When the Tiger's said they were looking for a 5th starter for their rotation, I really thought they met someone like Brad Penny or even Kenny Rogers to help guide the still young pitching staff. No offense to Fister and Pauley, but Dombrowski's job may be in the balance if they do not make the playoffs this year. Especially since he gave up three of the top five prospects in the Tiger farm system in Wells, Furbush and Martinez.

I sat at work wondering if the Tiger's hit for Fister, which did not happen in Seattle this year (2.36 runs a game, the worst in the American League), if he may win a few more games here in Detroit. Pauley absolutely ate us alive when he came in, he was the reliever pegged to become a closer in Seattle before he was traded today.

I see some Home's for Sale signs popping up in suburban Detroit towns, here in the fall if this trade does not work out. I would not get too comfortable if I was Dombrowski or Leyland, this is it for them.......

I understand why Brandon Inge was designated for assignment earlier this week, when the Tiger's acquired Wilson Betimet to fill a void left by his lack of hitting this year. He deserved to be out-righted to Toledo, and he will admit that he deserves to be there, opposed to playing with the Tiger's, but there are a couple of things that are really bothering me today and I need to get them off my chest.........

How can Jim Leyland and the Tiger's justify this, sending Inge and Casper Wells down to Toledo and not sending this clown packing right a long with them?

Ryan Raburn deserves to where this uniform again, I am totally against him being in Detroit at the present time. How can Leyland and Dombrowski justify sending Inge and Wells down to Toledo, and keep this joker on the Major League Roster? I do not care what anyone says, there has to be someone down there, that can play second base, and left field (Wells) while this joker is working out his issues right?  He is barely hitting his weight in average, and is Leyland's pet. Leyland should demote himself, and call up the Toledo manager for being such an idiot and leaving this clown here in Detroit...........

I hope at the end of the year, even if the TIger's win a pennant for which they won't if they keep playing Raburn every night. I recommend that in your fantasy leagues you place a left handed starting pitcher in your line up because Leyland will play him every night. He pads fantasy stats, just like Jay Cutler for whom I always try to play a defense that is playing against him because he is a turnover machine, just like Raburn is a strike out machine..........

Casper Well's should be in Detroit, not Ryan Raburn. I would like to hear Leyland's explanation, or even his reason for demoting Well's over Raburn. I still can't believe that this happened, I sure hope they did not destroy his confidence by sending him down because he has more ability to live up to his potential then Raburn ever will.....
 

 
I don't give a shit that she's wearing a Yankees hat! You know a chick is hot when she's out there in a baseball jersey, making Erin Andrews look like a slouch!


I hate the MLB All-Star game...I think the whole thing is garbage, and the only thing that would make this game tonight really exciting for me, would be if Tim McCarver dropped dead right on the air...

The Home Run Derby is the big show for these few days in July, but to me it's lost it's luster...It's just glorified batting practice...And of course ESPN has it slotted for a certain time, and it always runs over by two hours...

Then they show the celebrity softball game...Some retired players...Some actors and maybe mix in a hottie...Thank God for the hottie...



Ohhh, the Hottie!










Getting Kate Upton there was the best thing to happen at the All-Star festivities!


Later, The Beeze.
 

The 2011 All-Star Game is upon us and as such, it is time to put some serious discussion into the awards races for both the American and National Leagues.

American League MVP – Jose Bautista, TOR

• .324 Avg, 31 HR, 64 RBI, 73 Runs

This award could easily go to Adrian Gonzalez (.354, 17 HR, 77 RBI) of the Red Sox, but Bautista has been an absolute beast in 2011. He’ll enter the All-Star break as the first Blue Jay to ever hit 30 home runs prior to the All-Star game, leads the American League with 74 walks, and has single-handedly kept the Blue Jays hovering around .500 in baseball’s toughest division.

