Between last night and this morning, we've been a little pressed for time (plus, I don't know how many people actually watched the game), so we'll have to do this recap bullet-point style.

• We can't have a recap without talking about Miguel Cabrera, who blasted two home runs (one of which was a bomb over the Hy-Vee sign in left).  It's too bad this surge of his didn't come with the Tigers in the playoff race (and I certainly hope that's not a harbinger of years to come), but since the All-Star break, Cabrera has shown just how special a player he's going to be in Detroit.  Watching him crush the ball to right field has become one of life's little pleasures.
  
• I suppose you can't complain about the starting pitcher throwing shutout baseball, and Justin Verlander hasn't allowed an earned run in his last two starts now.  I'd still like to see Verlander (and his fellow starters) to be more efficient with the pitch totals, but going into the seventh and leaving it to the bullpen should be good enough on most nights.
• That is, if you have a good bullpen.  Again, holy geez with these guys.  Did John Lowe's article in the Freep on Friday put a jinx on Fernando Rodney?  Todd Jones must have been proud of Rodney's roller coaster effort in the ninth inning, because he did just about everything but blow the lead.  Two runs, three hits, and one walk in an inning is no way to get through life, son.  
• You think Francisco Rodriguez's agent will include that ninth inning in a presentation for his client to the Tigers this winter?
• Neither is ending the game on a tag at home plate following a wild pitch.  The Tigers got a pretty fortunate bounce with the carom coming right back to Brandon Inge, allowing him to get the ball to Rodney at home.  And a good job by Rodney in getting over there to cover the play and tag out David DeJesus.

Can Zach bounce back tonight?  Let's hope so, though his spot in the rotation probably isn't in much danger for the rest of the year, now that Nate Robertson's been demoted to the bullpen.

Here's the speech Jim Leyland should've given his bullpen after Tuesday night's loss.  (Or Sunday's, for that matter.)  If I knew he did this, I could accept him not following through on the "changes" he promised.

Meanwhile, Dave Dombrowski should call this kid in for an interview.  He might be just the sort of new blood the Detroit Tigers need.

I bet Baldwin, Jr. here would fire Chuck Hernandez, at least.

Jack Lemmon as Kyle Farnsworth?  Ed Harris as Fernando Rodney?  Alan Arkin as Joel Zumaya?  Fox Sports Detroit should play this every time there's a save situation from now until October.

(Here's the real thing, if you want to watch it.  Not safe for work, in terms of language, but you probably already knew that.)

Much better (and probably more appropriate) train wreck photos were posted in the GameThread, actually.  It was the only way to get through 14 innings of hell.

Words cannot explain how utterly disastrous the Tigers bullpen is right now.  (Bobby Seay and Fernando Rodney - with four hitless innings between them - are excused from this discussion.)  Great efforts from Placido Polanco and Ryan Raburn (and the aforementioned relievers) were rendered meaningless by another comically horrendous failure.

Absolutely no lead is safe.  No win seems possible. 

Kyle Farnsworth and Joel Zumaya didn't just blow the leads they were given.  They coughed them up in spectactular, cataclysmic fashion, serving up fat softballs that were launched out of the park for two demoralizing, soul-crushing home runs (along with a horrible error by Edgar Renteria) that would suck the spirit out of any team, let alone one already as disheartened as the Tigers have been. 

Jim Caple says closers are overrated?  He obviously hasn't watched the Detroit Tigers this season.

Who can be trusted to pitch in the ninth inning now?  Who's left?  Where can this team possibly go from here? 

"Geez, if only the Tigers could get some good starting pitching..." you may have said to yourself before today's ballgame.  Well, they did, and it didn't matter.

Armando Galarraga gave Detroit exactly the kind of start it needed, holding the Rays scoreless for 6 2/3 innings.  And even when he finally yielded after a full seven, he'd only given up one run and four hits.

"If the Tigers could just get that one big hit..."  Well, they did, and it didn't matter.

