5/16 6:40 Tigers @ Rays

[Tigeraholic1]

Tropicana Field - St. Petersburg, FL

TV: Ballysports Detroit Radio: WXYT

RHP Corey Kluber vs RHP Alex Faedo

 

 

[theroundsquare]

I've always found this 6:40 start time odd for the Rays.  They play in St. Pete, away from much of the population in Tampa.  Those folks have to travel a causeway to cross Tampa Bay to get to St. Pete and get to the game, during or on the heels of rush hour.  I've always theorized that this is one of the sources for the Rays' attendance problems.

[Dave Christian]

Do the Tigers generally play well in Florida?

I know that the Green Bay Packers don't!

[kdog]

Quote

“Look at the ballpark we play in,” Grossman said last week. “There’s been multiple balls. … It’s a different game when you play in this park in terms of everywhere else. You just have to remind yourself that.”

The fact players across the league are complaining about a baseball they believe is not traveling as far does not help the psychology behind slumping Tigers hitters.

“It’s easy to get caught up in that stuff, get caught up in the baseballs and that stuff,” Austin Meadows said. “But that’s just negative energy. I try to continue to be positive. We know as the summer goes along, the ball will fly a little more here. The biggest thing is to not focus on power numbers right now. Focus on having good at-bats. The homers will come.”

But hitting is hard enough as it is, and regardless of the ball or the park, the Tigers have struggled in part because they’re not putting enough balls in the air to do serious damage. The Tigers have a 47.8 percent ground-ball rate in May, the third-highest percentage in MLB. Javier Báez, arguably the most powerful hitter on the team, has a career-high ground-ball rate of 64.8 percent and seems to be extending his arms and rolling over an inordinate amount of pitches.

 

[CMRivdogs]

 

[chasfh]

I’m going to be at the game tonight. This will be the 22nd different ballpark I have seen the Tigers play. 

[chasfh]

The view from the hotel:

[romad1]

14 minutes ago, chasfh said:

The view from the hotel:

Nice Area.  Except it actually is if you are on the water there.   Very nice harbor in St. Pete. 

[RandyMarsh]

Hopefully Chas will bring us some good luck!

[chasfh]

4 minutes ago, RandyMarsh said:

Hopefully Chas will bring us some good luck!

Well, with Austin Meadows going to the IL while we were en route, I’m not off to a very good start! 😁

[casimir]

Just now, chasfh said:

Well, with Austin Meadows going to the IL while we were en route, I’m not off to a very good start! 😁

Add in the full moon and Monday the 16th (which comes after Friday the 13th).... ugh.....  You've got a lot to overcome tonight.

[mtutiger]

Oh, The Trop..... 

Not the best baseball stadium.... but still way better than the old Homerdome was up in Minneapolis!

[casimir]

The Dos Castros lineup tonight.  I'm sure @chasfh will be pleased.

[chasfh]

1 minute ago, casimir said:

The Dos Castros lineup tonight.  I'm sure @chasfh will be pleased.

If only Willi were playing short and Haase were in left, I could basically party like it’s 2021. 

[chasfh]

5 minutes ago, mtutiger said:

Oh, The Trop..... 

Not the best baseball stadium.... but still way better than the old Homerdome was up in Minneapolis!

We were having dinner with our next door neighbor a couple of weeks ago and her folks were in town. We told them about our trip, including tonight’s game, and our friend’s dad says he loves the Trop. It’s one of his favorite stadiums because it’s nice and clean and air conditioned.

He is 80. 

[mtutiger]

5 minutes ago, casimir said:

The Dos Castros lineup tonight.  I'm sure @chasfh will be pleased.

Dos Castros while playing in Florida.... bold move AJ!

[mtutiger]

1 minute ago, chasfh said:

We were having dinner with our next door neighbor a couple of weeks ago and her folks were in town. We told them about our trip, including tonight’s game, and our friend’s dad says he loves the Trop. It’s one of his favorite stadiums because it’s nice and clean and air conditioned.

He is 80. 

I went a few times when I was younger and had family living in the area.... it gets more hell than it deserves (the sightlines were good, it is designed for baseball unlike other multi-purpose domes were, etc.), but yeah, it's a bit bland design wise (unless you like concrete lol)

 

[mtutiger]

Haven't watched much Rays this year, did not realize that guys like Keirmaier and Arozarena have been off to slow starts

[gehringer_2]

19 minutes ago, mtutiger said:

Haven't watched much Rays this year, did not realize that guys like Keirmaier and Arozarena have been off to slow starts

No, Rays haven't hit a ton, but good starts from McClanahan and Rasmussen.

[mtutiger]

I smell 3-4 with a homerun in our future.

[Motor City Sonics]

Alright............who gets injured tonight?  

[gehringer_2]

Rays are also 7 games over 500 with a -1 run differential. Tigers need to prove pythagoras is right about them.....

[Tigermojo]

1 hour ago, Motor City Sonics said:

Alright............who gets injured tonight?  

Paredes. Our luck is so bad it extends to former players. 

[Crazy Cat Gentleman]

I missed it—who's on the radio with Dan tonight?

[romad1]

1 minute ago, Crazy Cat Gentleman said:

I missed it—who's on the radio with Dan tonight?

I heard Alex Avila