May 11, 1984: Tigers 8 – Angels 2

The Tigers hung six runs on Indians starter Behenna in three-and-a-third innings. Fourth-inning homers by Chet Lemon and Lou Whitaker ultimately chased him.

Detroit had 10 hits, Lemon and Whitaker with two each.

Miscellany

Venue: Tiger Stadium
Umpires: HP – Larry Barnett, 1B – Dale Ford, 2B – Ken Kaiser, 3B – Rocky Roe
Time of Game: 2:25
Attendance: 28,253

John Cerutti #55

The late John Cerutti would have turned 64 today. The long-time Blue Jays lefty pitched his final major-league season in Detroit.

After spending his first six seasons in Toronto, he signed with the Tigers as a free agent on Jan. 14, 1991.

Cerutti made his Tigers debut on April 10, 1991 against the Yankees. In relief of starter Walt Terrell and the Tigers down 2-0, he pitched the final two and a third innings, giving up two runs on two hits and four walks.

His final big-league appearance came on Oct. 5, 1991 in Baltimore. With one out in the bottom of the eighth, he relieved Dave Haas. The final hitter he faced was David Segui, who grounded out to Whitaker.

Cerutti appeared in 38 games for the Tigers, including eight starts. His final line: 3-6, 4.57 ERA and two saves. As a Blue Jay from 1985-90, he appeared in 15 games against the Tigers: 2-1, 4.63 ERA

He passed away in 2004 at 44.

Birthdays

Sean Douglass, Jim Poole and the late John Cerutti, Tom Sturdivant and Charlie Metro

See you tomorrow.

April 21, 1984: Tigers 4 – White Sox 1

Tigers 4 – White Sox 1

W: Dave Rozema (1-0) L: LaMarr Hoyt (2-1) Save: Doug Bair (1) | Boxscore

Record: 11-1

Highlights

Dave Rozema pitched six scoreless innings, allowing just two hits, to walks and striking out seven.

Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell and Darrell Evans each had two hits.

Whitaker homered off Hoyt, and drove in three runs.

Doug Bair pitched the final three innings to earn the save.

Miscellany

Umpires: HP – Larry McCoy, 1B – Nick Bremigan, 2B – Vic Voltaggio, 3B – Joe Brinkman
Time of Game: 2:35
Attendance: 34,395

On TV: Tigers @ Yankees: April 21, 1987

W: Joe Niekro (1-1) – L: Walt Terrell (1-2) – Save: Cecilio Guante (1) | Boxscore

Birthdays

Aquilino Lopez, Les Lancaster and the late Bill Faul

See you tomorrow.

The Sunday Fungo

March 10, 1983: George Kell to Cooperstown

On this date in 1983, George Kell was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee. Former Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers manager Walter Alston was elected too.

In his 15-year career, Kell:

Batted over .300 nine times
Was a 10-time All-Star
Led American League third basemen in fielding percentage seven times

In Detroit, he:

Wore three uniform numbers: 21, 15 and 7
Hit .325 with 25 homers, 414 RBI and a .824 OPS
Was named an all star in six of his seven seasons

Random Game: Aug. 10, 1986

Red Sox 9 – Tigers 6

W: Joe Sambito (2-0) – L: Bill Campbell (2-4) – Save: Calvin Schiraldi (3) | Boxscore

My friend Doug and I attended this game, sitting in the centerfield bleachers for budgetary reasons, and choosing the lower deck for meteorological.

‘Twas a soggy day for the finale of a three-game set that, at the outset, provided foolish hope the Tigers could gain ground on the Red Sox, which entered the series four-and-a-half games up on second-place Detroit.

Instead, the Tigers were swept and this one ended with an eighth-inning bullpen collapse.

Neither Roger Clemens nor Walt Terrell were sharp: Clemens allowed seven hits, five walks and three earned runs in six innings. Terrell: six hits, three walks and four earned in seven innings.
The Red Sox led 4-0 until the Tigers scored two in the sixth, on a two-run homer by Alan Trammell, and Darrell Evans grand slam in the seventh to go up 6-4.
Bill Campbell (three) and Willie Hernandez (two) coughed up five runs in the top of the eight and Boston held on to win.
Rich Gedman hit a grand slam off Willie; two of the runs were charged to Campbell.
Darnell Coles went 3 for 5 with a double.
Boston left town with a seven-and-a-half game lead over the Tigers.

