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The Detroit Tigers have enjoyed a storied 121-year history, winning 11 American League pennants and four World Series championships.

Much of this success can be attributed to the iconic pitchers that have donned the “Olde English D” during their careers.

Guys like Hal Newhouser, Mickey Lolich, Jack Morris and Justin Verlander have demonstrated their mound excellence for fans of almost every generation since World War II and provided the foundation for many of the great Tiger teams.

In this article, we’ll look at the best Tiger hurlers of all time by using three specific criteria.

Most importantly, we’ll consider each candidate’s regular-season performance. Second, we’ll take into account each pitcher’s longevity. In other words, one-year wonders need not apply. Finally, we’ll assess how each pitcher has fared in the postseason, when the heat is on and the pressure to perform is at its greatest.

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Justin Verlander is in the midst of a wildly inconsistent year, especially by his lofty standards, but his game off the diamond is clearly not lacking. 

For the uninitiated, the Detroit Tigers right-hander is dating Kate Upton, the two-time Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover model, and during Monday’s game against the New York Yankees, he showed why: 

Using a free baseball to woo the ladies has been done before, but Verlander just took it to another level. 

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Poised to win the American League Central for the fourth consecutive year, the Detroit Tigers‘ fortunes this October will rest squarely on the right arm of one Justin Brooks Verlander. 

Admittedly, that’s a bold statement, especially when you consider Detroit’s $164 million roster includes the likes of 2012-13 MVP Miguel Cabrera, 2013 Cy Young winner Max Scherzer, 2013 A.L. ERA leader Anibal Sanchez, five-time All Star Victor Martinez and new arrival David Price, who happened to win the Cy Young in 2012.

But Verlander is the Tigers’ No. 1 starter. Their Big Dawg. Their hombre. Their bouncer. Their ace. And to win in October you need an ace.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, Verlander has done everything this season but pitch like an ace. In fact, his 4.66 ERA this season is more than a full run higher than any of the Tigers’ other starters, and his WHIP of 1.42 also ranks as the worst among his rotation mates. Those are definitely not results the Tigers’ front office envisioned when it gave Verlander a seven-year, $180 million extension last year in the hope he would be the horse the organization could ride to its first world championship since 1984.

It’s imperative Verlander rights the ship before the start of the playoffs for three reasons. First, the rest of the Tigers’ rotation does not eat enough innings to compensate for the team’s weak, overworked bullpen, which will leave Detroit vulnerable in the late innings against playoff-caliber offenses like the A’s, Angels and Orioles. 

Price is a horse, but in Scherzer and Sanchez, (we’ll assume No. 5 starter Rick Porcello will head to the bullpen in the playoffs), manager Brad Ausmus has two capable starters who’ve averaged only 6.1 innings per start since the beginning of last season. This means Ausmus will be relying on the bullpen to get eight highly leveraged outs in what will likely be razor-tight pitching duels where one misplaced fastball or hanging curve could have disastrous results.

Let’s look at Detroit’s bullpen for a second. Closer Joe Nathan has enjoyed a stellar career with 363 saves and a 2.88 ERA, but this year he’s already blown five saves in just 27 attempts, and his ERA is a bloated 5.45. 

Setup man Joba Chamberlain has had an excellent season, but he’s just two years removed from Tommy John surgery and on pace to nearly equal his personal best of 73 appearances in a season. 

Right-hander Al Albuquerque has also posted good numbers this season; However, his heavy workload may already be affecting his dynamite stuff. His FIP, per Baseball-Reference.com, of 4.32 suggests his current ERA of 3.26 will rise and his K/9 of 10.5 is his worst mark by almost two full strikeouts.   

Finally, left-handed specialists Ian Krol and Phil Coke’s aggregate ERA and WHIP of 4.77 and 1.60, respectively, have caused Ausmus to reach for the Rolaids on more than one occasion this season.

Recently acquired Joakim Soria is solid, but even after his arrival from Texas, Detroit’s bullpen will still be a little short. This is where Verlander comes in. Vintage Verlander—assume the 2012 model when he had a 2.64 ERA to go along with a 1.06 WHIP and averaged 7.1 innings per start—would give his manager the luxury of saving his beleaguered bullpen for other games when an eight-out effort will be necessary to achieve a win.

