Thursday, October 18, 2012

Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander add names to special list of Detroit Tigers pitchers


Denny McLain is not on the list. Nor is Jack Morris.
The Detroit Tigers have won 10 post-season series, including their sweep of the New York Yankees in the 2012 American League Championship Series.

DOUG FISTER
Ten different men were the winning pitchers of the Tigers' 10 series-clinching victories.
Tommy Bridges was the first.
Bridges was the winning pitcher in Game 6 of the 1935 World Series, when the Tigers won their first world championship by taking out the Chicago Cubs four games to two.
The others: Hal Newhouser, Mickey Lolich, Milt Wilcox, Aurelio Lopez, Jeremy Bonderman, Wil Ledezma, Doug Fister, Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer.
Verlander was the winning pitcher in the Tigers' series-clinching win over Oakland in the division playoffs.
Scherzer was the winner of Game 4 against the Yankees.

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Detroit Tigers win 11th American League pennant

PHIL COKE CELEBRATES
The American League pennant in hand, the Detroit Tigers turn next to the World Series. They'll try to win one for the first time since 1984.
The AL has lost the last two Fall Classics. St. Louis won in 2011 and San Francisco in 2010, with each team defeating the Texas Rangers.
Coincidentally, it will be either the Cardinals or Giants who provide the Tigers' World Series opposition.
Detroit and St. Louis have met in three World Series. The Cardinals won in 1934 and 2006, the Tigers in 1968.
Detroit and San Francisco have never met in the post-season.
The Tigers swept the New York Yankees in the American League championship series, closing out an 8-1 record with relief pitcher Phil Coke on the mound.
Delmon Young was named the MVP of the ALCS.

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Wednesday, October 17, 2012

New York Yankees' Derek Jeter to be sidelined 4-5 months

BRIAN CASHMAN
Derek Jeter might not be ready for the start of 2013 spring training.
But the New York Yankees do not know for sure about their shortstop's recovery from a broken left ankle.
"There is no new information," Brian Cashman, the Yankees general manager, said Wednesday at Comerica Park.
"I believe that Dr. (Robert) Anderson just put in a more conservative time frame on it. So there's no new information. Nothing seen worse than what our team doctor saw."
The Yankees said Jeter will be sidelined four to five months.
Jeter, 38, broke his ankle during Game 1 of the American League Championship Series against the Tigers.
"My understanding," Cashman said, "is that it's possible he will be ready earlier than that time frame, but it is best to at least put out there four, five months as a safer bet."
Jeter is due to have surgery on the ankle Saturday. Anderson will perform the surgery.
Cashman said he expects Jeter to be ready to play at the end of the four-to-five-month time frame.



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Tuesday, October 16, 2012

CC Sabathia confident heading into Game 4 of ALCS

The New York Yankees have had a difficult time scoring runs in the post-season.
That won't compel CC Sabathia to approach Game 4 differently than he normally would.
"No, I always want to go out and try to shut the other team down and give us as many opportunities to score," Sabathia, the Yankees' veteran left-hander, said Tuesday before Game 3 of the ALCS at Comerica Park.
"As cold as we are, we can get just as hot, especially with our lineup and the veterans we have and the great players we have.
"We always had a faith that  if you go out there and do your job, you are going to score runs, and we have all year, really."
Sabathia is scheduled oppose Detroit Tigers right-hander Max Scherzer as New York tries to do well enough to get the series back to New York.
"I am definitely looking forward to getting a chance to pitch in this series," Sabathia said.
Sabathia is 2-0 with  a 1.53 ERA in this post-season.

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Wednesday, October 10, 2012

These Detroit Tigers pitchers came through at 'closing time'


Denny McLain is not on the list. Nor is Jack Morris.
The Detroit Tigers had won eight post-season series as they took the field at Oakland and tried to eliminate the Athletics behind Max Scherzer on Wednesday night.
DOUG FISTER
Eight different men were the winning pitchers of the Tigers' first eight series-clinching victories.
Tommy Bridges was the first.
Bridges was the winning pitcher in Game 6 of the 1935 World Series, when the Tigers won their first world championship by taking out the Chicago Cubs four games to two.
The others: Hal Newhouser, Mickey Lolich, Milt Wilcox, Aurelio Lopez, Jeremy Bonderman, Wil Ledezma and Doug Fister.

TOMMY BRIDGES: Tennessee native Thomas Jefferson Davis Bridges went 2-0 with two complete games and a 2.50 ERA against the Cubs in the 1935 World Series. The right-hander spent his entire 16-year career with Detroit and won 194 games, sixth-most in club history.

HAL NEWHOUSER: The future Hall of Famer was 2-1 with a 6.10 ERA in the 1945 World Series, when the Tigers beat the Cubs in seven games. Newhouser was the winning pitcher in Game 7, a 9-3 Detroit victory in the Windy City. The left-hander and Detroit native, who pitched for 15 seasons for the Tigers, is still in the franchise's top five in wins, starts, complete games and shutouts.

MICKEY LOLICH: Will any Tiger ever top the Mick's performance in the 1968 World Series? The left-hander won a duel with Bob Gibson in Game 7 as the Tigers won at St. Louis to complete a comeback from a three games to one deficit. For the series, Lolich, a long-time Macomb County resident, turned in three complete games and posted a 1.67 ERA in 27 innings against a Cardinals lineup that featured speed and power.

MILT WILCOX: The right-hander went eight innings to earn the victory in a 1-0 win over Kansas City that wrapped up the Tigers' three-game sweep in the 1984 ALCS. Wilcox also won Game 3 of the World Series that year against the San Diego Padres.

AURELIO LOPEZ: Senor Smoke was the winning pitcher in relief in Game 5 of the World Series against San Diego. The game will always be remembered for Kirk Gibson's three-run, series-clinching home run off Goose Gossage in the eighth inning, but it was Lopez who earned the pitching victory that Sunday at Tiger Stadium.

JEREMY BONDERMAN: Was this Bonderman's finest moment as a Tiger? The right-hander pitched 8.1 innings in an 8-3 victory that clinched Detroit's four-game ALDS win over the New York Yankees in 2006. It was the Tigers' first post-season series win in 22 years, and Bonderman put his name on it.

WIL LEDEZMA: Ledezma pitched nine big-league seasons, and won only one post-season game, but what a victory it was. The lefty worked a scoreless top of the ninth inning and then became the winning pitcher when Magglio Ordonez hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the frame to give the Tigers a 6-3 victory and sweep of Oakland in the 2006 ALCS.

DOUG FISTER: The 6-foot-8 right-hander gave the Tigers their second post-season series win over the Yankees in six years when he prevailed in Game 5 of an ALDS in 2011. Fister also won a game in the 2011 ALCS against the Texas Rangers.

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