MLB: Another Late Season Collapse?

Posted on | September 19, 2009 | No Comments

Last year we saw the New York Mets collapse late and get caught by the Philadelphia Phillies. Looks like there is another late season collapse this year… though it’s not quite as late and it isn’t quite so dramatic. But the Detroit Tigers are absolutely choking right now.

The Tigers have watched their lead in the American League Central shrink all the way down to just 2 games. And they are finding every possible way to lose.

For a few games they get horrible pitching. Then they get horrible hitting. And then they get horrible defense.

In Saturday’s game, they got a little of everything. A ball lost in the lights and allowed to drop in the 8th inning gave way to a big inning for the Twins and wasted a great outing by Justin Verlander. But it’s the Tigers’ hitters that should be ashamed.

With these hitters it is a miracle that this Tigers team isn’t 20 games under .500, speak nothing of leading their division. I love Brandon Inge but his knee (or something) has him swinging a horrible bat. Gerald Laird is probably the worst hitter I’ve seen in the big leagues in my life. Adam Everett has a great glove but his hitting is horrible too. None of these guys are even hitting their weight. And they are the bottom third of the line-up. Throw into this such undisciplined (and obviously uncoached players) like Marcus Thames, Curtis Granderson, Ryan Raburn, and Aubrey Huff and you have a team that can’t hit. Well, they won’t hit. Because they should be able to hit a little bit against some of these pitchers but they look lost at the plate. And the make some of the worst pitchers in the American League look like Cy Young candidates.

So, it’s time for the Tigers to wake-up or they will find themselves trailing in this division in a hurry. And if they don’t make it to the playoffs, everyone – including Jim Leyland and the pathetic coaches – will be to blame.

Related posts:

1. MLB: Predicting the Second Half of the Season
2. MLB: A Late Look at the AL
3. MLB: All Eyes Turn to Minnesota
4. MLB: It’s Getting Late to be Early
5. MLB: Early Season Match-Ups Might Predict Season

Comments