The second reason why Detroit needs Verlander to return to form is that he and his fellow starters must mask an inconsistent offense. Although Detroit’s 495 runs scored ranks fourth in the A.L., and its OPS of .765 paces the junior circuit, the Tigers’ offense has gone in the tank for extended stretches this season and has been particularly susceptible to power pitching. 

For example, during a 9-17 stretch from May 19 through June 18, Detroit faced hard throwers like Trevor Bauer, Yu Darvish, Sonny Gray, Scott Kazmir, Drew Hutchison and Chris Sale and hit only .258, or 20 points below their full-season average.

It will only get tougher in October, when the Tigers will probably have to face the likes of Gray (remember his eight shutout innings in Game 2 of the AL Division Series last year?), Kazmir, Jeff Samardzija, Felix Hernandez and Garrett Richards multiple times in a series. Detroit will need its starters to bring their “A” games for such matchups, meaning Verlander pitching like he has for most of this year simply won’t cut it.

The Tigers’ poor defense is the final reason why Verlander will need to regain his old magic once the leaves start to change color. Although second baseman Ian Kinsler and rookie shortstop Eugenio Suarez make a solid double play combination, Cabrera and Nick Castellanos offer below-average range at the corners. And Torii Hunter and J.D. Martinez, who has earned a starting job because of his hot bat, are among the A.L.’s worst outfielders according to Baseball-Reference.com’s UZR rankings.

Simply put, Detroit’s starters will need as many strikeouts as possible to negate the team’s porous defense. While Scherzer, with 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings, has actually improved his pace from last season, Sanchez’s and Verlander’s K/9 are down significantly. Verlander’s drop—from 8.9 in 2012 to a pedestrian 6.6 this year—is particularly alarming and will have to be improved.

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The All-Star break is supposed to be just that—a break. From all of the pressures and problems that come with the marathon Major League Baseball season. For the Detroit Tigers, though, that respite has been interrupted by somewhat troubling news concerning two of their biggest stars: two-time reigning AL MVP Miguel Cabrera and former MVP and Cy Young winner Justin Verlander.

The two 31-year-olds underwent offseason surgeries to address injured core muscles, and as Cabrera told Jorge L. Ortiz of USA Today on Monday, both are still dealing with lingering effects of the procedures and recoveries.

“There are times when I feel good, but there are always muscles that are tightening, muscles that are not functioning properly,” Cabrera said via Ortiz. “It’s part of the [recovery] process.”

After having surgery last October, Cabrera got off to a slow start by his usual elite standards, hitting .277/.320/.415 in April. He has since turned his 2014 around and is currently hitting .306/.364/.534. His 34 doubles lead the AL and his 75 RBI top both leagues, although it’s worth pointing out here that Cabrera’s .534 slugging percentage is his worst since 2004—his first full season.

As for Verlander, who has been struggling through the worst season of his 10-year career after undergoing his procedure more recently in January, Cabrera revealed this: “The same thing is happening to Verlander, but the difference is he pitches every five days, so you don’t see it as frequently.”

On one hand, the fact that Verlander isn’t quite right helps explain the poor season: His 4.88 ERA and 1.46 WHIP both represent career worsts. But even if it’s somehow merely a matter of time and rest before Verlander finds his form, the non-stop grind of a season isn’t exactly ideal for trying to recover from any injury, let alone a lingering one like this.

So the Tigers, contenders once again, now have to be wary of the health and performance of their two highest-paid players—both Cabrera and Verlander signed monster extensions worth $248 million and $180 million, respectively, the past two Marches—as the second half begins, as well as down the stretch and into October.

Detroit is seeking a playoff berth for the fourth consecutive year. Because of all that success, this clearly is a team not only built to win it all now but one that expects to—and needs to, after reaching the World Series in 2012, sandwiched around two trips to the ALCS.

