Game 135: Sep 2, 1999 (L: 8-7)
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My Commentary

I just want to cry - what happened in Detroit?  I don't like bashing teams, but hey, we were supposed to beat up on Detroit, not lose three out of four to them.  Yeesh - I hope it wasn't a matter of overconfidence.  I grew up in Philadelphia, the legend of the '64 Phillies comes to mind here.

Didn't get to see it, since I was at work when the game was on, but from the radio guys, it seemed like a really sloppily played game.  Juan Gonzalez was particularly ragged on by Nadel/Cotroneo ("What's this rookie league guy doing up here?").  Goody & Rusty did one of those "I got it, I got it, I got it", and then no one got it as it fell between them.

We hit something like four home runs, and still didn't win.  Yuck.  :(

We ended up 70-93 lifetime in Tiger Stadium, and 5-5 against the Tigers this year.  That second one is sad.

-- Joe Siegler

Game Recap

DETROIT (TICKER) -- Rookie Jeff Zimmerman continued his return to earth as the Detroit Tigers rallied for an 8-7 victory over the Texas Rangers.

Zimmerman (9-3), an All-Star reliever, squandered a 7-4 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning as he allowed four runs for the second straight outing. He had yielded a total of eight runs in his previous 54 appearances.

"When I first came up here, I didn't have any problem striking people out," he said. "I could almost do it at will. Now, I'm struggling."

Deivi Cruz, Detroit's No. 9 hitter, hit a go-ahead two-run homer -- his eighth of the year -- off Zimmerman to provide the difference.

Zimmerman actually stranded a pair of runners in the seventh before Texas scored twice in the eighth to go ahead 7-4. But five of the first six Tigers reached base against the righthander in the bottom of the eighth.

Cruz followed a single by Bill Haselman by lofting an 0-2 pitch over the left-field wall just over a leaping Rusty Greer for his first home run since August 8 at Baltimore.

"I just go up there and try to make a good swing," Cruz said. "He made a mistake and I hit the ball hard so I could get a homer. I'm not a home run hitter. I just try to make contact. I knew I hit it hard. I thought he might catch the ball."

Bobby Higginson homered twice for the Tigers, who took three of four games in the series. They have won five of their last seven overall to jump out of the cellar in the American League Central.

"We played gereat this series," Parrish said. "Having Higgy swing the bat was big. It was like a missing piece to just fit in there."

Detroit, which won two of three games in Baltimore over the weekend, has won consecutive series for the first time in six weeks.

The Rangers allowed a total of 30 runs and 53 hits in the four games against the Tigers, even with a 1-0 loss started by Esteban Loaiza in the series opener on Monday.

"We didn't make very many good pitches after Loaiza," Texas manager Johnny Oates said.

Texas, trailing Cleveland by 3 1/2 games for the best record in the league, lost for just the sixth time in 18 tries.

Dave Mlicki (11-10) gave up seven runs and 12 hits, including four homers, over eight innings, but won his sixth straight start. He struck out a season-high seven without a walk.

Todd Jones recorded his 22nd save in 25 chances by striking out two in a scoreless ninth. He fanned Mark McLemore and Ivan Rodriguez with a man at third to end it.

Higginson started the decisive eighth by launching Zimmerman's 2-2 pitch into the upper deck in right, completing his ninth career multi-homer game.

"We hit Zimmerman the other night, and I think guys had confidence that they can go up there and hit him again," Tigers manager Larry Parrish said.

Right fielder Juan Gonzalez then allowed Juan Encarnacion to reach second on a gift double, misplaying a high fly ball down the right-field line. Two batters later, Haselman singled home Encarnacion to cut the Rangers' lead to 7-6.

Aaron Sele was in line for his fourth straight win and 10th in 11 decisions before Zimmerman fell apart. Sele gave up four runs and 10 hits while striking out six in 6 2/3 innings.

None of the four pitchers walked a batter.

Mlicki trailed 5-0 after 1 1/2 innings before winning his career-high sixth straight decision. He is the first Tiger to win six in a row since Willie Blair in 1997.

"I think he was just overthrowing the ball earlier," Parrish said. "The second half of the seaosn, he's showed me something. This kid's really turned the corner."

