Tigers Tomfoolery

- I need to get a few things off of my chest here. Apparently having Placido Polanco and Dmitri Young out of the lineup (injuries) wasn't enough, Alan Trammell decided to rest Pudge. I understand that playing catcher is one of the most physically demanding positions in sports. I also understand that catchers need routine time off to rest their knees. I would never critique the amount of time a catcher gets off from playing in the field. However, keeping them out of the lineup, especially when they've been your best and most consistent player over the last two years, is ridiculous. Pudge has missed 13 games this year. The majority of those games have been manager decisions. Does anyone want to take a guess at the Tigers' record in those games? How about 3-10. The Tigers have averaged 2.2 runs in those ten losses. Clearly, pitching wasn't the issue. How taxing is it for a player to take four at bats and then sit on the bench? Is it really so much work that a player needs a day off from all baseball related activities? I've never understood this. Pudge is making more money than anyone on the team (Higgy makes more but I pretend he retired). I would think that after paying someone THAT much money, you'd use them as much as possible. With a 3-10 record without Pudge, the Tigers are essentially admitting defeat on any day Tram gives him the day off. The Tigers are only 2 games under .500 on the season. They can't afford to give up games.

I know that most catchers get days off from fielding AND hitting but do they skip batting practice too? Do they skip walking down the steps of the dugout? Do they skip driving to the game? Does Tram ban Pudge from brushing his teeth? What is an acceptable activity on an off day? Are we really to believe that four at bats is too much work? Even if Albert Einstein were alive today to somehow convince me that four at bats is too taxing, wouldn't it be better to rest him two games in a row from the field while keeping him in the lineup for those two games? That's seven rhetorical questions to make one point. Pudge needs to bat. Someone needs to call Tram on this. 3-10 is ridiculous.

- I am praying that the Tigers trade Mike Maroth before the trade deadline. He has exactly three wins in his last 12 starts. His batting average against is atrocious (.278). His WHIP is terrible. He's probably as good as he'll ever be. There is no reason, whatsoever, for Maroth to be in Detroit (past the trade deadline) while Justin Verlander sits in Double A. I don't care if Verlander pulls a Ledezma for the rest of the year. Maroth isn't doing any better. Trade him. Please.

- As some of you may have noticed, I put up a nifty little graphic to track Jeremy Bonderman's drive for 20 wins. Since I put that up, he got lit up by the Royals and then got ejected from Sunday's game which will surely result in a suspension costing him a start. Bonderman needed nine wins in 15 starts when I put that chart up. Three days later, he needs nine wins in 13 starts. Thus, the chart comes down (but not his picture).