With Cabrera and Verlander still battling through, fatigue is only bound to set in more as the season—and postseason—wears on. The Tigers went through just the same thing with Cabrera at the end of 2013.

“I think it has affected me quite a bit,” Cabrera said via Ortiz. “Like last year, when in the last month I wasn’t using my bottom half, my feet and the waist area.”

Remember: The Tigers experienced an injured, worn-down Cabrera last September when he batted .278 with an impossibly low .333 slugging percentage due to a mere two extra-base hits (one home run, one double). He managed the same number in October (both home runs) and clearly wasn’t healthy enough to produce like his usual self.

There are, however, a couple of silver linings in the wake of this news that Cabrera and Verlander are still ailing. The first is that there’s enough time before the trade deadline for general manager Dave Dombrowski, who’s always active this time of year as it is, to make a trade for some insurance and/or depth.

And second, at 53-38, the Tigers at the moment don’t appear to have any legitimate opponents for the AL Central division crown. Their 6.5 game lead on the Kansas City Royals is the largest among any first-place team.

Cabrera acknowledged as much to Ortiz:

But as [Verlander] and I talked about, we’re never going to offer any excuses for our performance. We always want to be out on the field and compete, and I think that’s the most important thing we can do, compete and try to get past this tough time. And the main thing is we’re in first place.

Plus, unless there are some dramatic standings shakeups, Detroit looks likely to match up with the winner of the AL East in the first round of the playoffs. That’s actually not a bad thing this year, considering how that division hasn’t been as strong as it usually is.

Still, the Tigers potentially could have one of the Oakland Athletics or Los Angeles Angels—the two AL West rivals who currently possess the top two records in the majors—awaiting them in the AL Championship Series.

While Detroit has taken out Oakland each of the past two postseasons, a third straight time might prove too much, especially with how good the A’s have been—and how much better they could be after acquiring starters Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel.

Not to mention, the Tigers now have to consider the possibility that one or both of Cabrera and Verlander might not be at their best or even healthy when they’re needed most.

Statistics are accurate through July 14 and come from MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com, except where otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11

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Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander took a no-decision in Friday night’s contest vs. the Houston Astros, leaving him without a win for the month of June and winless for the first time in any full calendar month of his MLB career, as reported by The Oakland Press’ Matthew Mowery on Twitter.

Verlander, 6-7 in 2014, went 0-3 in the month of June, losing his first three starts before failing to take a decision in his final two outings of the month. The Tigers went 1-4 in his June starts, and they have dropped seven of their last 10 games started by Verlander.

Verlander’s remarkable streak of earning at least one win in each full regular-season calendar month (April to September) began in April of his rookie season in 2006. His streak of consecutive months earning a win will end at 50, barring an unforeseen relief appearance and win this weekend.

The six-time All-Star has 143 career victories compared to only 84 losses for an impressive .630 winning percentage.

However, the 31-year-old right-hander has struggled this year, allowing more hits than he has innings pitched for the first time since his rookie season of 2006. His 4.72 ERA is the second-worst of his career, besting only the 4.84 mark posted in his 2008 campaign, when he went 11-17.

Verlander’s previous low of one win in a calendar month has occurred nine time, most recently in September 2013.

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Justin Verlander is healthy and on the path back to reclaiming his throne as the top pitcher in the American League.

For now, that much was clear during his 52-pitch outing against the Toronto Blue Jays at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla. Although it’s too early to surmise or predict another American League Cy Young campaign for the 31-year-old righty, Verlander looked comfortable and in rhythm in just under four innings of work.

That comfort and rhythm eluded Verlander for most of the 2013 season. From Opening Day through the end of August, the former American League MVP sported an uncharacteristically high ERA of 3.73.

Then, almost instantly, Verlander transformed back into the stopper of old. From that moment through the end the of Detroit’s ALCS appearance against the Boston Red Sox, the Tigers‘ tenured ace threw 63 innings of dominant baseball, posting a 1.57 ERA and 79 strikeouts.  

Those issues—along with the subsequent turnaround—were overshadowed during the offseason when it was revealed that Verlander needed core surgery. According to MLB.com’s Jason Beck, Verlander believes the injury to his core last season led to mechanical issues that took nearly a full season to uncover.

