Unbe-friggin-lievable

Dump. Jones. Today.

Fire Leyland for using the idiot.

These are not spring training games. This is not Toledo. This is not even Grand Rapids. You are not trying to gain experience for certain guys. You are now 7.5 games back, three days before the All-Star break, and blowing games against the team you are trying to catch.

F-U Leyland
F-U Todd Jones

How many F'n times are we gonna put up with this crap? Enough is enough. How many blown saves do we have to see before Leyland gets it through his smoke filled skull that Jones is worse than Dan Blakeslee, whose fastball, according to the machine at Cedar Point, tops out at 58 MPH?

Leyland has cost the Tigers at least four games this season, including this one, and without the second best lineup in baseball, that number would be 7 or 8. It's time to get someone else in there who doesn't subscribe to the Tony LaRussa school of "this guy is my closer. None other shall pitch in the ninth inning, if the game is within three runs."

I would rather see Brandon Inge close than Todd "Holy crap my shoes are on fire" Jones.

Yes, Joyce made an error, but it didn't cost the Tigers 2 runs...

LET. THEM. PLAY.

I didn't get a chance to watch a whole lot of baseball this weekend, but I watched a little of Sunday's game. I think I was able to watch innings 2-8.

Inning 5: Ryan Raburn (.306 OBP/.438 SLG/.744 OPS) pulls a high fastball about 450 feet off a left-handed Ryan Rowland-Smith into the left-center crowd to tie the game 1-1.

Inning 6: With Rowland-Smith out of the game, in comes right-handed Mark Lowe. Raburn's numbers drop off to (.311/.449/.787) vs RHP (for those of you keeping score at home, yes those numbers did go up. Raburn is hitting better against RHP than LHP). So, naturally, with two out and a guy on first, Jim Leyland takes Raburn out, and puts in left-handed Matt Joyce, he of the (.273/.507/.780 total; .280/.522/.802 vs. RHP) lines.

So, let's take stock. Jimmy takes a guy out of the game in the sixth inning, with two outs and a guy on first. He removes a player who hit a monster shot an inning ago, who is feeling pretty good about himself, for basically the same player who happens to hit left-handed, even though the guy he removed hits better against RHP than LHP, and oh by the way, has NOT been sitting on the bench all game. And for what? With a runner on third and less than two outs, I can see doing it. The 50 points extra SLG might get a warning track fly ball that brings in the run, which helps an offense that is sputtering. But with a guy on first and two outs, you should be letting the players play the game, and if a specialized situation presents itself, then go ahead and remove a player for one with 50 points more SLG. Maybe in the 8th or 9th.

Now, as it turns out, Joyce had a good at bat and drew a walk, which was followed by another walk, which was followed by a pop out. No runs scored, and a player who had to that point accounted for 100% of the offense to that point is no longer available.

Overmanagment is killing this team. Jimmy- please- put a lineup together before the game and do not touch it until the 8th inning at the earliest at home, 9th inning on the road, and even then, only if you need it.