Archive for July, 2009

Don’t rush Stafford

Wednesday, July 29th, 2009

I keep hearing more and more talk about Matt Stafford being named the starter for the Detroit Lions soon.

One line of reasoning goes that the Lions want to make the announcement soon so that he gets the majority of the repetitions during training camp.

I certainly hope the Lions don’t plan to rush the young quarterback like this.

Daunte Culpepper is a capable veteran who can handle the quarterback duties until Stafford is ready. Culpepper won’t be the Pro Bowler that he was in Minnesota, but I liked some of the things I saw from him late last season and this year he will be in better shape and have more of a grasp of the offense.

If Stafford is clearly the better quarterback during training camp, then start him. But don’t throw him in there just because you’ve invested a lot of money in him. I’ve never heard of a quarterback being harmed by held back a few games, but many have suffered permanent damage by being rushed into action.

Posted in Football, Lions | No Comments »

Former Tiger excels

Friday, July 24th, 2009

Former Tiger pitching coach Rick Adair is doing quite a job in Seattle.

Adair, who served as Detroit’s pitching coach from late 1996 to 1999 under Buddy Bell and Larry Parrish, was hired by the Mariners before this season and has developed one of the best pitching staffs in baseball.

Seattle leads the American League in team ERA at 3.65. The Mariner starters, led by Felix Hernandez, have been outstanding and Adair has transformed a bunch of journeyman relievers (Sean White, Mark Lowe, David Aardsma) into a major strength.

Much like Rick Knapp has done with the Tigers, Adair has helped transform his team from also-ran to contender.

Posted in Baseball, Tigers | 1 Comment »

Was Tuesday a mirage?

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009

The Detroit Tigers seemed to find their offense with three home runs (free Arby’s!) during a 9-7 win over Seattle Tuesday, but the bats slipped back into hibernation Wednesday.

That could have been because Felix Hernandez – one of the best pitchers in baseball – was on the mound for the Mariners, but still it is frustrating to see another great pitching performance wasted. Armando Galarraga was masterful in shutting out Seattle on one hit over seven-plus innings.

But as happened to Justin Verlander and Edwin Jackson last weekend in New York, he could only watch helplessly has his team suffered a 2-1 setback.

The Tigers don’t have a lot of chips to use as trade bait, but they need to do something before the July 31 deadline to show their players and fans that they are serious about making a run at the division title.

Posted in Baseball, Tigers | 1 Comment »