a Ross Gload single to put runners at the corners, Leyland had to go to his bullpen. John Buck greeted Jason Grilli with a game-tying single before Pena hit into a fielder's choice. Bobby Seay retired the left-handed hitting Joey Gathright on a lineout, but back came Grudzielanek with a two-out single.

Once Guillen tied the game, Jones and newly installed setup man Denny Bautista retired the side in the ninth and 10th, respectively. Bautista particularly showed the stuff that earned him Leyland's nod for eighth-inning setup duty once that comes around. He overpowered Royals cleanup hitter Jose Guillen on three straight fastballs, the last a called third strike on the outside corner at 99 mph.

When Teahen worked Bautista for a walk leading off the 11th, however, the Royals' offense went in motion. Gload sacrificed Teahen to second, then Buck hit a ground ball through the middle to send Teahen towards home.

Inge's throw from center beat him there. Playing his first regular-season game in center since 2004, he charged the ball, made a crow-hop and fired the ball to Rodriguez on the fly.

"In the infield, you throw on the run, it's no big deal," Inge said. "In the outfield, you bust as hard as you can to get there, but you have to slow it down so that you don't overrun your arm."

That gave the Tigers new life, and Bautista was a strike away from getting them out of the inning before Pena reached for a pitch below his knees and hit a liner into short center field soft enough to give Inge no chance at a play at the plate.

"Just bad luck right there," Bautista said. "I think that was a good pitch. I threw a slider down in the zone. He got a blooper right there."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Dang it. Hopefully just an off day.

04/02/2008 3:40 PM ET

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Rogers strong, but Tigers stay winless
Left-hander retires first nine Royals; offense held to three hits
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- Brian Bannister needed just 85 pitches to shut down the Tigers for seven innings. As a result, the Tigers need another day to try for their first victory of the season.

Once again, the upstart Kansas City Royals demonstrated to the Tigers that expectations don't mean much once the regular season begins. RBI doubles from Jose Guillen and Billy Butler supported Bannister's effort to silence the mighty Tigers lineup, sending Detroit to an 0-2 start with a 4-0 loss on Wednesday afternoon at Comerica Park.

Bannister, who beat the Tigers twice in three starts last season on his way to 12 wins as a rookie, picked up where he left off in his first start of 2008 against a Tigers lineup that added more offense in the offseason. Edgar Renteria's two singles comprised Detroit's only baserunners off Bannister, who retired 20 of 21 batters after Renteria's hit leading off the bottom of the first inning and the last 12 batters he faced following Renteria's second hit leading off the fourth.

The middle of the Tigers' order -- Gary Sheffield, Magglio Ordonez and Miguel Cabrera -- went a combined 0-for-8 with one strikeout and two balls put in play out of the infield against Bannister.

Tigers starter Kenny Rogers matched Bannister zero for zero through the first five innings, retiring the first nine batters in order through three innings. After scattering three runners the second time through the Royals' lineup, the third trip through the order got him.

Mark Grudzielanek, who had three singles on Opening Day, started Wednesday's decisive rally by lofting a soft line drive just over first baseman Carlos Guillen's outstretched glove and down the right-field line for a one-out double. After Alex Gordon advanced him to third, Jose Guillen laced a liner into the left-field corner to plate the run.

Butler, who went 3-for-5 with three RBIs off Rogers last season, continued the hit parade by driving Rogers' next pitch over Brandon Inge's head in deep center field. Two more runs in the eighth off reliever Zach Miner all but put the game out of reach.

The back-to-back losses comprise the Tigers' longest losing streak to open a season since they went 0-9 at the start of 2003. Coincidentally, that was also the last year the Royals got off to a 2-0 start.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

laprimamirala wrote:

Dang it. Hopefully just an off day.

gotta say it today too!

maybe tomorrow....

I predict a big win tomorrow. I am sure Leland had a good long talk with them today!!!

04/03/2008 3:56 PM ET
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Tigers never quite get going in finale
Inge's late solo shot the only scoring as Royals finish sweep
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- The Tigers headed into the season with expectations to threaten offensive marks. This wasn't what they had in mind.

The Tigers' longest scoreless streak in 2007 lasted 14 innings. They topped that mark on Thursday. One day after Brian Bannister and two relievers shut out Detroit, Zack Greinke continued Kansas City's curmudgeonly pitching performance and finished off a three-game series sweep with a 4-1 Tigers loss at Comerica Park.

