04/21/2026 6:40p EDT Milwaukee Brewers at Detroit Tigers

[IdahoBert]

This exceeds my most negative fantasy about how this game might turn out. 

[IdahoBert]

Where’s my 13 runs?

[casimir]

Lulling the Brewers into a false sense of security this early in the season well before they meet in the World Series isn’t the worst idea

[chasfh]

1 hour ago, Tiger337 said:

And the leadoff hitter is the speedy centerfielder with a lot of stolen bases.  

And how often was that #2 hitter a shortstop?

[IdahoBert]

It’s unfortunate that Torkelson made the last out in the eighth because I was kind of hoping that he would come up in the ninth and somehow manage to hit a meaningless grand slam, but even that is now pretty remote…

[chasfh]

Even Kevin McGonigle is getting in on the ****upery.

[Tigermojo]

Only need three grand slams to win.

[IdahoBert]

God bless Jake Rogers for getting us out of this inning. ♬He is the walrus goo goo g'joob! ♬

[chasfh]

They just had a shot of the dugout and it’s pretty funny how, now that’s he struck out a hitter in the major league game, they’re showing Jake Rogers explaining to Tarik Skubal and Jack Flaherty how to strike out hitters in a major league game.

[chasfh]

3 minutes ago, Tigermojo said:

Only need three grand slams to win.

Four three-run shots would do it, too. More than one way to skin the cat.

[IdahoBert]

I’ve stopped watching this game. Has Dan Dickerson dropped an F bomb?

[chasfh]

On April 25, 1901, the Milwaukee Brewers took a 13-4 lead into the ninth inning of the first-ever Detroit Tigers game as a major league team. The Tigers scored ten to win 14-13.

Just sayin’.

[chasfh]

12-4! Only six batters until the tying run comes to the plate!

[IdahoBert]

mlb.com hates the tigers so much they stopped updating gameday in the bottom of the 9th. I never knew that we scored three runs.

[chasfh]

Ahh, well, good thing they don’t debit you two losses when you get your everlovin’ ass kicked like this.

[IdahoBert]

Game is over five minutes and gameday is still stuck on the 12–1 score and Colt Keith coming to the plate 

[casimir]

Has a manager ever been ejected from a post game press conference?

[IdahoBert]

2 minutes ago, IdahoBert said:

Game is over five minutes and gameday is still stuck on the 12–1 score and Colt Keith coming to the plate 

On the ESPN app, it’s stuck in the same place apparently because mlb.com is stuck in the same place 

[IdahoBert]

On the plus side, there are free, curly fries…

[IdahoBert]

So as it turns out, Dingler lost the game for us because he made the last out. I remember that from Mad Magazine when I was a kid in the early 60s. 

[IdahoBert]

21 minutes ago, IdahoBert said:

So as it turns out, Dingler lost the game for us because he made the last out. I remember that from Mad Magazine when I was a kid in the early 60s. 

Actually, I have a remote connection to Mad Magazine. In the mid 70s when I was going to the University of Arizona, one of my classmates had grown up in New Jersey next-door to Bill Gaines, the editor and publisher of Mad Magazine. His best friend was Gaines son. He said in the den downstairs, Gaines had a framed copy of every cover of every edition of the magazine on which he had worked, and by that time that was a crap load of magazine covers. 

[chasfh]

31 minutes ago, IdahoBert said:

So as it turns out, Dingler lost the game for us because he made the last out. I remember that from Mad Magazine when I was a kid in the early 60s. 

So I did a query to determine the Losing Batter of each game in 2024 and 2025, for which I have play by play files. The Losing Batter is the guy who makes the last out at the plate to lose the game. Here’s are the leaderboards for each those seasons.

