gehringer_2

yup - the NFL is about drafting and injuries. Lions haven't done well on either.

actually his OPB and OPS were 85 points better with men on base this season. I don't think Miguel's apparent increase in concentration level with men on base is a mirage.

I'm not unhappy, I'm just not getting on any "Michigan is back as a B10 power" bandwagons and on that point you appear to agree. The new staff has clearly cleaned up a lot of the sloppiness and they've proved aren't going to be missing Don Brown. They look a lot more like a 3 loss team than the 5 loss team Harbaugh would have been expected to field with the old staff. Among areas that hold them back I'd pick that I'm a little mystified that a team that wants to run the ball so badly has ( or at least is using) such a short playbook for their run game, that while McNamara's turnover discipline remains impressive he does waste too many opportunities with inaccurate throws. The secondary has cleaned up the PI calls against but still needs to keep improving. I was also very glad to see them get away from the 'come to the line, set, then step back and bring in a new play' routine. Not only is it irritating to watch as a spectator, but you let a D that you have back on its heals off the hook with more breathing time. one thing is for certain - the transfer portal is generating a lot more parity in the BCS.

As long as he can produce 75 RBI in 130 games we don't have to worry too much about where he hits. Of course the time will come that will surely change. But it should be a natural shift if Greene (likley 3 hitter) and Torkelson (likely 4 hitter) both slot high in the order. In a lineup that has Schoop, Torkelson, Grossman, Greene, the two SH (Grossman and Candelario) and Baddoo leading off for speed, Cabrera naturally falls to at least 5 but more likely 6 or 7. But if or as long as we have the Groodrums and Castros in the lineup Miggy is gonna be 3 or 4.

Hear! Hear! (and also thear!)

In Ann Arbor, on Pymouth road between town and UM North Campus, there is a wide path on both sides of the road that cycles can use, but you still see crazies out in the middle of the 4 lane. Why - because for 40 yrs A^2 has loved to put in bike lanes, but once installed does not maintain them (huge peeve.) You can lose you dental work riding on them. Within 5 years of installation virtually every bike path built in A^2 was trash to ride on and to this day only one or two have even been rebuilt. They've just put in another round of new ones, I'll be interested to see how long they stay ridable.

UCLA and Fresno state lost. There will be no CA team in the rankings.

Cabrera was productive for 4 of 6 months this season, and they don't have other bats that can't field vying for the DH spot so I don't see Cabrera as an immediate issue. Paredes is going to be in Toledo trying to figure out how to hit the ball hard and fair at the same time, W. Castro and Niko will be gone or on the bench so 2b will be open for Schoop leaving 1B open for Torkelson - who can give Candelario a few more days off than he got this year if Cabrera still gets a few games at 1B. It's catcher and short they have to worry about. Barring injuries I don't see big positional battles/issues anywhere else.

Why is Urena still out there? Why are we trying to save the bullpen when there is only one game left? Why would a swallow be carrying anything while doing an air speed test?

The book is now closed on Manning, Skubal and Mize for '21. So out of that huge stable of arms the Tigers could count three years ago after drafting Miz, 4 have become solid starters - Skubal, Mize, Manning and assuming he comes back healthy in '23, Turnbull. Two look like solid relievers - Funkhouse and Fulmer, Even Feado still has a chance to make the majors after his TJ. On the down side, Norris never turned into the pitcher I thought he might have been, Burrows has pretty much washed out - back in the minors with a different team. And Boyd is just Boyd. But that is still an amazing success rate for pitchers.

Riley hitless in a Hens 8-5 win, but walked twice, scored twice and stole a bag. Tork with a hit and also 2 walks.

Georgia looking pretty good.

yeah - the power seemed tied to longer bat path to the pull field.

Frustrating AB. I'd try to get him to close his initial stance a little so that his step in wasn't so deep. Might get him out of the pull field a little.

Paredes needs to slow it down just a touch.

Niko and W. Castro out of the lineup. Paredes comes through with a great defensive play against Abreu. Hinch is already a genius.

Preseason FB is meaningless. I wouldn't make that judgment until they play together when it counts.

absolutely. Cars and bicycles don't mix. I've done thousands of miles on a road bike in my life but I know enough physics to appreciate that what the law or the rules or the anti-car crowd or the urban reformers or anyone else says, you get in the way of a 300 hp, 2 ton steel object on a bicycle and you get dead pretty quick.

That was too easy. And TBF, physically these teams were a lot closer than the score; it was turnovers that took Wisconsin out of the game. And that's fair enough - you are not a good team if you turn the ball over a lot. But M shouldn't get to pleased with itself either just because Wisconsin didn't take care of the football.

Greene is having himself a day this last week. AAA East is going to be happy to see this crew promoted to Detroit. Who ever heard of a AAA lineup with 4 >850 OPS hitters?

Numbers trending down nationally but still growing in MI. 4K cases per day for the last two days per the State report.

Niko steals the base, Cameron strikes out and interferes with Grandal, producing a DP without ever getting the bat on the ball or leaving the batter's box.

This could really be fun. The Tigers haven't hit on a really great player since Verlander - we're due.

In Greene's case, you have a 900 OPS, a 300 BA, 20+ HR and a guy who went from AA to AAA and held or *improved* his numbers across the board. Maybe that guy isn't ready but he for sure is ready to be tested to see if he's ready. Tork did stumble a bit on his promotion in terms of bat to ball, but even then not in the power dept at all. If he plays some kind of winter ball (he and Greene maybe both to the AFL) he could be as ready as he needs to be for his 1st test as well. In any case, if W. Castro, and Goodrum are anywhere near the 26 man next year I will be sorely disappointed. I really don't see how you keep Greene in the minors going into next year beyond maybe those couple of weeks of service time manipulation - assuming the CBA doesn't change all that. Sure I could see him stumbling and being sent back down, but I think he's ready enough for the chance to fail.

over/under: if the states of the old confederacy seceded today they'd be poorer than Mexico in 20 yrs?