Just overall last year, there was a tilt in my shoulders. I look back at pitches I made in the past and right when I’m about to fire to throw home, everything’s parallel. My shoulders are almost parallel, my arm’s up behind my head, and everything’s firing on a parallel plane. Last year, if you were to take a snapshot, there’s a lot of pitches where my lead arm’s up here and I’m firing from down here, almost below my neck.

With the procedure in the mirror, Verlander’s first spring start was scheduled for last week. Yet as the Florida weather turned to rain, it was pushed back to this week against the Blue Jays. 

If you didn’t know about Verlander’s surgery, lackluster five-month stretch in 2013 or mechanical issues that threatened to curtail a successful Tigers team last year, those facts wouldn’t have been evident when watching him pitch against Toronto.

From the opening pitch of the game—a strike to Jose Reyes—to a lazy fly ball to left field to a broken-bat ground ball back to the mound, Verlander breezed through the first inning, allowing only a single. His control, during the first live competition since the 2013 ALCS, was slightly off, but far from alarming. 

In the second, Verlander allowed a walk to start the frame. From there, defense took over in the form of a caught-stealing attempt and easy out on a ground ball to shortstop. 

During Verlander’s third inning—his final full frame of the day—the rhythm and fastball life seemed to return to what you would expect from one of baseball’s most accomplished arms. Although the radar gun didn’t reveal any 95-plus MPH fastballs, Verlander was sitting at 88-94 for his outing. Much like during the best games of his career, he had more life on the fastball as the outing progressed.

Yet, despite the ability to limit runs and feature velocity during a strikeout in the third inning, it was an at-bat by Toronto’s Maicer Izturis in the fourth inning that should stay with Tigers fans.

Although the 10-pitch battle curtailed Verlander’s outing before he was able to complete four frames, the at-bat showed that stamina isn’t an issue for the expensive righty. 

After breezing through the first three innings—using only 38 of his allotted 50-55 pitches for the day—Izturis fought to start the fourth, coercing Verlander into his first double-digit pitch at-bat of the season.  
The result was a seemingly innocuous fly ball to left field, but it meant more to both Verlander and the Tigers. 

After surgery, a difficult season and admitted struggles with mechanics, Izturis‘ at-bat was the moment where a rusty Verlander could have been expected to falter, leaving a pitch over the plate and allowing an extra-base hit.

When it didn’t occur, Verlander’s successful day was all but done. 

There are still major hurdles for Verlander to clear in order to become the consistent and dominant starter of old. If the mechanics of today can’t be repeated during his next start, concern will arise. If soreness or comfort issues return before Opening Day, the Tigers’ perch atop the AL Central will be in question.

In Lakeland, the Tigers and manager Brad Ausmus will take it day-by-day with their $20-million arm.

For now: So far, so good.

If Verlander can build off this and stay healthy into April, there’s little reason to believe he won’t soon return to the top of the AL pitching ranks. 

Agree? Disagree?

Comment, follow me on Twitter or “like” my Facebook page to talk about all things baseball.

Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs, unless otherwise noted. All contract figures courtesy of Cot’s Baseball Contracts. Arbitration numbers and projections courtesy of MLB Trade Rumors. Roster projections courtesy of MLB Depth Charts.

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There are times in life when one must stare fear in the face and give it a big fat kiss.

This was one of those times for Detroit Tigers outfielder Torii Hunter. Justin Verlander dared his teammate to pucker up and lay one on the gator, and Hunter came through in the clutch. However, Hunter captioned the photo “#stillfearit,” so there remains a healthy respect for the animal. 

By the look on Verlander’s face, there is no better way to break up the monotony of spring training.

[MLB Fan Cave, h/t Torii Hunter’s Instagram]

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After a dramatic two-game split in Boston, the Detroit Tigers return home for a crucial Game 3 in the first of three consecutive games to be played at Comerica Park.

Despite a late-game collapse in which Detroit allowed five Boston runs over the final two innings of Sunday’s Game 2 loss, a combined one-hitter from Tigers’ pitchers in Game 1 gives Detroit a theoretical chance to win the ALCS at home.