Rodriguez and Rafael Palmeiro jumped on Mlicki with RBI hits in the first, and Royce Clayton and Greer each homered in the second.

"I told myself after I went out there, `This is ridiculous. I've got too good of stuff to do this.' So I kind of backed off, got a little tired, it made me actually better," Mlicki said.

"It was frustrating, but for these guys to battle back and do what they did was amazing," Mlicki added. "The baseball Gods were smiling down today."

The Tigers built a 7-4 lead on back-to-back homers by Palmeiro and Todd Zeile with two outs in the eighth.

Palmeiro ended a five-game homerless drought. The Co-American League Player of the Month has eight home runs and 22 RBI in his last 13 games.

Five players had two hits apiece for the Rangers, who amassed at least 10 hits for the 12th time in 13 games. Texas has 46 home runs in its last 21 contests.

Doug Eddings, Brian O'Nora and Laz Diaz worked their first games as full-time AL umpires with Major League Baseball accepting the resignation of 22 umpires on Wednesday. Veteran Mike Reilly, the fourth member in the crew, was among the umps who stepped down before withdrawing his resignation.

Recap #2

DETROIT (AP) -- A strange game at Tiger Stadium produced an unlikely hero. 

Deivi Cruz's two-run homer in the eighth inning Thursday rallied the Detroit Tigers -- who once trailed by five runs -- to an 8-7 win over the Texas Rangers. 

Bobby Higginson homered twice for the Tigers, including a leadoff shot that started a four-run eighth off Jeff Zimmerman. 

After another run scored on Bill Haselman's RBI single, Cruz lined an 0-2 pitch into the left-field seats to put Detroit ahead. 

"I just go up there trying to put a good swing on," Cruz said after his eighth homer. "I just hope to hit the ball hard somewhere. I'm not a home run hitter. I just make contact." 

The rally gave Dave Mlicki (11-10), his sixth straight winning start. He gave up seven runs on 12 hits -- including home runs to Royce Clayton, Rusty Greer, Rafael Palmeiro and Todd Zeile -- in eight innings. He struck out six and walked none. 

"The guys battled back," Mlicki said. "To do what they did was amazing." 

Todd Jones worked out of trouble in the ninth to earn his 22nd save in 25 chances. 

Royce Clayton doubled to lead off the ninth and was sacrificed to third. But Jones struck out Mark McLemore and Ivan Rodriguez to end the game. 

"You've got to go out every day and battle, and this was one of the biggest wins we've had all season," said Jones, who pumped his fist in the air after Rodriguez fanned. 

The win gave the Tigers three wins in the four-game series with Texas and closed out a 5-2 homestand. Thursday was the last mid-week day game as well as the final Rangers appearance at Tiger Stadium. 

"We've got a lot of fans coming because they're closing down the stadium," Tigers manager Larry Parrish said. "And it's good to play well in front of them." 

Higginson, enduring a sub-par year that included more than a month on the disabled list, hit three home runs in the series. 

"Having Higgy swing the bat was big," Parrish said. "It was like the missing piece that just fit in there." 

Zimmerman (9-3) made two appearances in the series and allowed eight earned runs in 1 1-3 innings. His ERA rose to 2.06. 

"I didn't have a good slider," Zimmerman said. "I was trying to force it and trying to make it do too much. For some reason I wasn't able to throw it like I usually do. When you try to force pitches, they stay up in the zone. They took advantage of it." 

The Tigers also took advantage of some shaky Texas fielding. Detroit scored runs after Karim Garcia's fly ball fell between left fielder Greer and center fielder Goodwin in the seventh and again when right fielder Juan Gonzalez misjudged Juan Encarnacion's fly ball in the eighth. 

"We played terrible defense today; we played some great defense today," Rangers manager Johnny Oates said. "I tell you, it's a day that's hard to describe. I felt like it was almost like the twilight zone." 

The Rangers struck early against Mlicki with four first-inning hits, including an RBI double from Rodriguez and Palmeiro's run-scoring single, for a 2-0 lead. 

Clayton led off the second with his eighth home run and, after Rodriguez's two-out single, Greer hit his 18th homer for a 5-0 lead. 

But Mlicki settled down to allow just two hits and no runs for the next five innings before Palmeiro and Zeile hit back-to-back two-out homers in the eighth, giving the Rangers a 7-4 lead. 