Runner-up: Adrian Gonzalez, BOS

National League MVP – Jose Reyes, NYM

• .354 Avg, 22 2B, 15 3B, 32 RBI, 65 Runs, 30 SB

If not for a hamstring injury, we’d be talking about Jose Reyes being the fantasy baseball MVP right now as well as the first half MVP in the National League. He only has 3 home runs at this writing, but his peripheral stats in every other category are tremendous. 15 triples before the All-Star break is unheard of in today’s game, and could feasibly give him a shot at the all-time record of 36 set by Chief Wilson in 1912.

Runner-Up: Matt Kemp, LAD

American League Cy Young – Justin Verlander, DET

• 12 Wins, 2.15 ERA, 147 SO, 0.87 WHIP

The Indians got off to the quick start in 2011, but the Tigers sit in first place now and much of that credit should be heaped onto Verlander, who has been absolutely filthy to start the season. Batters are “hitting” just .188 off of the Tiger’s ace thus far on the season and he leads all of baseball in strike-outs, showing just how much difficulty opposing teams are having against him. Keep an eye on his pitch counts in the second half though, as Verlander has also thrown nearly 100 more pitches than any other pitcher in the game.

Runner-Up: C.C. Sabathia, NYY

National League Cy Young – Jair Jurrjens, ATL

• 12 Wins, 1.87 ERA, 65 SO, 1.07 WHIP

Everyone was expecting Atlanta rotation-mate Tommy Hanson to be the guy figuring into the Cy Young talk, but it has been Jurrjens that has been the shutdown starter for the Braves. Jurrjens leads the National League in Wins and ERA, but has also only struck-out 65 batters on the season, showing he’s getting by on outs on balls in play. That alone could show a shift in the future in this category, but for now Jurrjens is the man.

Runner-Up: Roy Halladay, PHI

American League ROY – Michael Pineda, SEA

- 8 Wins, 3.03 ERA, 113 SO, 1.04 WHIP

Pineda is giving Seattle fans exactly what they were hoping for this season, a certifiable number two starter to slot in behind Felix Hernandez. He leads all rookies in Wins, Strike-outs, and ERA. His poise is excellent, and for a young pitcher, he’s exhibiting solid control and limiting damage with runners on base. At 22-years-old, the Mariners can be looking at this one-two punch for years to come.

Runner-Up: Mark Trumbo, LAA

National League ROY – Craig Kimbrel, ATL

• 2 Wins, 2.35 ERA, 28 Saves, 70 SO

Kimbrel made such a solid impression with the Braves at the end of 2010, that they trusted the rookie with their closer role in 2011. Kimbrel took that trust and ran with it, setting the record for the most saves by a rookie before the All-Star game with 28. Equally as impressive are his astounding 70 strike-outs in just 46 innings pitched. His save opportunities will likely go down in the second-half, but he’s on pace to have an incredible year by any closer’s standards.

Runner-up: Dillon Gee, NYM

American League Manager of The Year – Manny Acta, CLE

The young Indians were supposed to still be in another year of rebuilding, but instead, they fired out of the gates and stormed to an early lead in the AL Central. They’ve fallen back in recent weeks  and now trail the Tigers by .5 games heading into the break, but anything short of a huge second-half slide will result in Acta getting the Manager of the Year award.

Runner-up: Joe Maddon, TB

National League Manager of The Year – Clint Hurdle, PIT

There is no doubt that the talk of baseball has been the play of the Pittsburgh Pirates. For a team that hasn’t had a winning record since 1992, it goes without saying that being 1.0 game out of first place at the All-Star break is an accomplishment. Combine that with the fact that it is all being done by a team made up of youngsters and cast-offs and you don’t need any further argument to hand Clint Hurdle the Manager of the Year award.

Runner-Up: Fredi Gonzalez, ATL

Sources:

• Sortable League Leaders, MLB.com
• Standings, MLB.com
• Triples Records, baseball-almanac.com
• Michael Pineda, MLB.com
• Craig Kimbrel, MLB.cm

The most unbeatable record