Miscellany

Umpires: HP – Richard Shulock, 1B – Dan Morrison, 2B – Mark Johnson, 3B – Rocky Roe
Time of Game: 3:11
Attendance: 39,866

Birthdays

Bill Heath and the late Art Herring and Jim Curry

Today’s Grid

⚾️ Immaculate Grid 343 9/9 — Rarity: 22

See you tomorrow.

The Tuesday Fungo: Feb. 20

The Chris Brown Experiment

Perhaps no other word best describes third baseman Chris Brown like enigmatic.

After a promising start to his career with the Giants in 1985, his .271 average and 16 homers earned him a fourth-place finish in the National League Rookie of the Year Award, and an All-Star Game appearance in ’86, Brown began frustrating his managers and his teammates with a string of questionable and bizarre injuries. In fact, he never appeared in more games than he did that rookie season (131).

Here’s a longer profile from the Fungo archives.

Birthdays

Buck Farmer, Justin Verlander, Kurt Knudsen, Bill Gullickson, Roy Face and the late Muddy Ruel and Suds Sutherland.

Today’s Grid

⚾️ Immaculate Grid 324 9/9: Rarity: 20

See you tomorrow.

Today’s Tiger: Chris Brown

Chris Brown

Born: Aug. 15, 1961 in Jackson, Miss.
Died: Dec. 26, 2006 in Houston
Acquired: Traded by the Padres with Keith Moreland to the Tigers for Walt Terrell on Oct. 28, 1988.
Seasons in Detroit: 1 (1989)
Bats: Right Throws: Right
Height: 6′ Weight: 185 lb.
Uniform Number: 35
Stats: .193 avg., 0 HR, 4 RBI, .449 OPS

Perhaps no other word best describes third baseman Chris Brown like enigmatic.

By the middle of the 1987 season Brown was shipped to the Padres with Keith Comstock, Mark Davis and Mark Grant for Dave Dravecky, Craig Lefferts and Kevin Mitchell.

He didn’t fare well in San Diego either, hitting .232 in 44 games. In 1988 he hit just .235 in 80 games.The Tigers were in complete freefall when they traded Walt Terrell to the Padres for Brown and Keith Moreland, whose best years were behind him.

Why Detroit thought Brown and his “Tin Man” reputation would be transformed under Sparky Anderson is mystifying. His reputation for injuries — real or imagined — ranged from shoulder tenderness, a bad tooth and a sore eyelid. At least those are the more legendary ones and who knows if any were true.

In Detroit, the Chris Brown Experiment — such as it was — got off to a poor start when he arrived to spring training overweight. It ended after just 17 games, 11 hits and a .193 average. Worse yet, if possible, was a .909 fielding percentage in that time. On May 19, he was released.

A few weeks later he was signed by the Pirates but never appeared in a big-league game for them.

Brown died in a mysterious Houston house fire on Dec. 26, 2006, at the age of 45. According to this MLB.com story:

Brown was employed by Halliburton Co. in Iraq, driving and repairing 18-wheel fuel trucks, and in a 2004 interview with The Associated Press, he said, “It’s a place I would’ve never thought 20 years ago that I’d be.”

His final career line: .269 average, 38 home runs, 184 RBI and a .725 OPS.

Today’s Tiger: Chris Brown

Chris Brown

Born: Aug. 15, 1961 in Jackson, Miss.
Died: Dec. 26, 2006 in Houston
Acquired: Traded by the Padres with Keith Moreland to the Tigers for Walt Terrell on Oct. 28, 1988.
Seasons in Detroit: 1 (1989)
Bats: Right Throws: Right
Height: 6′ Weight: 185 lb.
Uniform Number: 35
Stats: .193 avg., 0 HR, 4 RBI, .449 OPS

Perhaps no other word best describes third baseman Chris Brown like enigmatic.

