GDT: 9/24/09 - DET (81-70) AT CLE (61-90) - 7:05 p.m. ET

CLEVELAND -- As Tigers manager Jim Leyland declared over the weekend, it's time for his big guys to step up. Carlos Guillen, he emphasized Wednesday, is one of his big guys.

"That's what it's going to take for us. We know that," Leyland said after Wednesday's 11-3 win over the Indians gave the Tigers a chance to go for a three-game sweep on Thursday night.

Guillen appears to be heating up at the plate after homering left- and right-handed on Wednesday. Guillen, however, is going on feel.

"I feel good," Guillen said. "That's the most important thing, how you feel. It's good."

As the Tigers embark on what appears to be a stretch of right-handed starters, it's a good time for Guillen to feel that way.

Guillen homered off Thursday's scheduled starter, fellow Venezuelan Carlos Carrasco, in Carrasco's Major League debut on Sept. 1 at Comerica Park. He'll get to face his good friend Freddy Garcia at some point this weekend when the Tigers visit the White Sox, who appear set to start three right-handers.

After sitting for stretches earlier this month while teams sent left-handed starters up against Detroit, Guillen is potentially poised for a good weekend at just the right time.

Thursday would be particularly good. With the Twins idle, the Tigers could extend their lead to three games in the American League Central with 10 games to play, the same advantage Detroit had going into the week.

Guillen's second homer on Wednesday came in just his second right-handed at-bat since coming off the disabled list in July. He tried it last week against Royals southpaw Bruce Chen and felt comfortable, making him confident he could do it again.

Wednesday's performance showed Leyland isn't afraid to keep him in the lineup against a left-handed reliever, a good note since Cleveland has a few of them. The bigger sign to come out of it, though, is that Guillen's problematic right shoulder is feeling good swinging from both sides. Soreness in the shoulder kept him from swinging right-handed until recently.

"I've been feeling pretty good with my shoulder," Guillen said.

It still bothers him from time to time, and he'll have an intense rehab process ahead of him this winter to correct it, but it doesn't hamper him as much.

That makes Guillen a potentially big bat for Leyland again.

"Carlos is one of the big boys," Leyland said, "but it wasn't fair to ask Carlos to do all that much, because he really hasn't had many games. He hasn't played much, so that's a little difficult. But he's certainly one of the big boys. There's no question about that. He's one of our veterans. I said pretty much we're going to go with our veterans."

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Pitching matchup

DET: RHP Justin Verlander (16-9, 3.44 ERA)
Don't let the numbers from his last outing fool you. Verlander took a one-run game into the eighth inning before a fly ball lost against the roof of the Metrodome for a double helped spring open a five-run Twins rally. Verlander hit 101 mph on his 127th and final pitch of that outing, a Jason Kubel bloop single that brought in two runs and extended Verlander's winless streak to three consecutive starts. He won't get an extra day of rest after throwing 128 pitches Saturday, so his pitch count might have to be watched closely.


CLE: RHP Carlos Carrasco (0-2, 9.64 ERA)
Carrasco, three starts into his Major League career, continues to give up big hits at bad times. He allowed five runs (four earned) on eight hits with a walk and three strikeouts over six innings in a loss to the Royals on Sept. 13. Carrasco, a key starting pitching prospect acquired in the Cliff Lee trade, has now given up 15 earned runs in 14 total innings over three starts. He's been tagged for six home runs and has had trouble getting movement on his fastball.

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Tidbits

...Look for Magglio Ordonez to return to the lineup after getting Wednesday night off in favor of Clete Thomas.
... Look, too, for Gerald Laird to catch again for a sixth straight start.
... Leyland said he's considering starting rookie Alex Avila behind the plate Friday night for starter Eddie Bonine, whom Avila caught at Triple-A Toledo.
... Miguel Cabrera is batting .358 (24-for-67) with three home runs and 11 RBIs against Cleveland this year.

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Up next (Probable Pitchers)

• Friday: Tigers (Eddie Bonine, 0-0, 5.96 ERA) at White Sox (Jake Peavy, 7-6, 4.05 ERA), 8:11 p.m. ET
• Saturday: Tigers (Nate Robertson, 2-2, 5.13 ERA) at White Sox (Freddy Garcia, 2-3, 4.01 ERA), 7:05 p.m. ET
• Sunday: Tigers (Edwin Jackson, 13-7, 3.25 ERA) at White Sox (Daniel Hudson, 0-1, 3.38 ERA), 2:05 p.m. ET

STARTING LINEUPS:

Detroit AVG
Granderson, CF .247
Polanco, 2B .284
Ordonez, RF .295
Cabrera, M, 1B .332
Huff, A, DH .245
Guillen, C, LF .246
Inge, 3B .232
Laird, C .226
Santiago, SS .266