"That was a heckuva job by Mlicki to give up five runs early and then hold them as long as he did," Parrish said. "I think he was just overthrowing the ball early." 

Higginson hit a leadoff homer in the bottom of the inning to make it 5-1. 

The Tigers scored again in the fourth when Damion Easley singled and came around on Encarnacion's double into the left-field corner. Oates argued with third base umpire Laz Diaz that fan interference should have sent Easley back to third, but the call stood after Diaz conferred with other umpires. 

Run-scoring singles from Cruz and Tony Clark cut the Tigers' deficit to 5-4 in the seventh. 

GAME NOTES: The Rangers have hit 46 homers in their last 21 games and 78 in 41. ... Dean Palmer was out of the Tigers' lineup after bruising his left foot with a foul ball Wednesday. X-rays were negative. ... Clayton's last five homers have been hit on the road. He also committed his 19th error, third-most among AL shortstops. ... Encarnacion's fourth-inning double ended an 0-for-13 skid. ... Doug Eddings worked his third game in place of Rich Garcia, one of the 22 umpires dismissed Thursday. 

Photos
(Click on any of them for a larger image)

Bobby Higginson hits a 2nd inning homer	Where's the ball?	Royce Clayton - "Where's the ball?"

Box Score

Line Score
AL  FINAL
                    1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9     R  H  E
                    -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -     -  -  -
TEXAS               2  3  0   0  0  0   0  2  0     7 13  2
DETROIT             0  1  0   1  0  0   2  4  x     8 15  1   (FINAL)

BATTERIES:  TEX - AARON SELE, JEFF ZIMMERMAN (7TH) AND IVAN RODRIGUEZ
            DET - DAVE MLICKI, TODD JONES (9TH) AND BILL HASELMAN,
                  BRAD AUSMUS (9TH)

             WP - DAVE MLICKI (11-10)
             LP - JEFF ZIMMERMAN (9-3)
           SAVE - TODD JONES (22)

HOME RUNS:  TEX - ROYCE CLAYTON (8) OFF MLICKI IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
                  RUSTY GREER (18) OFF MLICKI IN THE 2ND, 1 ON
                  RAFAEL PALMEIRO (41) OFF MLICKI IN THE 8TH, 0 ON
                  TODD ZEILE (19) OFF MLICKI IN THE 8TH, 0 ON
            DET - BOBBY HIGGINSON (11) OFF SELE IN THE 2ND, 0 ON
                  BOBBY HIGGINSON (12) OFF JE ZIMMERMAN IN THE 8TH, 0 ON
                  DEIVI CRUZ (8) OFF JE ZIMMERMAN IN THE 8TH, 1 ON

     TIME:  2:37     ATT:  22,945

PROBABLES:  CHA - JAIME NAVARRO (7-12, 6.30)
            TEX - JOHN BURKETT (5-7, 6.13)

            DET - CJ NITKOWSKI (2-4, 4.84)
            OAK - KEVIN APPIER (12-12, 5.10)

Box Score
TEXAS (7) AT DETROIT (8) - FINAL

TEXAS                  ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Mclemore 2b             5  1  2  0   0  2   1  .284
I Rodriguez c           5  2  2  1   0  1   2  .328
Greer lf                4  1  1  2   0  0   1  .299
J Gonzalez rf           4  0  1  0   0  2   1  .312
R Palmeiro dh           4  1  2  2   0  0   1  .340
Zeile 3b                4  1  2  1   0  1   0  .304
L Stevens 1b            4  0  0  0   0  1   2  .287
Clayton ss              4  1  2  1   0  2   0  .266
T Goodwin cf            3  0  1  0   0  0   0  .236

Totals                 37  7 13  7   0  9   8

BATTING: 2B - I Rodriguez (23, Mlicki); Clayton (16, T Jones).
HR - Clayton (8, 2nd inning off Mlicki 0 on, 0 out); Greer (18,
2nd inning off Mlicki 1 on, 2 out); R Palmeiro (41, 8th inning
off Mlicki 0 on, 2 out); Zeile (19, 8th inning off Mlicki 0 on,
2 out). S - T Goodwin. RBI - I Rodriguez (92), R Palmeiro 2 (130),
Clayton (37), Greer 2 (89), Zeile (81). 2-out RBI - R Palmeiro 2,
Greer 2, Zeile. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - L Stevens 1,
R Palmeiro 1, I Rodriguez 1. GIDP - I Rodriguez.  Team LOB - 4.

