Over the past three weeks, the wheels have not just fallen off for the Detroit Tigers. The axles broke, the transmission dropped, the windshield has shattered, the door handles rusted off, and the windows won't roll down. It has been just bad. I do not have information on what or why it has happened, it just seems that all teams go through funks during the season, but with the Tigers' hot start to the season it seems to be under a larger microscope. I am currently watching them play the Royals (who have been the best team in the game over the past month [I think anyway] and they have shown it so far). They are being outplayed, outhit, and outpitched by the Royals so far this series and for the first time since July 2013, a team not named Detroit Tigers is in first place (Kansas City Royals have a half game lead). So what has happened?
All the superstitious fans point to the Zubaz craze that overcame Detroit earlier this year. After finishing a sweep of the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, they left the park in full Zubaz gear. Everyone was hyped, they got a little bit of revenge for last year's ALCS and everything was hitting on all cylinders. Then they got swept out of Cleveland. CLEVELAND! At the time, I thought that it was actually a good thing because it would show them a little humility, but it has gone downhill since then. Since their sweep of Boston (18 May), the Tigers have gone 9-19. They have given up double digits runs six times, been shutout three times, and have lost five of the series that they have played. Over the past month, it has been like watching the Tigers in the 2006 World Series.
During this stretch of horrible play, the main culprits appear to be the pitching staff. Not only the bullpen, which was suspect at the beginning of the season, but the starters as well. The Royals put a hurting on the top two pitchers of the Tigers (Verlander and Scherzer) this series, but it hasn't been just this series. The two pitchers that are suppose to strike fear into the opposition were both chased before the end of the sixth inning over the last two games. In the games that I have been able to watch, the starters have struggled. High pitch counts, not hitting their marks over the plate, and a general air of defeat hangs over the mound even at the beginning of the game. Over the past month, it has been like watching the Tigers in the 2012 World Series.
All the blame cannot just be focused on the pitching. The batters have not been doing their part either. They have flat out disappeared. When a team goes on a winning streak, it always seems like the batters lead the charge. From top to bottom, the hitters all click at the plate. Whether it is deep home runs, or plain ol' base hits, winning streaks rely on the hitters. The Tigers do not have that right now. One or two batters could be swinging hot bats, but if you don't have the other seven or eight guys doing the same thing, it will amount to nothing. Over the past month, it has been like watching the Tigers in the 2013 ALCS.
I have no rational answer to the struggles the Tigers are dealing with right now. I want to burn all the Zubaz clothing right now. That's where I'm at. It's one thing to have a few bad breaks here and there in a game or two, that is part of baseball. But when you see bad breaks every other game for the duration of a month, there are no answers for it. Someone in the organization must have broken a mirror while walking under a ladder and kicking a black cat all at the same time for this month of baseball. As a fan, I will grin and bear it because I remember 2003. I remember what it is like to have a real horrible team. This is just one bad month.
40/120
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