Besides Magglio Ordonez twice driving in Placido Polanco after Carlos Guillen methodically moved him along to third base, Gary Sheffield finally connected with one of those wild swings (Didn't it seem like he'd drill himself into the dirt during this series?) and answered Tampa's score with a solo home run that again provided a two-run cushion. 

After Tampa took a 4-3 lead in the eighth against Kyle Farnsworth (more on the bullpen later), Curtis Granderson came right back in the ninth and hit a game-tying home run.  And in the 10th, Miguel Cabrera gave the Tigers the lead again with a leadoff homer of his own. 

"If only the Tigers' bullpen could shut the other team down..."  Okay, that's where Detroit hit a major pothole today.

If you were excited to see Farnsworth pitch in a Tigers uniform after he was acquired on Thursday, you're probably ready to ship him back to New York - or maybe China - after his performance today.  The Farns took over for Galarraga and proceeded to hand the game over to the Rays by allowing hits to three of the first four hitters he faced.  And two of those hits left the yard, giving Tampa the lead.

Yet the Tigers got that lead back.  And that brings us to the guy who's supossed to protect it at the end of the game.  The closer.  Was it just a week ago that we were so excited that Fernando Rodney was taking that job from Todd Jones?  The wick on that firecracker died pretty quickly. 

But since I mentioned fire, let's talk about the gasoline puddle that Rodney left and lit in the 10th inning.  (And if you watched this live, perhaps you'd prefer I not re-enact it for you.)  He led off by walking Willy Aybar.  Followed that by hitting Shawn Riggans (who's not Chone Figgins, even though when I heard the name last night, I looked up like, "Wha... ?").  Two men on.  After Akinori Iwamura moved the runners over with a sacrifice bunt, Rodney then walked B.J. Upton.

Now I wasn't watching with the sound on, so I don't know what Mario and Rod said (or what Dan and Jim said on the radio), but only the most optimistic of observers could have been thinking, "Well, that sets up the force at home, and maybe a double play."  To such fresh-faced positivity, my only response would be "What baseball team have you been watching lately, Cowboy?"

First, Carl Crawford tied the game with a single.  Rodney may have restored some hope by striking out Evan Longoria on five pitches.  But the bases were still loaded, which meant soul-crushing failure was still a possibility.  Rodney got ahead of Carlos Pena with a 1-2 count.  Could he really escape this?  "What baseball team have you been watching lately, Cowboy?"

Three more pitches from Rodney (two of which looked pretty damn close), and all of them were balls.  Game over.  And the rest of this season isn't looking too good, either.

Roll Call

Such a great GameThread today, which just makes the train wreck ending all the more painful.  If only I could give Pepto-Bismol to pfuhrmeister, explosivo2k2, rook34, dettigionswings'stons, Grant E.,ashmark, JIMDALE, MSU4LIF, HavocRox, Wingz, MackAveKurt, Tony K, Juskimo, Zappatista, densogirl, tricks318, STEVIEYz1, skoneyhill, ThaWalrus9, and TigsFan for their nausea right now.

It's a big stretch, but one of the bright sides of last night's 5-0 loss to Cleveland is that the Tigers were able to avoid the awkward situation of Todd Jones having to come in for a save situation two days after being told he was no longer the closer.  Jim Leyland wouldn't have had a choice, with Fernando Rodney gassed out from throwing 42 pitches and Joel Zumaya's right triceps tightening up on Sunday. 

Tonight, however, Detroit should have its regular late-innings crew available to protect a lead.  That is, if the Tigers' lineup can generate any offense against Matt Ginter. (Leyland says he'll try to avoid using Rodney if he can help it, however.)

After receiving electro-stimulation treatments on the muscle, Zumaya played catch on Monday afternoon and said he felt fine.  Leyland says he could've pitched last night, if needed.  Zumaya, however, sounds a bit nervous about a relapse.  

"It's all right," Zumaya said.  "I just threw a little bit."

When asked if he was relieved that the condition turned out to be nothing, Zumaya said, "We don't know if it's nothing yet, but it felt fine.  I took a little medicine.  But you don't need to make a big deal out of it."

