This is not a political blog, so I offer this not as commentary, but as a frame of reference: the Tigers clinched their last series win at Cleveland’s Progressive Field with a 7-3 win on June 23, 2015. A week prior to that, Donald Trump announced that he was running for President of the United States. It has, indeed, been a while.
- I’m going to keep sitting here and saying Matthew Boyd is basically a fifth starter, and he was pitching in a ton of traffic Sunday that could have easily gone the wrong way had he not been as sharp. Luckily, he was. The contact was by and large not stinging, and despite the traffic, he didn’t ever give up the big hit. Kudos to him.
- Alex Avila? Really? Well, he always did have good starts to the season, perhaps because he hadn’t yet taken 355,419 foul tips off his facemask. Perhaps more limited duty will make him more effective later into the season.
- Wilson-Wilson-Rodriguez actually works really well as a bullpen. Just need to get it there and all that.
- I understand the appeal of the World Baseball Classic, I really do, but it’s awful hard for me to say anything nice about it when Miguel Cabrera returns from it with a bad back that is still a problem. Hopefully it’s not serious, and Brad Ausmus should handle the Tropicana Field nonsense with great caution.
- The Indians are 5-7 and really not hitting, especially with RISP. That will turn, but enjoy it while it lasts.
Glass Half Fulmer 