Detroit Tigers Rumors & News

Michigan Live "The American League welcomed its first 10-game winner Monday night. And the Tigers welcomed just their second starter in franchise history to the 10-0 club. Max Scherzer improved to 10-0 this season, tossing six historic-making innings as the Detroit Tigers cooled off the scorching Baltimore..." June 18

Detroit News "The third hit was the hardest to take. Battling a deep slump (.106 in his last 22 games and 0-for-19 going into Sunday’s game), Alex Avila had a double and single in the Tigers’ 5-2 victory over the Twins, but had to leave the game when hit on the left forearm by a pitch in the ninth..." June 17

Detroit Free Press "When the Tigers opened the season in Minnesota this year, the question was, “What will they do without Jose Valverde?” When the Tigers were in Minnesota the last three days, the question was, “What will they do with Jose Valverde?” What manager Jim Leyland did in the ninth inning Sunday was..." June 17

Detroit Free Press "The news on Anibal Sanchez and Jonathan Papelbon: ■ SANCHEZ: After he pitched Saturday night, manager Jim Leyland didn’t sound concerned about him. But on Sunday morning, Leyland said that he was “a little concerned” about the right-hander. “Concerned” is a word Leyland sometimes uses when..." June 17

Sporting Sota "One thing the Minnesota Twins have struggled to find is good pitching, both on the front and back ends of the rotation and bullpen. They seem to have found a solid closer in Glen Perkins but Minnesota Twins general manager Terry Ryan fully expects to field calls about Perkins as we near the trade..." June 17

Detroit Free Press "The Detroit Tigers have placed starter Anibal Sanchez and catcher Alex Avila on the disabled list and recalled catcher Bryan Holaday and outfielder Avisail Garcia from Triple-A Toledo. The Tigers also announced that Toledo pitcher Jose Alvarez will start Thursday’s home game against the Boston..." June 17

Boston Globe "Early this week, the Houston Astros will formulate a game plan as to how to approach their veteran assets. Teams are already calling about Bud Norris, a cheap ($3 million) solution to any contender’s rotation. Cheap in salary, but he won’t be cheap in acquisition cost. The Astros are willing..." June 17

St. Paul Pioneer Press "Trevor Plouffe drove in three runs and reached safely in all four plate appearances as Minnesota's bats awoke from a two-game slumber Saturday at Target Field. Joe Mauer singled in two runs, including the game-winner with two outs during a three-run seventh inning. The Twins chased Detroit..." June 16

Detroit News "Not often have the Tigers tied up their first-round pick days after drafting him, but it happened Friday when Jonathon Crawford signed a $2 million contract that will place him immediately in the Tigers farm system. News of the contract was first reported by Jim Callis of Baseball America and..." June 15

Detroit News "Nothing’s changed. Jose Valverde went into Friday night’s game as the Tigers closer despite the five home runs he’s allowed his last 51⁄3 innings. Not only that, but manager Jim Leyland reacted to the question of who would close as if it were out of line to ask it. “We’re going to use..." June 15

Detroit News "The following conversation obviously has not taken place among American League managers. “How’d you do with your intentional walk to Miguel Cabrera?” “Not so good. I think it must have upset Prince Fielder.” It happened again, you know. In a game the Tigers eventually won 4-0 on Friday..." June 15

Detroit News "There aren’t many opportunities to talk about a pitcher starting a season 10-0. But Max Scherzer has done that. With his victory Tuesday against the Royals, he’s off to a 9-0 start. In fact, the leap from 9-0 to 10-0 is almost the same in terms of statistical excellence as the one Scherzer..." June 14

Detroit News "They can’t tolerate the home runs he’s allowed. They also can’t tolerate the anticipation of those he might allow. That’s the dilemma of having Jose Valverde as your closer. In short, that’s the Tigers’ dilemma. It’s not the sheer number of hits that is the problem. Valverde has..." June 14

Detroit News "Tigers center fielder Austin Jackson went 2-for-5 Thursday in the third game of his rehabilitation assignment with the Triple A Toledo Mud Hens. Jackson, who had been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a hamstring injury, had two singles and scored a run in Toledo’s 9-7 victory over..." June 14

Detroit Free Press "The Detroit Tigers today activated centerfielder Austin Jackson from the disabled list and sent outfielder Avisail Garcia back to Triple-A Toledo. Jackson is expected to play in tonight’s series opener at the Minnesota Twins. Garcia, a rookie, likely was optioned to allow for him to play..." June 14