If Zumaya goes tonight, he might not be able to use his full complement of pitches.  According to Leyland, the Tigers' medical staff thinks the triceps tightness might be due to the way Zumaya throws his curveball.  Didn't Leyland just tell Zumaya he needed to mix his breaking stuff in with those fastballs?  Maybe Zumaya and Chuck Hernandez can tweak his mechanics before tonight's game.

6 1/2 games out of first place is better than 8 1/2 out.  It's not as catchy a slogan as "Who's Your Tiger?" and probably shouldn't be a slogan at all.  But after a weekend in which the Detroit Tigers didn't really accomplish what they hoped (or needed) to do, salvaging one victory is something of a consolation. 

Zach Miner threw his second straight quality start, keeping a hot White Sox offense in check until the Tigers' bats swung the bat with authority in the third inning.  Curtis Granderson hit a home run to put Detroit ahead to stay, while Miguel Cabrera knocked two hits for the third straight game and drove in two runs.  (Cabrera, by the way, has hit safely in his last seven games, batting .375 - 13-for-35 -  with 15 RBIs during that span.) 

But the real pitching story came in the eighth inning, when Joel Zumaya left after facing two batters.  No discomfort was obvious from watching Zumaya or trainer Kevin Rand, but it was later revealed that tightness in the right triceps was the problem that took Zumaya out of the game.  (His status is listed as day-to-day.)  That brought in the Tigers' new closer, who got the job just before game-time.

Did having to rush in and warm up on the field, rather than in the bullpen, affect Fernando Rodney upon entering the game?  We may never know, though being taken out of a routine can be a jarring thing for an athlete.  Rodney certainly seemed to be off initially, walking two of the first three batters he faced, followed by giving up a two-run single to Jim Thome.

You could hear all of Tiger Town go "Uh-oh" at that point.  It wasn't a save situation, but how was Rodney going to handle this closer thing?  Not badly, as it turns out.  After giving up those two runs, Rodney escaped further damage by getting a ground ball to end the eighth.  And in the ninth, which will be his territory for the time being, Rodney struck out the side.  When was the last time Tigers fans saw a pitcher do that to end the game?

Hopefully for the Tigers, this change wasn't made too late to make a difference in their season.

Roll Call

I wasn't sure what kind of turnout we'd get in today's GameThread.  It's been a rough weekend, and no one could be blamed for being disheartened and wanting to take a break.  But some of us just couldn't stay away.  It's in our blood now.

Thanks to ThaWalrus9, MikeMcClary, Zappatista, BigAl, MackAveKurt, HavocRox, Juskimo, rock n rye, gf206, MSU4LIF, dettigionswings'stons, tplants, Wingz, Germantiger, and pfuhrmeister for enjoying the weekend's lone victory and being on the scene when the Rodney news started to make the rounds.

Is this what they mean by "Christmas in July"?  Before this afternoon's Tigers-White Sox game, Jim Leyland finally announced the move that seemed all but inevitable after Friday night's blown save.  Todd Jones is no longer the Detroit Tigers' closer.

Curiously, Leyland saved the announcement for the radio pre-game show with Dan Dickerson on WXYT-AM in Detroit, rather than give the news to print reporters and TV broadcasters.  Maybe this was to prevent Jones's demotion from being the news, rather than today's game, or to give Jones a chance to prepare for facing the media after the game. 

So who takes over in the ninth inning?  The man who's suddenly become the most reliable late-inning reliever in the Tigers' bullpen, Fernando Rodney.  While Jones has blown three of his last seven save opportunities and watched his ERA increase by more than a full run (3.86 to 4.99), Rodney hasn't allowed a run in his last 5 2/3 innings and thrown nine strikeouts. 

More on this later, as explanations are given.  As I write this, however, Joel Zumaya was taken out of the game in the eighth inning with an apparent injury, which is terrible timing for the Tigers' bullpen.

UPDATE:  Zumaya left the game with tightness in his right tricep.  His status was given as day-to-day after the ballgame.  Apparently, this was more of a precautionary measure, rather than something extremely serious.

