Cleveland Indians @ Bare Baseball - Baseball MLB Blog

Bonderman, Tigers falter at Jake

Thanks to the Tigers offense, those days when the Tigers were losing by 1-0 and 2-1 scores seem like an eternity ago. Unfortunately, so do Tigers quality starts lately.
Though the Tigers left Fenway Park on Sunday night, the team's recent run of slugfests continued. A six-run Indians first inning off Jeremy Bonderman nullified Dmitri Young's grand slam in the top of the inning, setting the tone for a 10-8 Detroit loss at Jacobs Field and setting the mood for manager Alan Trammell after the game.
"I don't have a whole lot of answers tonight," Trammell said. "I have to do some thinking."
Trammell was already worried about the state of his bullpen entering this three-game series, suggesting he could need to make a move if he had to use his bullpen heavily again on Monday. Hard as he tried not to do that, he had to lift Bonderman in the fourth inning, setting in motion a scenario that could require finding relief for overtaxed relievers.
Even if Trammell calls up a reliever from the Minor Leagues, however, that doesn't solve the question of whether the starters' recent struggles are more of a long-term concern. In the short term, they're certainly weighing on Trammell's mind. Detroit's starting pitchers have allowed 43 earned runs on 55 hits in 24 1/3 innings over the club's last six games.
"We have a number of games left on this road trip," Trammell said. "We need to stop this. We can't keep getting pounded. We just can't take that."
Young's second grand slam in three days -- a line drive shot that somehow skimmed the top of the right-field fence in front of the Tigers bullpen -- and Carlos Pena's seventh home run in less than two weeks powered a five-run Tigers first inning.
Young's grand slam on Saturday helped the Tigers overcome a 6-0 deficit and pull out a 12-8 victory. His latest slam pulled Detroit ahead early before Cleveland answered.
Bonderman (14-11) left his previous start early when a line drive hit his right wrist. On Monday, he was simply hit. The Indians' first three hitters reached base safely and scored, as Coco Crisp and Jhonny Peralta belted back-to-back RBI doubles.
Bonderman regrouped to retire Travis Hafner -- with help from Pena at first base -- and Victor Martinez before an Omar Infante error extended the inning for three more runs. Nearly every ball hit in that inning was hit hard.
"Really, the first inning was huge, no question about it," Trammell said. "When you score five runs in the first inning and give up six, that's not what you're looking for."
Craig Monroe's two-run single put the Tigers back in front in the top of the third, and Bonderman seemingly settled into a rhythm. But back-to-back singles from Aaron Boone and Casey Blake plus a walk to Grady Sizemore loaded the bases with none out in the fourth. Crisp tied the game with a sacrifice fly before Peralta's hard bouncer hopped off Brandon Inge's glove and into left field, driving in another run and chasing Bonderman from the game.
Bonderman insisted he wasn't feeling any effects from the wrist injury last start, and Trammell believes him. His struggles date back before that hit. He gave up six runs on nine hits in three innings that night, and nine hits over 6 1/3 innings against the Red Sox before that. He's worked well with runners in scoring position much of the season, but not on Monday.
Bonderman did not fall behind hitters on Monday so much as he struggled to finish them off. Eight times, he put Cleveland batters in 0-2 counts. All eight times, they reached base safely, including all three at-bats that loaded the bases in the fourth.
"In that last inning, I kept throwing breaking balls and those guys hit them," Bonderman said. "I thought I threw good breaking balls down, maybe too good with two strikes."
Asked if he might be overthrowing the ball, Bonderman didn't think so.
"I wasn't trying to throw 100 mph," he said. "I wasn't trying to blow it by guys. I was trying to make guys hit the ball and put it in play."
Hafner's sacrifice fly greeting Vic Darensbourg finished Bonderman's line with nine runs allowed, five of them earned, in 3 1/3 innings. Yet what could've been a long night remained close thanks to the overworked bullpen, which combined to allow one more run on three hits in 4 2/3 innings.
The Tigers' offensive threats, meanwhile, continued. Young struck again with an RBI double to the right-center field wall in the fifth inning, pulling the Tigers back to within a run. Detroit put two more runners on in the fifth and sixth before Cleveland relievers stranded them.
Monroe just missed what would've been game-tying two-run homer on an opposite-field shot that died at the warning track in right field. Indians closer Bob Wickman stranded runners at first and second in the ninth inning to finish off his 35th save.
The Tigers have totaled 31 runs over their last four games and have scored at least eight runs in five of their last 10 games. They've lost two of those. But considering what the pitching staff dealt with in May while the Tigers struggled to hit, Inge isn't going to sit around with his arms folded.
"The way I think everyone on this team looks at it," he said, "[is that] no matter what the pitching is doing or what the hitting is doing, the pitchers and hitters know that we're giving 100 percent each way. Therefore, if they go out and give up some runs, we feel like it's our responsibility as hitters to pick them up, and vice versa. I'm not frustrated one bit. I thought we could've won that game, even with giving up runs."

Source: http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/

posted by David @ 2:06 AM