Recal day for the Tigs

It’s an off day in Rock City.  A desperately needed off day.  The guys are grouchy and embarassed.  The coaching staff is dumbfounded.  The fans are restless.  It’s time to take a deep breath.  You sure can’t win a pennant in April.  Just ask your skipper.

To the media’s constant reminders that no team has ever started a season 0-6 and won a World Series, Jimmy Leyland has a simple response.

“I mean, we’re sitting here talking about winning the World Series. We haven’t even won a game.”

And for all the on-paper wins the Tigers have accrued this offseason, none of them have manifested in the game-day performance of the most highly touted lineup in Detroit in perhaps 40 years.  Partly due to lack of timely hitting, partly due to mental mistakes, and partly due to a group of all-stars who are just learning the intricacies of playing together.

Even the despised manager of the black and grey team from Chicago agrees.

“This is a great team. I don’t care what kind of panic mode their fans are in,” said White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen. “There’s just too much talent on that club.”

Which is exactly why this off day is what they need.

One doesn’t have to look far to find promise in this week’s road trip.  Tuesday’s starter Kenny Rogers (going against Dice-K) has a career 11-7 record against the BoSox and looked as sharp as any starter so far this year in his first outing — 2 runs on 5 hits in 6 strong innings.

This team has also posted winning records on the road each of the past 2 seasons, with the 2006 AL Champion team winning more games away from Comerica than at home.

So it’s about time to take a breather, get Jimmy a new pack of smokes, rub Jonesy’s back, and for the love of God find Brandon Inge a home in the lineup… we’re hitting the road, and not coming back til we’ve got a few W’s.

[MLB.com]