Holy burying the lede, Batman!  (Is that the second time I've made that reference in a week?  Sorry about that.)  In a notebook headlined by second base prospect Scott Sizemore breaking a bone in his hand, the Freep's Jon Paul Morosi casually tosses out this little nugget:

The Tigers appear willing to include reliever Fernando Rodney in trade offers.  The right-hander has been inconsistent since returning from the disabled list.

That strikes me as kind of a big deal.  Maybe a headline item.  Am I wrong here?  Is that how far Rodney's fortunes have fallen in the eyes of the reporters who cover the Detroit Tigers, let alone the organization itself? 

Or perhaps this is a case of the Tigers realizing they'll have to give up something to get something.  Every team is in need of good relievers (including, um, the Detroit Tigers), so dangling a pitcher of Rodney's talent (as opposed to actual production this season) might tempt a team into making a deal.  (In another article, Morosi also points to Luis Marte as a pitching prospect Detroit might be willing to trade.)

Can the Tigers afford to give up bullpen help, especially when Jim Leyland has said that he intends to divide Todd Jones' ninth inning workload among several relievers?  I don't think so, yet acknowledge that Rodney isn't the first guy I would prefer to see come out of the Tigers' bullpen in a key late-inning situation.  And maybe Leyland feels that way, too.  Freddy Dolsi has probably made Rodney expendable, and another reliever (Clay Rapada?) could come up from Toledo to fill that spot in the bullpen.   

So what do you think about this?  Has Rodney become expendable?  Can the Tigers afford to trade a reliever?

After Thursday's loss to the Twins, in which Todd Jones blew a two-run lead, the Tigers' closer was the popular whipping boy on Detroit sports talk radio, message boards, and a few blogs.  The general sentiment seemed to be, "Enough is enough."

Defenders of Jonesy pointed out that Thursday's blown save was only his second of the season.  Yet as his ERA hovers around 5.00 (its current 5.09 is actually an improvement from a week ago), and that roller coaster style of pitching (put a couple of runners on base, don't strike anyone out, bring the tying or lead run to the plate, etc.) endangers every lead the Tigers give him, Jones's method of closing becomes more and more insufferable.

And now, maybe even Jim Leyland - frequently Jonesy's biggest defender - has had all he can stands, and can't stands no more.  Before last night's game, Leyland announced that he would begin reducing Jones's workload and begin to divide ninth inning duties among other relievers in the bullpen.  The Tigers' manager emphasized that Jones was still Detroit's closer.  However, he's not always going to pitch the ninth inning with the game on the line, especially when he's pitched the night before. 

"I'm going to back off him a little bit.

"I'm just going to watch him closely and maybe start using somebody else a little bit from time to time."

Even Jones himself admitted that it's getting more difficult for him to pitch back-to-back games, which is definitely a part of the closer job description.

"It's a little tough to bounce back," Jones said Thursday after pitching the day and night games, "but I've got to be ready when the phone rings. ... I'm ready for (the ball) when he gives it to me."

So who gets the ball when Jones doesn't?  Leyland said Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney would likely close out the game, depending on each pitcher's workload, game situations, and so forth.  Freddy Dolsi will surely be in the mix, as well, especially if the Tigers view him as someone who could potentially be their future closer, along with Zumaya.

Though this could initially be seen as some kind of punishment or indication that Leyland doesn't trust Jones as he once did, rotating players in a role to keep his older players fresh has worked out pretty well for Pudge Rodriguez and the catching situation.  Brandon Inge's oblique injury eventually shelved Leyland's plan to alternate catchers every other day, but reducing Pudge's workload behind the plate definitely seems to have given him more energy, especially with his bat.  Perhaps the only difference in this decision is that Leyland didn't make a point of noting that things could change.

While this decision doesn't necessarily represent a white flag, it does appear to nod toward the future.  Jones isn't going to be the Tigers' closer after this season, and the team needs to figure out if Zumaya, Rodney, or Dolsi can handle the role, both mentally and physically.  If not, that probably shapes Dave Dombrowski's off-season agenda.