Not too bad for a guy with a bum elbow.  Mike Maroth had his start bumped earlier in the week and it looks like the extra rest did him some good.  Maroth threw 99 pitches and went seven shutout innings.  He walked two, gave up three hits and he struck out five.  The Indians threatened a couple of times on him with runners on second with less then two outs, but both times Mike Maroth was able to get out of the jams.

Joel Zumaya got into trouble in the eighth, but he too was able to get out of the inning unscathed.  He struck Jason Michaels out with a high 99 mph fastball to end the inning.  Fernando Rodney threw a perfect ninth and to finish the shutout and he earned his third save of the season.

Probably the most disappointing part of the game was the bottom of the eighth.  The Tigers got runners on first and third with one out, and Magglio Ordonez, the $15 million man (or is it $18 million, it’s hard to remember even though the numbers are so obscene) struck out.  Craig Monroe followed that up with a strikeout to end the inning and the Tigers didn’t get any insurance.  I can live with Monroe not being clutch, but this is what we’re paying Ordonez to do and he didn’t come through.

The only run of the game came from a Chris Shelton homerun.  It was his eighth of the season, and he continues to lead the league.  You figure at this point, even if he calms down and hits at a pace most people thought (.280/25 homeruns) for the rest of the season, he could still easily hit .300 and be the first player since Bobby Higginson in 2000 to hit 30 homeruns for the Tigers.

The Tigers finish their series against the Indians tomorrow afternoon before heading out west.  It’ll be the first game I’ll be attending this season and I’m looking forward to it.

Permalink | Posted in 2006 Tigers