Detroit – Manager Ron Gardenhire isn’t trying to spit in anybody’s snow cone. He’s enjoying this run as much as much as anyone. Carpe Diem, and all that.
But four decades of professional baseball conditions a person not to live too high in the good times or too low in the bad times. To borrow a phrase from Tigers’ starter Matthew Boyd – the goal is to attack each day, each pitch, each game as they come and move forward.
“It’s good,” Gardenhire said of the club’s five-game winning streak and 7-2 stretch that’s put them back at .500. “Especially playing really good teams, like we did. But we did what you’re supposed to do. You’re supposed to win at home. We didn’t do that very well last year.
“We’ve had a nice little run, and we had a bad run before it. If we can stay away from those bad runs and be more consistent, we’re pretty fun to watch.”
The Tigers, as the calendar flips to September, face a stretch of 14 games in 13 days, all but two on the road, at Milwaukee, Minnesota, St. Louis and Chicago (White Sox).
So, before we buckle up for this next rough patch of the schedule, let’s bask just a little while longer in the glow of this hot streak.
Five things that have helped the Tigers reverse course after losing nine straight:
Bullpen beasts
It’s been a productive confluence of talent and data. Gardenhire and pitching coach Rick Anderson have been more trusting and reliant than ever on the matchup data compiled by the Tigers’ beefed-up analytics department, and they’ve got four diverse late-inning options to use on most nights.
“We have a lot of information and it tells us which pitcher would be best for any given situation,” Gardenhire said. “And we have a group of pitchers down there that we trust. … We have a pretty good bullpen situation right now where we can use a lot of different people to match up with a lot of teams’ offenses.
“That’s been the fun part of this. We’ve been able to match up pretty good.”
In the seven Tigers wins in the last three series, the bullpen has worked 30 innings and allowed seven runs – three of those in a hairy non-save ninth inning situation against the Cubs by Buck Farmer and three by deposed closer Joe Jimenez in a similar blowout appearance in Cleveland.
►Jose Cisnero: Last nine games, 9.1 innings, no runs, one hit, 11-3 strikeouts-walks and an .036 opponent batting average.
►Bryan Garcia: Last 11 games, 9.2 innings, one earned run, .216 opponent average.
►Gregory Soto: Last six games, 6 innings, no runs, two hits, two saves, 6-2 strikeouts-walks, .105 opponent average.
►Farmer: Last five games, 5 innings, four runs, 5-0 strikeout-walks.
Just as significant, though, has been the work of the long relievers, specifically lefties Daniel Norris and Tyler Alexader.
►Norris: Five games, 13.1 innings, two runs, 12-1 strikeouts-walks, .167 opponent average.
►Alexander: Four games, 12.2 innings, 5 runs, 10-1 strikeouts-walks, .260 opponent average.
And it gets deeper and more versatile if Jimenez gets back to form, which he took a step toward on Sunday, striking out Nelson Cruz in a big situation.
Milestone Miggy
On Aug. 22, Miguel Cabrera was hitting .176 with an OPS of .588. He hit balls hard for a couple of weeks with nothing to show and then for a stretch stopped hitting the ball hard. That’s when hitting coach Joe Vavra, more than anything else, gently reminded Cabrera of who he is.
“We just tried to get him back to doing what he’s been good at all through his career,” Vavra said. “That’s what he needs to stay with.”
Cabrera recently has gotten his lower body more in sync with his upper body in his swing. He hasn’t been trying to start his swing as early to catch up with fastballs, which was leaving him vulnerable to off-speed and breaking balls sweeping outside the strike zone.
The result: Over the last seven games he’s hitting .480 with a 1.173 OPS, with a double, home run and nine RBIs. He raised his average in a week to .241 and his OPS to .716. All the while he keeps climbing the all-time charts – now in the top 50 in hits, home runs and RBIs.
“It’s an honor for me to play with him,” said Jonathan Schoop. “He’s the best player I’ve ever played with so far. It’s just an honor for me to be here and see all the records he’s going to break. But he just wants to win and to help us get into the playoffs.”
Picking up the slack
When slugging first baseman C.J. Cron went down with a knee injury, it was fair to wonder who would fill the power void. Stepping up in this winning stretch have been first baseman Jeimer Candelario and the man Gardenhire calls Schoopy.
“This guy is a force,” Gardenhire said of second baseman Schoop. “He’s a big guy who can hit a ball a long way. He means a lot to everybody in the clubhouse. He’s very quiet but he’s a leader. Just a great get by our ballclub. We love him here. He produces.”
That is fact. His eight home runs lead the club and his 19 RBIs are second to Cabrera’s 20. His .303 batting average and 131 OPS-plus also lead the club.
Candelario is right behind him at .299 and 130. After starting the season 0-for-17, Candelario slashed .356/.389/.622 with a 1.012 OPS in August. He also produced six doubles, two triples, four home runs and 15 RBIs.
“I feel very proud about what Candelario has done,” said general manager Al Avila, who traded away his son Alex and closer Justin Wilson to the Cubs for Candelario and Isaac Paredes. “He struggled but he kept battling and grinding and now he’s enjoying a good season.
“He’s become the player we all thought he was going to be.”
Reyes of light
He doesn’t draw walks. He doesn’t hit for power. He doesn’t look very polished in the outfield.
Whatever.
All Victor Reyes does, seemingly, is produce – at the plate and at all three outfield spots.
“He’s a player,” Gardenhire said. “That’s why we try to keep him in the lineup every day. If he’s not hitting, he makes a great play in the outfield. He never lets one affect the other.”
In the last 22 games he’s slashed .296/.329/.444 and scored 13 runs. He’s also a plus-3 in defensive runs saved. He made two highlight-reel catches on Saturday, stealing a home run from Miguel Sano and a single from Max Kepler in a 4-2 win.
The Tigers are 6-2 since he moved into the leadoff spot and he’s been on base 13 times in those games and scored six runs.
Fine like Romine
So much of what catcher Austin Romine provides can’t be quantified. The way he calls a game. The no-nonsense impact he’s had on a mostly young pitching staff – kind of like a gruff but well-meaning big brother. The infectiousness of his compete level.
He’s been impactful, to say the least. But there are some quantifiable things he’s brought to the table, too.
►He’s hitting .291 overall with 14 RBIs
►In wins, he’s hitting .342 with a .500 slugging percentage and 10 RBIs
►With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting .400 with a .903 OPS
►With two outs and runners in scoring position, he’s hitting .286.
Useful.
On deck: Brewers
Series: Two-game series at Miller Park
First pitch: Tuesday-Wednesday – 7:40 p.m.
TV/radio: Tuesday-Wednesday – FSD, 97.1
Probables: Tuesday – RHP Michael Fulmer (0-0, 8.79) vs. RHP Adrian Houser (1-3, 4.36); Wednesday – RHP Spencer Turnbull (3-2, 2,97) vs. TBA.
Fulmer, Tigers: Before the injuries, Fulmer possessed one of the heaviest and most effective two-seam fastballs in the game. As he builds himself back to form, this pitch hasn’t come back for him yet. Opponents are hitting .421 off it.
Houser, Brewers: He’s a pitch-to-contact guy, who relies on moving his 93-94 mph fastball up (four-seam) and down (sinker) in the zone. The exit velocity on balls in play against him is among the softest in baseball (86 mph). Opponents are hitting just .221 against his sinker.
Twitter @cmccosky