By the middle of the 1987 season Brown was shipped to the Padres with Keith Comstock, Mark Davis and Mark Grant for Dave Dravecky, Craig Lefferts and Kevin Mitchell. He didn’t fare well in San Diego either, hitting .232 in 44 games. In 1988 he hit just .235 in 80 games.

The Tigers were in complete freefall when they traded Walt Terrell to the Padres for Brown and Keith Moreland, whose best years were behind him. Why Detroit thought Brown and his “Tin Man” reputation would be transformed under Sparky Anderson is mystifying. His reputation for injuries — real or imagined — ranged from shoulder tenderness, a bad tooth and a sore eyelid. At least those are the more legendary ones — who knows if they were true.

He died in a mysterious Houston house fire on Dec. 26, 2006, at the age of 45. According to this MLB.com story:

Brown was employed by Halliburton Co. in Iraq, driving and repairing 18-wheel fuel trucks, and in a 2004 interview with The Associated Press, he said, “It’s a place I would’ve never thought 20 years ago that I’d be.”

His final career line: .269 average, 38 home runs, 184 RBI and a .725 OPS.

October Surprise Part 4: Bullpen Collapses in Game 3

As the Tigers and Twins square off for the biggest series of the year with the division title hanging in the balance, we continue our look back on the last great race in Tigers history: 1987 and the seven games against the Toronto Blue Jays in the season’s final 10 days. Today: Game 3.

Part 1 – Tigers and Jays Battle for ’87 Division Title
Part 2 – Showdown in Toronto, Game 1
Part 3 – Game 2 Skips Away

American League East Standings: September 26, 1987

Team	Record	Pct.	GB
Toronto	95-59	.617	â€“
Detroit	92-61	.601	2.5

If the Tigers suffered any ill effects from the previous two games, they certainly didnâ€™t show it in the third game of the series.

Detroit pummeled Torontoâ€™s ace Dave Steib, tagging the right-hander for six runs on four hits in just 2.1 innings. Matt Nokes drove in six runs in his first two at bats: a first-inning two-run homer and a grand slam in the third.

The Blue Jays were having nearly as much fun with Detroit starter Walt Terrell. In his 2.1 innings, the Blue Jays came up with four runs on seven hits. The Tigers attacked five additional Toronto hurlers for a 9-4 lead in the fifth inning. Toronto wouldnâ€™t go away quietly, tacking on three more runs. Heading into the bottom half of the ninth Detroit clung to a 9-7 lead.

Continue reading “October Surprise Part 4: Bullpen Collapses in Game 3” →

October Surprise: Tigers and Jays Battle for ’87 Division Title

Over the next week, we’ll watch the Tigers and Twins play head-to-head to decide the American League Central.

While this plays out, let’s look back at the final two weekends of the 1987 season when the Tigers and Blue Jays squared off for seven heart-pounding, one-run games that would ultimately decide the American League East title.

Today, Part 1.

“I’m telling you, everything is going to come down to our seven games with Toronto.” — Tigers Manager Sparky Anderson, Sept. 21, 1987

Entering the 1987 season, little was expected of the Detroit Tigers. Just three seasons removed from a wire-to-wire championship season, the Tigers were considered mere also-rans in a division filled with potent lineups, solid pitching and the defending League Champions, the Red Sox.

Adding to an already challenging divisional landscape, the Tigers faced life without their All Star catcher and cleanup hitter, Lance Parrish. The Big Wheel rejected the Tigers’ two-year, $2.4 million contract offer and instead signed a one-year $800,000 deal with the Philadelphia Phillies.

That’s why in the first weeks of the 1987 season the story in baseball was not the Detroit Tigers. Hardly. The Milwaukee Brewers’ 13-0 start captivated the baseball world. After 13 games the Tigers had a less-imposing 6-7 record. Twenty games into the season Milwaukee had stormed to 18-2, four games ahead of New York, followed by Toronto (12-8), Baltimore (9-11), Detroit (8-12) and Cleveland (6-14).

Continue reading “October Surprise: Tigers and Jays Battle for ’87 Division Title” →