Busy weekend in Tiger Town

Crazy game yesterday, as the Tigers dusted off the Angels, splitting the 4-game series.

Verlander dueled with fellow Cy Young-hopeful, Jered Weaver. Both pitchers excelled, though Weaver lost his cool in the 7th. Tension had been brewing since Magglio hit a 2-run shot in the 3rd. Weaver thought Maggs spent too much time admiring his home run, and he jawed at both Maggs and Cabrera, the next batter. (Maggs, by the way, claimed he was waiting to see if the ball was going to curve foul.)

When Guillen hit a solo homer off Weaver in the 7th, Guillen... well... did this:

When Weaver threw at Avila's head in the next at-bat, the ump sent him off.

But this was just one of many sub-plots. Through it all, Verlander was pitching a no-hitter! He carried the no-hitter into the 8th. Erick Aybar led off the inning with an attempted bunt. Verlander fielded the bunt but sent his throw wide of first. Error. Aybar later was caught in a run-down between 3rd and home. He scored after Kelly muffed his throw home. Then the Angels officially broke up the no-hit bid with a single with 2-outs in the 8th.

Papa Grande pitched a scoreless 9th to seal the win.

With the drama, sub-plots, and - in general - awesome pitching, this was perhaps the best game of the year. On these rare-occasions the Tigers look like legitimate playoff contenders. It's no coincidence that these "rare-occasions" usually happen every five games when a certain ace is on the mound. The Tigers show no such excellence otherwise. I've seen this team enough to know that they are no true contender for the World Series.

I've got no trouble with their bats. In fact, it may be their strongest offense this decade. They're 4th in the AL in team batting average. 5th in runs. My concern, of course, is with the pitching and defense. Outside of Verlander, they have no consistent starter, and the bullpen is, in a word, dreadful. If the starters don't carry the game through the 8th inning, the other teams must salivate at the prospect of facing David Purcey (7.23 ERA, 2.20 WHIP (!!!)), Lester Oliveros (5.63 ERA, 1.5 WHIP), Phil Coke (4.85 ERA, 1.5 WHIP), and Daniel Schlereth (4.50 ERA, 1.5 WHIP).

Various other pitchers took their turn in this bullpen merry-go-round: Brayan Villareal (6.75 ERA, 1.94 WHIP), Enrique Gonzales (10.00 ERA, 2.11 WHIP), Chance Ruffin (4.91 ERA, 1.36 WHIP), Robbie Weinhardt (10.80 ERA, 2.4 WHIP). They've got no answers. Defensively, the Tigers are 4th in the AL in errors-committed. Austin Jackson patrols center field with grace and poise. Yet, no other Tiger fielder will contend for a Gold Glove. In fact, they struggle for mediocrity.

This team has holes. Lots of them. This is why I was hoping they'd be sellers at the trade deadline. I know it goes against common sense to be a seller when you're in first place. But this is a very tenuous first place. Currently, the Tigers are 57-51. Their run-differential is -6. For comparison sake, the Red Sox are a +143. The Rangers are +90. The 4th place Blue Jays are a +17!

All month long, we've heard how pitching is at a premium. If the Tigers wanted another starter, they'd have to give up a ton. It's a sellers market. So why can't the Tigers fleece somebody looking for pitching help? I have no doubt Porcello or Scherzer would command a steep price. Instead, Dombrowski gave up a few more young players: Charlie Furbush, Casper Wells, and minor-leaguer Francisco Martinez.

I understand shipping out Furbush and Wells. Neither had a firm spot on the roster. Furbush didn't fit the Dombrowski mold of power-arm. Wells, despite solid defense, didn't heat like last season. I always liked his game, and he may prove to be a competent .280 hitter with power. Yet, he didn't have a spot with Boesch and Dirks ahead in the pecking order. And Wells had more market value than a guy like Raburn. The real killer, though, is third-baseman, Francisco Martinez. The Tigers don't have many decent field players in the minors. Martinez was groomed to take over 3rd next season with Inge likely out of the picture. Martinez spent this season in AA Erie, as a young 20 year old. Through 90 games, he hit .282, with 7 HR and 46 RBI. Those aren't eye-popping numbers, but they're decent for a 20 year old. By contrast, when Boesch was at Erie, he hit .275 with 28 HR and 93 RBI. But Boesch was 24 years old. It's a bit disappointing that the Tigers had to part with any competent field player.

In return, the Tigers received starter Doug Fister and reliever David Pauley. To be fair, they both may significantly help this team. Fister, despite a dreadful 3-12 record, sports a sterling 3.33 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. In his 3 year career, Fister has a 3.81 ERA. Not too shabby. As a Mariner, though, he's not pitching in pressure-packed games. The numbers may change dramatically as he enters this pennant race. Perhaps I'm just gun-shy after Jarrod Washburn. He came to Detroit from Seattle in 2009. After a brilliant 1st half with a 2.64 ERA, Washburn got lit as a Tiger, going 1-3 with a 7.33 ERA. He hasn't pitched since.

As for David Pauley, he may be the unheralded key. Out of Seattle's bullpen, Pauley has a 2.15 ERA and superb 0.99 WHIP. He's having a great season and will step in and be Detroit's 7th inning man-of-choice. When Alburquerque recovers from a short injury spell, the Tiger bullpen may improve significantly.

Still, this is contingent on the new Seattle men pitching according to form. Their new uniform may bring out the worst in them. Let's hope these guys are more Doyle Alexander and less Jarrod Washburn.