BASERUNNING: SB - I Rodriguez (23, 3rd base off Mlicki/Haselman).
CS - T Goodwin (9, 2nd base by Mlicki/Haselman).

FIELDING: E - Sele (1, throw); Clayton (19, ground ball). DP: 1
(Zeile-Mclemore-L Stevens).

DETROIT                ab  r  h rbi bb so lob   avg
Catalanotto 3b          5  0  2  0   0  1   0  .287
Kapler cf-rf            5  0  2  0   0  0   3  .239
To Clark 1b             5  0  1  1   0  1   2  .277
Easley 2b               4  1  1  0   0  1   3  .271
Higginson dh            4  2  2  2   0  1   2  .247
J Encarnacion lf        4  1  2  1   0  0   1  .260
K Garcia rf             4  1  2  0   0  0   0  .235
 K Bartee cf            0  0  0  0   0  0   0  .208
Haselman c              4  0  1  1   0  0   1  .271
 Ausmus pr-c            0  1  0  0   0  0   0  .280
D Cruz ss               4  2  2  3   0  2   1  .272

Totals                 39  8 15  8   0  6  13

BATTING: 2B - J Encarnacion 2 (27, Sele, Je Zimmerman); K Garcia (5,
Sele). HR - Higginson 2 (12, 2nd inning off Sele 0 on, 0 out, 8th
inning off Je Zimmerman 0 on, 0 out); D Cruz (8, 8th inning off
Je Zimmerman 1 on, 1 out). RBI - Higginson 2 (46), J Encarnacion (64),
D Cruz 3 (39), To Clark (80), Haselman (13). 2-out RBI - To Clark.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - Easley 2, Haselman 1.
GIDP - J Encarnacion.  Team LOB - 7.

FIELDING: E - Kapler (5, bobble). DP: 1 (Catalanotto-Easley-To Clark).

TEXAS                        ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Sele                          6 2/3  10   4   4   0   6   1   4.97
Je Zimmerman (L, 9-3; BS, 3)  1 1/3   5   4   4   0   0   2   2.06

DETROIT                      ip       h   r  er  bb  so  hr    era
Mlicki (W, 11-10)             8      12   7   7   0   7   4   4.89
T Jones (S, 22)               1       1   0   0   0   2   0   3.98

Pitches-strikes: Mlicki 116-83; T Jones 11-10; Sele 96-62;
Je Zimmerman 29-20.  Ground balls-fly balls: Mlicki 6-10; T Jones 1-0;
Sele 8-6; Je Zimmerman 3-1.  Batters faced: Mlicki 34; T Jones 4;
Sele 30; Je Zimmerman 9.

UMPIRES: HP--Doug Eddings. 1B--Mike Reilly. 2B--Brian Onora. 3B--Laz Diaz.
T--2:37.  Att--22,945.   Weather: 66 degrees, overcast.   Wind: 5 mph,
right to left.

AL       TEXAS AT DETROIT
         NOTE:  THE SINGLE BY TONY CLARK IN THE SEVENTH INNING EXTENDED
                HIS HITTING STREAK TO 12 GAMES.

AL       TEXAS AT DETROIT
         NOTE:  THE HOME RUNS BY TEXAS' RAFAEL PALMEIRO AND TODD ZEILE IN
                THE EIGHTH INNING WERE BACK-TO-BACK.

Game Log

Texas Starting Lineups -- Mark Mclemore 2B, Ivan Rodriguez C, Rusty Greer LF, Juan Gonzalez RF, Rafael Palmeiro DH, Todd Zeile 3B, Lee Stevens 1B, Royce Clayton SS, Tom Goodwin CF, Aaron Sele RHP.

Detroit Starting Lineups -- Frank Catalanotto 3B, Gabe Kapler CF, Tony Clark 1B, Damion Easley 2B, Bobby Higginson DH, Juan Encarnacion LF, Karim Garcia RF, Bill Haselman C, Deivi Cruz SS, Dave Mlicki RHP.