Cleveland AVG
Brantley, LF .333
Carroll, J, 2B .287
Choo, RF .303
Hafner, DH .265
Peralta, J, 3B .262
Valbuena, SS .234
Crowe, CF .231
Marte, A, 1B .234
Toregas, C .190

Bonine, Robertson flipped in rotation
BECK'S BLOG
Posted on September 23, 2009 at 5:50 PM

The Tigers have flipped their rotation for the start of the White Sox series this weekend. Eddie Bonine will start Friday's series opener opposite Freddy Garcia instead of Saturday. Robertson, who was scheduled to start Friday, will get an extra day's rest and start Saturday instead opposite Jake Peavy.

Inning 1
Top Half

B:1 S:1 O:1 -
Curtis Granderson grounds out to first baseman Andy Marte.

B:4 S:0 O:1 -
Placido Polanco walks.

B:4 S:2 O:1 -
Magglio Ordonez walks. Placido Polanco to 2nd.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Miguel Cabrera flies out to right fielder Shin-Soo Choo. Placido Polanco to 3rd.

B:2 S:0 O:3 -
Aubrey Huff grounds out sharply, pitcher Carlos Carrasco to first baseman Andy Marte.

0-0 after .5 inning

Bottom Half

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Michael Brantley called out on .

B:3 S:2 O:2 -
Jamey Carroll flies out to right fielder Magglio Ordonez.

B:2 S:3 O:3 -
Shin-Soo Choo swinging.

0-0 after 1 inning

Inning 2
Top Half

B:2 S:1 O:0 -
Carlos Guillen singles on a line drive to center fielder Trevor Crowe.

B:1 S:2 O:1 - Brandon Inge grounds into a force out,
third baseman Jhonny Peralta to second baseman Jamey Carroll. Carlos
Guillen out at 2nd. Brandon Inge to 1st.

B:1 S:0 O:2 -
Gerald Laird grounds out, pitcher Carlos Carrasco to first baseman Andy Marte. Brandon Inge to 2nd.

B:0 S:1 O:3 -
Ramon Santiago lines out to center fielder Trevor Crowe.

0-0 after 1.5 inning

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Travis Hafner pops out to third baseman Brandon Inge.

B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Jhonny Peralta swinging.

B:1 S:3 O:3 -
Luis Valbuena swinging.

0-0 after 2 innings

Inning 3
Top Half

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Curtis Granderson flies out to center fielder Trevor Crowe.

B:2 S:2 O:2 -
Placido Polanco flies out to center fielder Trevor Crowe.

B:1 S:1 O:2 -
Magglio Ordonez reaches on throwing error by shortstop Luis Valbuena.

B:1 S:1 O:3 -
Miguel Cabrera grounds out, third baseman Jhonny Peralta to first baseman Andy Marte.

0-0 after 2.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Trevor Crowe singles on a line drive to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:2 S:2 O:0 -
Andy Marte doubles (4) on a line drive to left fielder Carlos Guillen. Trevor Crowe to 3rd.

B:4 S:2 O:0 -
Wyatt Toregas walks.

B:3 S:2 O:0 - Michael Brantley singles on a ground
ball to right fielder Magglio Ordonez. Trevor Crowe scores. Andy Marte
scores. Wyatt Toregas to 3rd on the throw.
CLE 2, DET 0



B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:3 S:2 O:0 -
With Jamey Carroll batting, Michael Brantley steals (4) 2nd base.

B:3 S:3 O:1 -
Jamey Carroll called out on .

B:3 S:2 O:2 -
Shin-Soo Choo flies out to right fielder Magglio Ordonez.

B:1 S:2 O:3 -
Travis Hafner flies out to left fielder Carlos Guillen.

CLE 2, DET 0 after 3 innings

Inning 4
Top Half

B:3 S:1 O:0 -
Aubrey Huff singles on a line drive to left fielder Michael Brantley.

B:4 S:2 O:0 -
Carlos Guillen walks. Aubrey Huff to 2nd.

B:3 S:2 O:0 -
Brandon Inge singles on a line drive to center fielder Trevor Crowe. Aubrey Huff scores. Carlos Guillen to 3rd.
CLE 2, DET 1



B:0 S:1 O:0 -
Gerald Laird singles on a line drive to right fielder Shin-Soo Choo. Carlos Guillen scores. Brandon Inge to 3rd. DET 2, CLE 2



B:1 S:2 O:0 -
Ramon Santiago singles on a line drive to right fielder Shin-Soo Choo. Brandon Inge scores. Gerald Laird to 3rd.
DET 3, CLE 2



B:1 S:1 O:1 - Curtis Granderson grounds out, second
baseman Jamey Carroll to first baseman Andy Marte. Gerald Laird scores.
Ramon Santiago to 2nd.
DET 4, CLE 2


B:1 S:0 O:2 -
Placido Polanco grounds out, third baseman Jhonny Peralta to first baseman Andy Marte. Ramon Santiago to 3rd.