Before looking too far ahead, here are four keys for the Tigers in Tuesday’s Game 3:

1. Start strong

Detroit’s starting pitchers have been outstanding during the playoffs, and especially so far in the ALCS. Game 1 and 2 starters Anibal Sanchez and Max Scherzer combined for 13 scoreless innings, surrendering only two hits while striking out 25 Boston batters.

Game 3 starter Justin Verlander pitched 15 scoreless innings against Oakland in the ALDS, allowing six hits and recording 21 strikeouts in two starts. And no, those numbers don’t come from a video game.

Verlander pitched just once against the Red Sox during the regular season, allowing four runs and seven hits in only five innings pitched on June 23. The Tigers Game 3 starter admitted that despite getting roughed up earlier in the season, his game plan against the top-ranked Red Sox lineup hasn’t changed:

“I think the only way you combat that is be aggressive,” Verlander said in a press conference on Monday. “Throw a lot of strikes and pound the strike zone.”

2. Dirks’ Day 

The starting left fielder for most of the regular season, Andy Dirks will make his first start of the postseason on Tuesday, batting ninth in Jim Leyland’s lineup.

Dirks batted .256 in 131 games during the regular season with 9 home runs and 37 RBIs, but is only 3-for-26 (.115) since September 21. Dirks has the potential to provide a noticeable upgrade at the plate from struggling utilityman Don Kelly, who started Game 2 in left field and is 0-for-4 in the ALCS.

3. Contain Boston’s 1-4 hitters

Not surprisingly, Jacoby Ellsbury, Shane Victorino, Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz are huge factors in Major League Baseball’s top scoring offense. But the high percentage of the Red Sox offense coming from their 1-4 hitters is alarming.

Four of Boston’s seven hits on Sunday came from the first four, and five of Boston’s six runs were driven in by Pedroia and Ortiz. Ellsbury, Victorino and Ortiz lead the Red Sox in batting average—batting .375, .333, and .300, respectively—while Pedroia is fifth, batting .261.

The four have scored 19 of the team’s 32 runs during the playoffs and have recorded 18 of 28 RBIs. If Verlander has success against Boston’s first four, the Red Sox will have to rely on Jarrod Saltalamacchia for offense, and the slumping bats of Stephen Drew, Jonny Gomes, Will Middlebrooks, and Mike Napoli.

4. Fix the bullpen

Despite an impressive performance in Game 1, the Tigers bullpen struggled mightily in Game 2, allowing all six Boston runs and ruining a career outing for Scherzer. Tigers relievers Al Alburquerque, Drew Smyly and Joaquin Benoit have postseason ERAs of 9.00, 6.75 and 5.79, respectively.

That should explain everything.

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Last week, we took a look as to what players might not be with the Miami Marlins in 2014. 

Today, based on who we think will still be here, we’re going to take a look as to what the Marlins starting lineup will be next season.

The rules are simple. The Marlins chosen to start next season must be under team control in some fashion for the 2014 season. This means guys such as Juan Pierre and Placido Polanco, who signed one-year deals  with the Marlins in the offseason, were not selected because they had little to no shot of starting next year, especially considering their current roles as bench players. Also, this means free agents such as Brian McCann, Robinson Cano, Jacoby Ellsbury and Matt Garza will not be coming to South Beach anytime soon.

While you might be very familiar with the names on this list, keep in mind these players have earned the starting nod either through outstanding production or merely by default. 

Without further ado, let’s present the starting nine for the 2014 Miami Marlins in lineup card fashion.

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Old school baseball. It means no batting gloves, choking up on the bat and not being afraid to get your uniform dirty. Over the years, the game of baseball has lost some of that “tough-as-nails” mentality, as players hide behind body armor and pitch counts.

But even in today’s game, there are some players that embody the old-school approach, players such as Dustin Pedroia. The Red Sox second baseman is just one example of a player that is a throwback to yesteryear. Here’s a closer look at Pedroia and some other old-school ballplayers.

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