CBSSports.com "Tigers closer Jose Valverde blew his third save of the season Wednesday, and since then, Tigers manager Jim Leyland has been answering questions about how he's going to deal with the back end of the bullpen moving forward. And, as Leyland is apt to do, he gave a colorful answer. Via..." June 14

Detroit News "Last autumn’s bullpen nightmare has revisited the Tigers, who are no doubt wondering if the Jose Valverde experiment is finally, and destructively, history. They lost another brilliantly pitched game Wednesday at Kauffman Stadium when, with two outs in the ninth inning, Valverde hung an 0-2..." June 13

MLB.com "Giants manager Bruce Bochy and Tigers skipper Jim Leyland announced their All-Star Game coaching staffs on Thursday, and there's a noticeable New York connection with each member of the group. Nationals manager Davey Johnson and Mets skipper Terry Collins will serve as Bochy's National League..." June 13

Kansas City Star "Gatorade? Water? This is Kansas City, buddy. So Eric Hosmer got a barbecue sauce shower Wednesday afternoon after delivering a walk-off RBI single that produced a pulsating 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers in 10 innings at Kauffman Stadium. Hosmer’s single capped a remarkable comeback..." June 12

Detroit News "Move over, George and Vern from yesteryear, you have company. Lasting long enough to benefit from a go-ahead run on Victor Martinez’s sacrifice fly in the eighth, Max Scherzer was the winning pitcher Tuesday night in the Tigers’ 3-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals. With the win,..." June 12

Detroit News "Major League Baseball is considering the old Tiger Stadium as a site to build a state-of-the-art facility to provide baseball activities to youths. But one high-level Detroit official says the “offer is a scam” that doesn’t have the money to make it happen. The Major League Baseball Urban..." June 11

Detroit News "At eight games over .500, it can’t be called the Tigers’ undoing. But their road record is the closest thing to an undoing that they have. Still the only division leader in the majors under .500, the Tigers fell on Monday night to 13-17 when they’re away from Comerica Park. They dropped..." June 11

Detroit News "Not Al Alburquerque? When it came time to call up a relief pitcher from Triple A Toledo, after left-hander Jose Alvarez made one start and went back down Sunday, the choice was right-hander Evan Reed. Not Alburquerque. Or Brayan Villarreal. Manager Jim Leyland said Reed was the..." June 11

Detroit News "The Tigers’ starting pitching is excellent, no doubt. But come on, it’s not like they can just pluck a minor leaguer out of the bushes and keep rolling. Oh, wait. Here was a kid that few had seen, and might not see again anytime soon. His name is Jose Alvarez, and for his outstanding effort in..." June 11

Detroit Free Press "The Tigers got another strong outing by a starting pitcher, but they couldn’t generate much offense. Doug Fister allowed nine hits, no walks and three earned runs in eight innings with three strikeouts for the Tigers. The Tigers’ only runs came on a two-run home run in the top of the third..." June 11

Detroit Free Press "Tigers centerfielder Austin Jackson hardly put up great numbers Monday night, but being back in the lineup was satisfaction enough. Jackson went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts and a walk as the designated hitter for Triple-A Toledo, which beat the Rochester Red Wings, 12-4, at rainy Frontier..." June 11

Detroit Free Press "Right-handed reliever Evan Reed said the second time getting called up is just as exciting as the first. After Jose Alvarez won his major league debut as a spot starter Sunday, the Tigers sent him back to Triple-A Toledo and recalled Reed. Reed, 27, made his debut with the Tigers earlier..." June 11

MLB.com "Austin Jackson began his Minor League rehab assignment on Monday night with a start at designated hitter for Triple-A Toledo at Rochester. The Tigers' center fielder and leadoff man, who has been out since May 14 with a pulled left hamstring, went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts in his first game..." June 11

Kansas City Star "Six in a row. That’s right, suddenly the Royals can’t lose. And this one on Monday night is how the Royals generally scripted things when they put together their club in the offseason. A strong effort from a starting pitcher, Jeremy Guthrie in this case, some air-tight work from the bullpen and..." June 11

Detroit Free Press "How was Austin Jackson feeling today? Good enough to start a rehab stint Monday with Triple-A Toledo, the Detroit Tigers announced. Jackson ran bases the past three days but didn’t do any pregame work on Sunday because of photo day at Comerica Park. Manager Jim Leyland said that if..." June 10

Detroit News "The Tigers’ starting pitching is excellent, no doubt. But come on, it’s not like they can just pluck a minor leaguer out of the bushes and keep rolling. Oh, wait. Here was a kid that few had seen, and might not see again anytime soon. His name is Jose Alvarez, and for his outstanding effort in..." June 10

