Good Tiger Ballgame

Sunday the Tigers beat the Colorado Rockies with a good pitching performance by Kenny Rogers and the relievers along with some timely hitting by the youngsters Detroit has moved up to the "big club".  They have played very well but have not closed in on first place Chicago in the last week.  They also have to catch the Twins who are the hottest team in baseball recently.  They may have restored the roar but still have some work to do.  We will see how they play against the Minnesota Twins the first part of this week and then in Seattle (where we hope to see a game later in the week).

Brenda, Kathy and I were joined by 20 or so of Kathy's relatives who are also related to Clint Hurdle, the Rockies' manager who is from Big Rapids.  Kathy and Clint have the same aunt and uncle--Aunt Shirley on Kathy's side and Uncle Bob on Clint's.   They got to see Clint before the game, then cheered on the Tigers.  Weather was cool (high 60s) and overcast with a hard shower that did not interrupt the game and some sprinkles (called rain in Seattle).

A fun time at the ball yard.

Tony Hillerman

I have come to enjoy Tony Hillerman's mystery novels set in the southwestern United States.   Most characters are Navajo, including Sergeant Jim Chee and Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn.  They are with the Navajo Tribal Police that has jurisdiction in lands of the Navajo Nation located in the four corners region--Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado.  Hillerman includes descriptions of Indian customs, beliefs, and rituals.

I found Skeleton Man very interesting since it takes place in and around the Grand Canyon which Kathy and I visited in May.   I recognized many of the towns and descriptions of the region.  The good guys, though they get shot at and get hurt, still overcome the deeds of evil people.

Have the Tigers Restored Their Roar?

April? Tigers won 13, lost 14.

May?  Won 10, lost 17.

The season began with such great hope and expectations.  The Tigers had added several high quality players in the off season:  Miguel Cabrera, Edgar Renteria, Dontrelle Willis, and Jacques Jones (released after 24 games).  They were thought to have a batting lineup to match any team's lineup, but they were taken apart by opposing pitchers until recently.  

The disappointment continued until a recent Tiger home stand.  They split four games with Cleveland, then swept both the division leading Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers.  Today they completed a three-game series at San Francisco by winning two of three (and could have won the first game had Fernando Rodney, recently reactivated from injury, been able to hold a lead--he gave up five runs in the eighth inning that led to a Tiger loss).

The Tigers have cut Chicago's division lead from 11 to 6.5 in just nine games.  Talk has now returned to the optimism motivated by the off season signings.  They may have turned the season around.  We shall see.

Go Get 'Em Tigers.

We're Havin' a Heatwave

Hot and muggy yesterday as we cut half a crabapple tree and burned it. Don't know when the rest will be done because it will be hotter today and just as humid.

Kathy just finished mowing--front and back. A little hot, humid, and dusty.

Tomorrow and the following days are predicted to be nearly as bad. And it's not summer yet!

At Least I Got the Wings Series Right

Wings in 6, I said. Could have easily been over in five since the Red Wings dominated play against the Penguins moreso than scores indicate.



Game 5 was a classic. The Wings controlled play for the third period and for two and a half overtimes. Then a questionable call--made questionable by lack of other, more obvious, more deserving calls throughout the third period and overtimes. And then Pittsburgh scores to make the series 3-2.



Last night game 6 showed hockey at its best. End-to-end action, great passing, individual efforts, great saves, speed, puck handling. Sustained non-stop action that no other sport approaches. And an "almost" at the end--a cliff hanger. (Though a review would have shown Hossa's last second shot, had it gone in, would have been too late.)



I heard one of the Red Wings interviewed today on Mitch Albom's show and he commented that Mike Babcock demands excellence and expects players to perform within his system. He lets players play when they are performing well and why they are scratched.



Seventeen years of success, since 1991-92. Even with the salary cap.



GO WINGS