On The Reel 11/16

- Lions running more? Let's hope we get to positive yardage this time!
- If you grew up in Detroit, you know what this feels like.
- Pistons under the radar once again.
- Anything with Chauncey in the title is getting in my post!
- Hasek struggling...
- Osgood sick...
- Kenny Rogers coming back seeming more and more likely.

Tonight's Games:
Pistons @ Lakers

Zumaya Injured in Freak Accident...Again

For the second straight year Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya will miss a significant portion of the upcoming season. And for the second straight season, Joel Zumaya did not suffer his injury playing the game he is paid to play, Baseball.

As we all remember Joel Zumaya infamously strained a tendon in his middle finger by playing too much Guitar Hero, limiting him to only 28 appearances and a 4.28 ERA. This year it is the AC joint in his shoulder which was injured while moving personal items during the recent California wildfires. He underwent reconstructive surgery on his AC joint on Wednesday and team officials are predicting him to miss at least the first half of next season.

This is a huge blow for a Tigers which bullpen was already in shambles going into this offseason, now the question is where do they look for help.

If everything goes perfectly for the Tigers (which it won't) Francisco Cordero, Scott Linebrink and Mariano Rivera will all become free agents and they will instantly become the top 3 priorities on the Tigers offseason wish list.

More realistically though, its going to be up to Jason Grilli, Zach Miner, Fernando Rodney and others to really step up their performance in Zumaya's absence. This is beginning to sound all too familiar.

On The Reel 10/15

- Polanco and Ordonez get some respect.
- Roy Williams may deliver your pizza.
- Tatum Bell now backing down on the trade talk.
- Zetterburg off to a great start and the league #3 star!
- Filppula has issues that sound like me. I was always pass first kind of player, Filppula needs to shoot more I guess.
- Rip down, others down, when does this preseason end!!

Tonights Games:
Red Wings @ Ducks (10pm)

Yankees Cast-Off's Could be Main Targets in Tiger's Offseason Plans

The Tiger's Wish List for this off-season is pretty straight forward: Relief Pitching and a good defensive shortstop. And believe it or not, Joe Torre could ultimately factor into the Tiger's off-season as much as Dave Dombrowski.

Recently Mariano Rivera has said that Torre's release will factor in his decision to either return to the Yankees or become a Free Agent this upcoming winter. Despite these threats, it still seems imminent that Torre will be manging another team come spring 2008 (my money is on the Card's), and this could lead to the greatest closer of all time becoming one of the top Free Agent's in this years class.

Other players such as Jorge Posada, Alex Rodriguez, Andy Pettite and Roger Clemens could also be directly affected by his departure. If these players leave, 3 of them (Rivera, Rodriguez and Pettite) soar to the top of the Tiger's Wish List.

Rivera would be an incredibly welcome upgrade of Todd "Let's Make This Interesting" Jones in the closer role and would allow for the use of Joel Zumaya, Fernando Rodney and Jones in a 6-7-8 kind of role. A-Rod is A-Rod and while it looks like this offense could not get any better, adding him would make it one of the best possibly ever. On the defensive side, A-Rod was once a Gold Glove shortstop with the Mariners and would surely welcome a move from the hot corner, pushing Carlos Guillen to First Base, and allowing for Sean Casey to be a DH/1B type of utility man. Pettite would also be a welcome upgrade over Nate Robertson and his very disappointing season. At the very worst he is a tremendous long relief pitcher.

Price is a major factor, but Ilitch has never been one to shy away from offering major contracts (see the $140 Million Juan Gonzalez offer). If Ilitch is willing to pony up the cash hopefully A-Rod and Rivera will be willing to trade in pinstripes for the olde english D.

Articles for fans of The D

Here are a few articles that might spark some interest for Detroit sports fans.

- Yes, Dunkin' Darvin is dunking again.
- Roy Williams a delivery man?
- A-Rod to the Tigers! Okay, not yet at least, but good ole' Drew Sharp makes a case.
- Now this has to bring you to the Joe right?
- Being old is cool. Especially if your name is Chris Chelios

That's all for now. Enjoy!

Pudge is back and a Red Wing injury

Tigers catcher, Ivan Rodriguez is back for at least one more year in a Detroit uniform. It doesn't come as too much of a surprise, and seemed necessary. One thing I think everyone can agree on is that this guy is starting to slow down. He batted a measly .281 with 11 home runs. Still, he is known for being a great defensive catcher as well and to have to have that position secured has to be a good feeling for the franchise. Personally, I still think this guy's got what it takes, and the leadership he brings can help take this team to high places. Sorry, but even though Rabelo did hit one home run in the last game of the season in Chicago, it's not quite good enough for me!

The Red Wings are in full swing and off to an exciting start. After winning in a shootout against the Ducks, they promptly lost to the Blackhawks in a shootout of their own. Last night, the Wings were able to take care of business in a 4-2 win over the Oilers. On a somber note, forward Johan Franzen went down with a MCL sprain and will be out for about a month. This is too bad for a guy who looked like he might have a breakout year. Still, his confidence shows that he can come back and do everything he's expected to once he comes back. The first few games have shown us some great hockey. If nothing else, you can either watch Datsyuk and Zetterburg work their magic, or watch a legendary defensive pair in Lidstrom and former Badger Rafalski. People have noticed a lack of buzz for "hockeytown's" team unfortunately.