Umpires -- Eddings (HP), Reilly (1B), Onora (2B), Diaz (3B).

Gametime Weather: 66 degrees, Overcast, wind right to left at 5 mph.

TEXAS 1ST: Mclemore singled to left. I Rodriguez doubled to right, Mclemore scored. Greer flied out to left. I Rodriguez stole third. J Gonzalez struck out looking. R Palmeiro singled to right, I Rodriguez scored. Zeile singled to left, R Palmeiro to second. L Stevens flied out to left. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, DETROIT 0.

DETROIT 1ST: Catalanotto flied out to left. Kapler singled to left. To Clark grounded out to pitcher, Kapler to second. Easley struck out looking. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, DETROIT 0.

TEXAS 2ND: Clayton homered to left center. T Goodwin flied out to center. Mclemore grounded out to third. I Rodriguez singled to left. Greer homered to right, I Rodriguez scored. J Gonzalez singled to shallow right center. J Gonzalez to second on center fielder Kapler's fielding error. R Palmeiro flied out to left. (3 Runs, 4 Hits, 1 Error) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 0.

DETROIT 2ND: Higginson homered to right. J Encarnacion grounded out to third. K Garcia singled to right. K Garcia to third on pitcher Sele's throwing error. Haselman grounded into fielder's choice to pitcher, K Garcia out at home. D Cruz struck out looking. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 1 Error) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 1.

TEXAS 3RD: Zeile struck out swinging. L Stevens struck out swinging. Clayton struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 1.

DETROIT 3RD: Catalanotto struck out looking. Kapler grounded out to shortstop. To Clark struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 1.

TEXAS 4TH: T Goodwin singled to right. T Goodwin caught stealing, catcher to shortstop. Mclemore struck out looking. I Rodriguez grounded out to third. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 1.

DETROIT 4TH: Easley singled to left. Higginson struck out looking. J Encarnacion doubled to left, Easley scored. K Garcia flied out to right center, J Encarnacion to third. Haselman grounded out to third. (1 Run, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 2.

TEXAS 5TH: Greer grounded out to pitcher. J Gonzalez struck out swinging. R Palmeiro popped out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 2.

DETROIT 5TH: D Cruz struck out swinging. Catalanotto popped out to shallow left. Kapler singled to right center. To Clark grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 2.

TEXAS 6TH: Zeile fouled out to third. L Stevens popped out to shallow left. Clayton struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 2.

DETROIT 6TH: Easley flied out to right. Higginson safe at first on shortstop Clayton's fielding error. J Encarnacion grounded into double play, third to second to first, Higginson out at second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 1 Error) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 2.

TEXAS 7TH: T Goodwin fouled out to first. Mclemore reached on infield single. I Rodriguez grounded into double play, third to second to first, Mclemore out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 2.

DETROIT 7TH: K Garcia doubled to deep left center. Haselman flied out to deep right, K Garcia to third. D Cruz singled to right, K Garcia scored. Catalanotto singled to right, D Cruz to third. Kapler popped out to first. To Clark reached on infield single, D Cruz scored, Catalanotto to second. Jeff Zimmerman relieved Aaron Sele. Easley grounded into fielder's choice to third, To Clark out at second. (2 Runs, 4 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, DETROIT 4.

TEXAS 8TH: Greer flied out to left. J Gonzalez grounded out to first. R Palmeiro homered to right. Zeile homered to left. L Stevens flied out to left. (2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 7, DETROIT 4.

DETROIT 8TH: Higginson homered to right. J Encarnacion doubled to deep right. K Garcia flied out to left, J Encarnacion to third. Haselman singled to left, J Encarnacion scored. Ausmus ran for Haselman. D Cruz homered to left, Ausmus scored. Catalanotto reached on infield single. Kapler grounded into fielder's choice to third, Catalanotto out at second. To Clark grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Kapler out at second. (4 Runs, 5 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 7, DETROIT 8.

TEXAS 9TH: Kapler in right. K Bartee in center. Todd Jones relieved Dave Mlicki. Ausmus catching. Clayton doubled to right center. T Goodwin sacrificed Clayton to third. Mclemore struck out looking. I Rodriguez struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 7, DETROIT 8.