Only Brandon Inge's seventh-inning solo homer kept the Tigers from what would've been their first consecutive shutouts since May 28-29, 2006, and their first back-to-back blankings to the same club at home since April 18-19, 2000. It was their first run since Carlos Guillen's game-tying solo homer in the eighth inning on Opening Day. In between, the Tigers went 18 innings without plating a run.

Unlike Wednesday, when Edgar Renteria had Detroit's only hits of the afternoon with three, the offensive effort was spread around more, and the baserunners were more frequent. Placido Polanco's first hit of the season and Gary Sheffield's fifth walk put runners at first and second with one out in the opening inning, and they had a similar scenario in the fifth. Magglio Ordonez doubled leading off the bottom of the sixth inning to put another runner in scoring position. None of them came around to score.

Not until Inge, starting at third base in place of the injured Miguel Cabrera, drove an offspeed pitch from Greinke deep to left did the Tigers finally put up a run.

Greinke went 0-2 with a 9.31 ERA against the Tigers last season, but he also pitched four scoreless innings against them near the end of August as part of a torrid second half that landed him back in the Royals rotation. On Thursday, he picked up where he left off, scattering a run on six hits over seven innings.

The Tigers mounted one more threat once he left, but that also fell short. Sheffield led off the eighth with a blooper that fell in front of left fielder Mark Teahen, but Teahen had plenty of time to throw out Sheffield trying to take second. Guillen doubled two batters later and reached third on a wild pitch, but Ramon Ramirez struck out Ivan Rodriguez to end the threat.

All that pretty much made Jeremy Bonderman's performance moot, though Bonderman and his newly-honed changeup had mixed results to start off his sixth Major League season. Bonderman retired nine of the first 10 batters he faced, several of them on offspeed pitches, before Mark Grudzielanek singled and scored on a 410-foot home run from Alex Gordon. Teahen added a solo shot in the sixth before Joey Gathright singled and scored in the seventh.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

this is really wearing me out!

04/04/2008 4:17 PM ET

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Tigers' power surge not enough in loss
Rodriguez, Thomas chip in with three hits apeice
By Jason Beck / MLB.com

DETROIT -- Just when the Tigers offense woke up, the pitching came apart. The end result was much the same as when they were barely hitting at all.

The slumbering bats of one of baseball's more talented lineups awakened to score five times in the first three innings, including two runs and two RBIs from Ivan Rodriguez. However, the Tigers needed that to tie the game after a similar run from the White Sox. Three pitches from Jason Grilli in the seventh inning untied it, sending Detroit to an 0-4 start with an 8-5 loss Friday afternoon at Comerica Park.

The deciding runs came off the bat of Tigers killer A.J. Pierzynski, who capped a three-hit, five-RBI day with a go-ahead three-run homer. It was a swift unraveling to a game in which neither side seemed capable of pulling away.

Grilli entered the game to start the seventh inning after Zach Miner had stranded two runners on in the sixth. Paul Konerko laced Grilli's first-pitch fastball to the left-field fence on one hop for a leadoff double. Jermaine Dye lined the next pitch to right to put runners on the corners for Pierzynski, who lofted an offspeed pitch deep to right field for his second home run of the season.

Pierzynski's 43 RBIs for his career against the Tigers are his most against any opponent, passing the 42 he has against the Indians after Chicago's opening series. His shot also ruined an early offensive roll in which both Rodriguez and rookie Clete Thomas had three hits.

Thomas, starting in center field for the second straight day, was the first of three consecutive Tigers to reach base in the bottom of the first with his leadoff single. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Magglio Ordonez's double-play ground ball quieted the rally but allowed one run to score.

Thomas' single his next time up brought in Rodriguez to tie the game in the second inning following Rodriguez's first double of the afternoon. His next double in the third inning scored Carlos Guillen and Miguel Cabrera to tie the game again at 5, which is where the game stood until the seventh.

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

i'm sooooo tired of this

I really don't like Grilli's pitching. We would have been better keeping Miner another inning or let Denny work 2 innings. This is garbage using a pitcher one batter or just one inning! In the past the relief pitcher came in and stayed in unless he did badly. This rotating door pitching is garbage, and I blame Leland!

I think if anybody is worried about his job, it should be Leyland.

04/05/2008 6:40 PM ET
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Detroit drops fifth straight game
Willis takes no-hitter into sixth, but Tigers fall to White Sox
By Paul Harris / Special to MLB.com

DETROIT -- The Tigers were unable to hold a three-run lead and dropped a 5-3 decision to the White Sox on Saturday for their fifth straight loss to start the season. Detroit remains the only team in the Major Leagues without a win.