Michigan Live "Detroit Tigers left-hander Jose Alvarez was beyond spectacular in his Major League debut, tossing six near-perfect innings of one-run, three-hit baseball. His reward? A first-class ticket back to Toledo. The Tigers optioned Alvarez to Triple-A on Sunday, the team announced, minutes after the..." June 10

Detroit News "Before Jose Alvarez made his major-league debut on Sunday, manager Jim Leyland had reasonable expectations for the surprise starter. Leyland said he hoped Alvarez could go six innings and give the Tigers a chance to win. Alvarez exceeded expectations, giving up just one run on three hits and..." June 10

Detroit News "The Tigers starting rotation has been slammed with its first ailment of 2013 as Anibal Sanchez will miss Sunday’s start against the Indians because of a stiff shoulder. Filling in for Sanchez will be Jose Alvarez, a left-hander, who has been pitching well at Triple A Toledo. Jose Ortega, the..." June 09

Detroit News "Taking a long-term look at Jose Valverde, at his team, and some tense Tigers fans. Valverde has been back in town six weeks. They have been six nervous weeks for fans who do not trust the Tigers closer to finish a game without some degree of trauma. And yet here are his numbers after he..." June 09

Detroit News "Detroit Watch him on the mound in this, his fifth big-league season, at the are-you-joking age of 24. Rick Porcello pitches so seemingly effortlessly these days that he all but lulls his audience into a rocking chair as he eases through a game. And that almost makes Porcello do something he..." June 09

Fox Sports Detroit "He's not worried. His manager's not worried. His teammates are not worried. But nobody makes Tigers fans more worried right now than Jose Valverde. They're far less concerned about Austin Jackson's ailing hamstring than they are about the closer. Valverde came into the ninth inning of..." June 08

Michigan Live "It's commonly referred to as the "Handshake of Doom" by members of the media. Tigers ace Justin Verlander tried to avoid it Friday night. Tigers manager Jim Leyland wouldn't let him. First, a bit of background: Leyland will typically greet his starting pitchers at the steps of the dugout..." June 08

Detroit News "The path has been different. His earned run average looks a bit strange. But there’s nothing wrong with the bottom line that counts the most. For the first time in his career, with the help of Friday night’s 7-5 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Friday night, Justin Verlander has eight..." June 08

Detroit Free Press "These Tigers must really be awful. The best they can hope for now is a 136-26 record. At this same juncture a year ago, the Tigers were 26-32. They couldn’t hit or pitch consistently and sat six games out of first place in the American League Central. And the walls came tumbling down in..." June 07

Detroit News "Next up for Max Scherzer? Two guys you probably never heard of. After a win that got away in Baltimore, Scherzer improved his record to 8-0 on Thursday by limiting the Tampa Bay Rays to one run in seven innings of the Tigers’ 5-2 victory. With the win — aided and abetted by Victor Martinez’s..." June 07

Bleacher Report "After appearing in only five games during his freshman year, Crawford established himself as one of the top college arms in the nation as a sophomore. Working 77.2 innings over 19 games for the Gators, the right-hander registered a 3.13 ERA with 73 strikeouts and 24 walks. However, Crawford’s..." June 06

Detroit News "The Tigers know what brand of player they prefer Thursday night when their first-round draft turn arrives at No. 20 overall. Ideally, they hope to grab a college starting pitcher who might be expected to work at Comerica Park in a couple of seasons, as was the case with Drew Smyly when the..." June 06

Detroit News "Detroit The Tigers are pleased with the way Avisail Garcia has played so far. In particular, manager Jim Leyland likes the way he’s been aggressive at the plate. But he’s worried about him. “He has to get out of the habit of jumping at the bag (first base) on a ground ball,” Leyland said..." June 06

Detroit News "This time he got it. After a win that got away in Baltimore, Max Scherzer improved his record to 8-0 on Thursday by limiting the Tampa Bay Rays to one run in seven innings of the Tigers’ 5-2 victory. With the win, helped along by Victor Martinez’s fourth home run and three RBI, Scherzer..." June 06

Tampa Bay Times "Things were going so well for Rays right-hander Alex Cobb on Wednesday night that when he came off the field after the sixth inning, he thought it was the fifth. "I saw it on the scoreboard, and I thought the scoreboard was wrong," Cobb said. "I asked (Matt Moore), and he said, 'Yeah, that was..." June 06

Detroit Free Press "Major League Baseball has been informed by Tony Bosch, head of the South Florida wellness clinic, that he will testify about his relationship with performance-enhancing drugs and dozens of baseball players, a move that could lead to suspensions for Alex Rodriguez, Ryan Braun and other notable..." June 05