8702160535
DETROIT FREE PRESS
871001
Thursday, October 01, 1987
METRO FINAL CHASER
1E
MITCH ALBOM
SEE ALSO METRO FINAL EDITION 1E
Copyright (c) 1987, Detroit Free Press
TIGERS PERFORMING LIKE CHEAP IMITATION OF CHAMPS
Pretty soon, I expect to find the AL East title selling at a garage sale
for $1.39.
Does anybody want this thing? Detroit loses. Toronto loses. Detroit wins.
Toronto loses. Detroit loses. Toronto loses. Are we sure this is the
homestretch? Geez. When the going gets tough, the tough wait for the weekend.
Let's be honest here. No excuses. The Tigers can talk all they want about
fatigue, off-nights, a hot opposing pitcher; if you want to win a pennant,
you overcome those things. And so far this week -- this critical, final week
-- they've gone flat twice in three tries against a team that is 28 games
behind them.
What was the score last night? Baltimore 7, Detroit 3? Ugh. Never mind that
the Blue Jays also lost, and the Tigers remain just 1 1/2 games back. That's
like a boxer who returns to his corner, bleeding from both eyes, and says:
"I think I'm tiring him out."
No excuses. If the Tigers ultimately win this AL East title, it will be
largely back door, an unexpected collapse by Toronto. And if they lose it?
Well, you can find shreds of the white flag right here, Tiger Stadium, on this
playground-turned- battleground by these (gulp) Batlimore Orioles.
Ooh, it hurts to say that.
Thanks to the Brewers
Before Monday's game, Sparky Anderson was musing on the ultimate AL east
winner. With pipe in mouth, he leaned back and said: "It's very simple. It's
not which team puts men on base. It's the one who brings them in."
How true. And on Wednesday, it was the Orioles who listened to Sparky
better than his own team. The O's brought six of their seven runners in on
home runs. Earl Weaver would have loved it.
And the Tigers? They rubbed out base runner after base runner with double
plays -- in the second, third and fifth innings. In the sixth, Kirk Gibson
had two men on, one man out. He grounded into a fielder's choice. Alan
Trammell followed. He flied to left.
Now before you say, "Hey, this is baseball. It happens," let us say, "Hey.
This is Baltimore. It's not supposed to happen." Are these the sixth-place
Orioles? The same Orioles whom the Blue Jays defeated six straight times this
month, by an average score of, what? Eighty-five to zero?
Tigers fans thought they'd seen the worst of it on Monday. After a
heart-stopping series in Toronto, the Tigers came home dead. Jack Morris,
their ace, struggled and allowed three runs. And the Detroit batters made a
guy named John Habyan look like Roger Clemens. A 3-0 shutout? Detroit's first
shutout in a month and a half? That hurt. You could see it in the Tigers
clubhouse afterwards. Yet they got a reprieve; Toronto lost -- not only
Monday but Tuesday as well.
"We've learned our lesson," the Tigers seemed to say Tuesday night, after a
10-1 win. "We won't bite the hand that feeds us again."
No. This time they chomped it off. How much more do we want from the
Milwaukee Brewers? A sweep of the Jays? They should get a key to the city from
Coleman Young. "If we win this thing, maybe we should vote them a share,"
Anderson said with a grim chuckle.
If they win it.
The biggest letdown
And that is the sad part. Sure, the title is still up for grabs. But
taking three games from Toronto is not what I would call an ice skate. How
much nicer a one-game lead come Friday -- which could have been achieved had
the Tigers swept the O's. "Forget that now," Bill Madlock said. "We have to
play another game against them."
Remember when that was considered a plus?
A word in Detroit's defense. Wednesday was the game they worried about --
the game started by Dan Petry. You can understand why he allowed five runs in
2 1/3 innings. For whatever reason, Petry, a super guy, can no longer pitch
within 10 minutes of the national anthem. From the bullpen he did fine. Last
night, as a starter, he got bombed. And -- as on Monday -- the Tigers' bats
were ice picks. Who did they lose to? Jose Mesa? Come on. The guy didn't have
a win all season. The guy's been in the majors three weeks. Hadn't won a
game. His ERA was a football score.
Look. It's very simple. These are the Orioles. They are out of it. The
Tigers, who are in it, should have taken at least three of four. Now the best
they can hope for is a split. "If we can't beat them, we don't deserve to be
here," Chet Lemon said.
These are not easy words to write. Almost everyone in Detroit --
journalists included -- would like to see the Tigers complete this most
unlikely season with a division title. It would be a terrific story, one of
guts, struggle, hole-plugging. But good stories do not guarantee happy
endings. Sometimes they just wind up good stories.
"Any suggestions?" Sparky was asked.
"I suggest we start winning," he said.
Well put.
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