It his Tigers debut, Dontrelle Willis only allowed one hit, but he walked seven and was pulled after that hit -- Jim Thome's RBI double off the wall with no outs in the sixth. Chicago scored four times in the inning to wipe out Detroit's 3-0 lead.

Zach Miner (0-1) replaced Willis and took the loss.

The rest of Willis' line was three runs allowed in five-plus innings and no strikeouts. Willis escaped a jam in the fourth, when he walked Paul Konerko and Jermaine Dye with one out. But Carlos Quentin grounded into a double play to end the frame.

Gavin Floyd (1-0) got the win for Chicago. He allowed three runs and six hits in six innings while walking two and striking out two.

Brandon Inge drove in all three Tigers runs. He gave Detroit a 1-0 lead in the second with a two-out double that scored Jacque Jones from first base. Inge's two-run homer with two outs in the fourth made it 3-0. Jones, who had walked, scored ahead of him.

Thome's double in the sixth followed walks to Nick Swisher and Orlando Cabrera to start the inning. Konerko then drove in Cabrera with a groundout. But Miner then walked Dye and allowed Quentin's single, which tied the game, 3-3. Center fielder Clete Thomas bobbled the ball, allowing Dye to go to third. Dye scored on Joe Crede's sacrifice fly, giving the White Sox the lead.

Dye added a solo home run with two outs in the eighth.

Paul Harris is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

omg...I have nothing to say on this one that hasn't been said already. It is beyond flabbergasting!

I still think they changed too much of the team during the last two years. This year's changes will probably take until Grandy comes back, for them to gell. But then again, it will take him a week or two to get going again!

We changed pitchers, 1b, SS, 3b, LF and now CF (until Granderson returns).

Yes, all the new guys are (were) great, but with each change comes that much more chemistry change, until you have a band of strangers!

- We have J. Jones and Thames never knowing who will play - LF
- Inge never knowing where or when he will play, i'm glad he is at 3rd base for now!!
- Guillen still learning how to play 1b
- Edgar getting used to playing with the team.
- Polanco and whoever is playing 3b having to learn what balls Edgar can or can't get to at SS.
- Clete, or whoever is playing CF having to learn how to play that huge plot of ground.
- Never knowing what inning our starting pitchers will come un-glued, although they are off to a good start.
- With Grilli playing like he is, we need to apologize to Byrdak!
- Then we have the injuries! Miggy with bad leg, Zoom and Rodney's futures unknown, Sheff with a stupid head first slide damaging his finger, Grandy getting a broken finger due to a wild pitch, Team really not sure if Dontrelle is 100%... and on and on.....

With the guys having to work through all this, they are expending all their energy and their batting is suffering!

On the up side, except for D-Trains walks, and Grilli, our pitching is our least worry. Maggs, and Polly and Pudge are playing their positions ok. Inge is playing 3b super, and hitting! (He ain't going nowhere folks, he is our power right now.)

There is no way we should have lost the 1st game or this last game! We had the runs!

I think this WILL BE A SUPER TEAM, but we are probably looking at 2009. I just hope they get it together within the next month to make this a decent season!

egad, there were just too many changes.

Until you look at it this way, it does not make sense. I did not get a degree in psych and have sports in my life for nothing. All this makes sense now!

I've thought this all along but everyone just said I was pissed about Miller being traded. Well not HERE, but people in real life

You are right Soul! Give them time and just know someday it will all come together!

maybe since Clete is so effective, send a LF down and when Grandy gets back put him in CF, move Clete to left??? think it would work???

GoGetEmTigers wrote:

You are right Soul! Give them time and just know someday it will all come together!

I don't want to be right! I want to win!!

I've been telling my L.A. friend for months all those trades made me nervous. Everyone was going off about our great line up and I was like... we'll see. Dammit, I just want to win

They will, and when the train gets a rollin.... watch out!

I feel bad for the team and Leland though. They know they are good, but I know they are embarrassed, poor Leland had this thrown in his lap, and gets all the flack from EVERYONE!

it's really not his fault, the player's arent performing and they aren't producing, i dont blame him for anything, Illitch wants to spend all this money on miggy and Dontrelle, and now our team falls apart, i blame Illitch more than Leyland.

that was wayyy too much $$ to spend on 2 players...and not give Justin a raise?

or :tjones:

lol jk, i think hes paid ok, for a year-to-year contract, just sign him for a chunk of years, damn