B:0 S:1 O:3 -
Magglio Ordonez grounds out, third baseman Jhonny Peralta to first baseman Andy Marte.

DET 4, CLE 2 after 3.5 innings

Bottom Half

B:1 S:2 O:0 -
Jhonny Peralta singles on a soft line drive to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Luis Valbuena on foul tip.

B:1 S:3 O:2 -
Trevor Crowe called out on .

B:0 S:3 O:3 -
Andy Marte swinging.

DET 4, CLE 2 after 4 innings

Inning 5
Top Half

B:2 S:0 O:1 -
Miguel Cabrera grounds out, shortstop Luis Valbuena to first baseman Andy Marte.

B:1 S:2 O:2 -
Aubrey Huff grounds out, shortstop Luis Valbuena to first baseman Andy Marte.

B:3 S:2 O:2 -
Carlos Guillen singles on a line drive to right fielder Shin-Soo Choo.

B:0 S:1 O:3 -
With Brandon Inge batting, Carlos Guillen caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Wyatt Toregas to second baseman Jamey Carroll.

DET 4, CLE 2 after 4.5 innings

8 K already for Justin.

Bottom Half

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Wyatt Toregas flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

B:2 S:1 O:2 -
Michael Brantley flies out to left fielder Carlos Guillen.

B:0 S:1 O:3 -
Jamey Carroll flies out to center fielder Curtis Granderson.

DET 4, CLE 2 after 5 innings

gdennis59 wrote:

8 K already for Justin.

yep!

Inning 6
Top Half

B:0 S:0 O:0 -
Pitcher Change: Jensen Lewis replaces Carlos Carrasco.

B:3 S:2 O:0 -
Brandon Inge doubles (13) on a line drive to center fielder Trevor Crowe.


B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Gerald Laird out on a sacrifice bunt, third baseman Jhonny Peralta to first baseman Andy Marte. Brandon Inge to 3rd.


B:1 S:0 O:2 -
Ramon Santiago grounds out to first baseman Andy Marte.

B:2 S:3 O:3 -
Curtis Granderson swinging.

DET 4, CLE 2 after 5.5 innings

Runner on third, one out, and no score

9

10

Bottom Half

B:1 S:3 O:1 -
Shin-Soo Choo swinging.

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Travis Hafner singles on a line drive to left fielder Carlos Guillen.


B:2 S:3 O:2 -
Jhonny Peralta swinging.

B:4 S:2 O:2 -
Luis Valbuena walks. Travis Hafner to 2nd.

B:1 S:0 O:2 -
With Trevor Crowe batting, wild pitch by Justin Verlander, Travis Hafner to 3rd. Luis Valbuena to 2nd.


B:2 S:1 O:3 -
Trevor Crowe grounds out, shortstop Ramon Santiago to first baseman Miguel Cabrera.

DET 4, CLE 2 after 6 innings

Inning 7
Top Half

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Placido Polanco flies out to right fielder Shin-Soo Choo.

B:1 S:0 O:1 -
Magglio Ordonez singles on a line drive to left fielder Michael Brantley.

Miggy's 0-4

B:0 S:0 O:1 -
Offensive Substitution: Pinch runner Clete Thomas replaces Magglio Ordonez.

B:1 S:3 O:2 -
Miguel Cabrera swinging.

B:1 S:3 O:2 -
Coaching visit to mound.

B:0 S:0 O:2 -
Pitcher Change: Tony Sipp replaces Jensen Lewis.

I think Sipp would be a nice assett to our pen.

It should be time for a Huff HR

gdennis59 wrote:

I think Sipp would be a nice assett to our pen.

yep...

Todd Jones and Sean Casey will be at the tigers fantasy camp in Lakeland this year!!!

B:4 S:2 O:2 -
Aubrey Huff walks. Clete Thomas to 2nd.

Sipp was a 45th round pick.

B:0 S:2 O:2 -
Carlos Guillen doubles (9) on a line drive to left fielder Michael Brantley. Clete Thomas scores. Aubrey Huff to 3rd.
DET 5, CLE 2

GoGetEmTigers wrote:

gdennis59 wrote:

I think Sipp would be a nice assett to our pen.

yep...

Todd Jones and Sean Casey will be at the tigers fantasy camp in Lakeland this year!!!

I must get there!