Breathing a Little Easier

The first month of the Major League Baseball season is now complete. In the National League the Diamondbacks and Cubs look strong, while it's a free-for-all in the AL. The team I care most about, the Detroit Tigers, got off to a historically woeful start, 0-7 and then 2-10. A team with the second-highest payroll in the league and a lineup that was touted as one of the best ever was stinking up the joint.

But since then the team has turned in a 1o and 5 record and are closing in on .500. They are only two games back in a division awash in mediocrity. The last two nights I have had the pleasure of watching the Tigers beat the Yankees. The hitters have come around--Placido Polanco has had six hits in the series, including two home runs last night, and his average has gone up more than thirty points. Curtis Granderson has recovered from an injury and is proving his usefulness at the top of the order. The bullpen, which looked to be the main weakness, has been pretty solid, with Bobby Seay, Clay Rapada and Todd Jones doing well. I almost ripped the hair out of my head when Danny Bautista nearly blew the game Tuesday night by walking the bases loaded.

The one remaining problem has been the starting pitching, but that may be getting better. Kenny Rogers and Jeremy Bonderman, who had both been ineffective, turned in solid victories. Dontrelle Willis is on the disable list, but his replacement, Armando Galarraga, has been sterling. Tonight Nate Robertson, who has been dreadful, goes against the Yanks. Hopefully he'll get things going.

That leaves Jason Verlander, the ace of the team, who has been strangely off this season. I've read that he's cut down on his velocity to work on other pitches. This is a classic case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Without Verlander at the top of his game, this team doesn't have much of a chance.