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Category Archives: MLB
The story of Al Kaline’s American League batting championship in 1955 at age 18
After his first 532 at-bats in the major leagues, 20-year-old Al Kaline had a career .274 batting average with five home runs and 45 RBIs. Those are pre-1955 numbers. That season changed everything for Kaline, and he wasted no time … Continue reading
Al Kaline was a batting champion, a World Series champion, a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer – and he was Mr. Tiger
Although Al Kaline is not considered the greatest Tigers player of all-time – that would be Ty Cobb – he is the unquestioned Mr. Tiger. Kaline had a greatness of his own on the field, and it was solidified when … Continue reading
Al Kaline’s legacy will last forever in Detroit
The news of Al Kaline’s death felt like an electric shock. He was my youth. By the time I started following the Tigers, Kaline was an established star. He had won the American League batting championship in 1955, the year … Continue reading
Jarrod Patterson, who died earlier in March, had a few highlights in short time with the Tigers
It is strange how baseball works sometimes. In his ninth season of professional baseball, Jarrod Patterson had to accept a demotion to put himself in a position for the biggest promotion of his career. Prior to the 2001 season, Patterson … Continue reading
Posted in Detroit Tigers, MLB, Tale of the Tigers, Uncategorized
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Deacon McGuire spent three of his 26 major-league seasons with the Tigers, but he spent his later years in Albion and is buried there
Across from the Kalamazoo River in Riverside Cemetery in Albion, a headstone features two baseball bats and a baseball. It is the resting place of one of the most prominent catchers around the turn of the century – the 20th … Continue reading
Posted in Detroit Tigers, MLB, Tale of the Tigers
Tagged @deaconmcguire @detroittigers
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Kirk Gibson’s home run in Game 5 of the 1984 World Series leads the list of top 10 iconic home runs of all time for the Detroit Tigers
Even in this day of home runs coming at a more frequent rate, when one comes at the right time, it can be shocking and electrifying to fans of the hitter’s team and a dagger to the heart for fans … Continue reading
A throwback to 1999 when Tigers legend Al Kaline was the subject of a question-and-answer interview
When I worked at The Jackson Citizen Patriot, I wrote a column called 2 ½ minutes. That’s how long it normally took to read it. The column was a question-and-answer format with a topical sports personality. Just days before the … Continue reading
Posted in Chip's Shots, Detroit Tigers, MLB, Tale of the Tigers
Tagged @alkaline @detroittigers
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Second baseman Charlie Gehringer leads mythical all-time Tigers team made up of players born in Michigan
In the 120-year history of the Detroit Tigers in the major leagues, 104 of the 1,701 players were born in Michigan. So, what would an all-time Tigers team made up of players born in Michigan look like? It was a … Continue reading
Curtis Granderson might have been a better player than Lou Brock, but Granderson doesn’t deserve the Hall of Fame
A few months ago, a baseball fan on Facebook complained that the stat, WAR, was flawed because it could not tell the difference between Lou Brock and Curtis Granderson. I believe that supports WAR as a legitimate statistic. Granderson, who … Continue reading
Posted in Detroit Tigers, MLB, Uncategorized
Tagged @curtisgranderson @mlb @loubrock
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Cesar Gutierrez and his .218 batting average went 7-for-7 on a Sunday afternoon in Cleveland to become a part of Tigers lore
There were many home-run heroes for the Tigers in their 9-8 victory over the Cleveland Indians in the second game of a doubleheader on June 21, 1970, at Cleveland Stadium. Jim Northrup hit two home runs and had five RBIs. … Continue reading
Posted in Detroit Tigers, MLB, Tale of the Tigers
Tagged @detroittigers @cesargutierrez
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CHIP'S SHOTS 