2024 Losing Batter Leaderboard (Top 30)

|Rank|Player, Team          |Times|
|----|----------------------|-----|
|1   |Bryan De La Cruz, PIT |14   |
|2   |Korey Lee, CHA        |13   |
|2   |Andrew Vaughn, CHA    |13   |
|4   |Zack Gelof, OAK       |12   |
|4   |Corey Seager, TEX     |12   |
|4   |Jose Caballero, TBA   |12   |
|4   |Leody Taveras, TEX    |12   |
|4   |Brent Rooker, OAK     |12   |
|9   |Brenton Doyle, COL    |11   |
|9   |Jesus Sanchez, MIA    |11   |
|9   |Nico Hoerner, CHN     |11   |
|9   |Colton Cowser, BAL    |11   |
|9   |Patrick Bailey, SFN   |11   |
|9   |Michael Toglia, COL   |11   |
|9   |Alec Burleson, SLN    |11   |
|9   |Julio Rodriguez, SEA  |11   |
|17  |Nolan Arenado, SLN    |10   |
|17  |Gavin Sheets, CHA     |10   |
|17  |Jeimer Candelario, CIN|10   |
|17  |Josh Bell, MIA        |10   |
|17  |Danny Jansen, TOR     |10   |
|17  |Andrew Benintendi, CHA|10   |
|17  |Manny Machado, SDN    |10   |

2025 Losing Batter Leaderboard (Top 30)

|Rank|Player, Team         |Times|
|----|---------------------|-----|
|1   |Brenton Doyle, COL   |15   |
|2   |Patrick Bailey, SFN  |13   |
|2   |Dansby Swanson, CHN  |13   |
|2   |James Wood, WAS      |13   |
|5   |Ryan O’Hearn, BAL    |12   |
|5   |Josh Lowe, TBA       |12   |
|5   |Juan Soto, NYN       |12   |
|8   |Adolis Garcia, TEX   |11   |
|8   |Sean Murphy, ATL     |11   |
|8   |Jordan Beck, COL     |11   |
|8   |Cedric Mullins, BAL  |11   |
|8   |Brice Turang, MIL    |11   |
|13  |CJ Abrams, WAS       |10   |
|13  |Ke’Bryan Hayes, PIT  |10   |
|13  |JJ Bleday, ATH       |10   |
|13  |Javier Sanoja, MIA   |10   |
|13  |Ryan Mountcastle, BAL|10   |
|13  |Jackson Holliday, BAL|10   |
|13  |Tyler Freeman, COL   |10   |
|13  |Josh Jung, TEX       |10   |
|13  |Riley Greene, DET    |10   |
|22  |Nolan Schanuel, ANA  |9    |
|22  |Victor Caratini, HOU |9    |
|22  |Josh Naylor, ARI     |9    |
|22  |Mookie Betts, LAN    |9    |
|22  |Agustin Ramirez, MIA |9    |
|22  |Lenyn Sosa, CHA      |9    |
|22  |Miguel Vargas, CHA   |9    |
|22  |Michael Taylor, CHA  |9    |
|22  |Ryan McMahon, COL    |9    |

 

Edited 1 hour ago by chasfh

[Screwball]

3 hours ago, Tiger337 said:

The best spot for overall run production is the #2 spot.  By run production, I mean being involved in run scoring, either by runs scored, RBI or getting a hit that puts a runner (who eventually scores) into scoring position .  

 

3 hours ago, Tiger337 said:

It's an important spot in the order, but the #2 spot is more important.  The idea that the best hitter should bat 3rd is just an old fisherman's tale.  

 

 

2 hours ago, chasfh said:

We’ve come a long way from reflexively putting the crap batter who can bunt the best in the two-hole.

 

2 hours ago, Tiger337 said:

And the leadoff hitter is the speedy centerfielder with a lot of stolen bases.  

 

2 hours ago, Sports_Freak said:

The #3 hitter is a spot for one of a teams better hitters. As Leyland used to say, with a mouth full of food, the game isn't played on a damn computer. 😅😅

Quoted a bunch here.

I get a kick out of this stuff. I know Lee and Chuck are the leading stat guys here, many others are all over it too. It seems to be used much more today. That's good. I love stats, numbers, and get a kick out of this. I'm also old school. Jimmy Leyland is my hero. 

I don't have a problem with a speedy centerfielder with a bunch of stolen bases. 🙂 And you don't need the second batter to be a good bunter - they should all be able to bunt. No money in bunting. Giggle.

So different today.

[chasfh]

I love a speedy center fielder who can steal a bunch of bases as much as the next guy. I like one who can get on base a lot and win you a few games with his glove even better. 

[Sports_Freak]

4 minutes ago, Screwball said:

 

I don't have a problem with a speedy centerfielder with a bunch of stolen bases. 🙂 And you don't need the second batter to be a good bunter - they should all be able to bunt. No money in bunting. Giggle.

So different today.

How's this for a stat? In 1987, Alan Trammell struck out 47 times in almost 600 at bats.