Support group is in place for Loux's debut vs. Twins
September 10, 2002
BY JOHN LOWE
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
MINNEAPOLIS -- If Tigers right-hander Shane Loux gets run support to match his fan support, he'll win his debut tonight against the Twins by a dozen runs.
"Both sets of grandparents and my parents are coming," said Loux on Monday. "My sister, aunt, uncle and cousins will be here. One set of grandparents lives in South Dakota, and the other in Phoenix. My sister lives in Baltimore. And I've got family coming from Iowa."
According to catcher Michael Rivera, the Loux family could see quite a show if Shane keeps the ball down.
"When he throws that sinker down, and he starts throwing the off-speed pitch or a curve on the first pitch for a strike, he's untouchable," said Rivera, who caught Loux often this season at Triple-A Toledo.
Loux, 23, was drafted out of high school by the Tigers five years ago. In his debut season at Triple-A in 2001, his ERA was 5.78. It didn't drop that much this year (4.72), but he pitched several dominant games. In one stretch, he pitched three shutouts in four starts.
"When he uses all his pitches, he can be tough," said Steve Boros, director of minor league instruction.
Anticipating his debut, Loux said, "I hope this will be the best day of my life. This is why I play. This is why I've put all the years in."
WEIGHING HIS OPTIONS: The Tigers want left-hander Andy Van Hekken to add weight for next season, but not much. "We'll have him on an off-season program to build strength in his legs," said strength coach Denny Taft. "He could add five or 10 pounds that way. He'll do strength work for his upper body, but we don't want to change his physique." By making his legs stronger, Van Hekken could get even more mileage out of the lanky 6-foot-3 frame with which he has been a winner throughout the minors and has allowed one earned run in two big-league starts. The Tigers list Van Hekken at 175 pounds.
IN THE WINGS: Despite not being part of the large contingent called up from Toledo, Andres Torres apparently will be involved in the centerfield competition in spring training. For now, the Tigers want to continue to look at mid-season acquisitions George Lombard and Hiram Bocachica in center.
The Tigers' also didn't recall outfielder Craig Monroe, who has been with the Tigers periodically this season and had a torrid bat down the pennant-race stretch for Toledo. He also is expected to get more than a cursory look in spring training.
STAT OF THE DAY: By scoring the winning run in the eighth inning Saturday, the Tigers broke their streak of 11 straight losses in games in which the winning team went ahead to stay in the seventh or later. But on Sunday, the Tigers suffered another late-inning loss when the Yankees' Rondell White hit a three-run homer in the eighth.
09/08/2002 1:26 pm ET
MLBeat: Kids repeat success
Mud Hen imports show few big-league jitters
By Patrick Mulrenin / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- New Tigers pitchers Jason Beverlin and Shane Loux were not overly surprised by what they saw from their former Triple-A teammates in Saturday's 2-1 win over the Yankees.
Eric Munson went 2-for-4 with a solo homer against Mike Mussina. Omar Infante made a leaping grab at shortstop and drove in the game-winning run in the eighth inning with his first Major League hit. Franklyn German capped the trio's performance by pitching 1 1/3 scoreless innings for a win in his Major League debut.
Beverlin, Loux, Munson, Infante and German joined the Tigers on Saturday, along with catcher Mike Rivera, left-hander Eric Eckenstahler and right-handers Nate Cornejo and Fernando Rodney, after the Toledo Mud Hens were eliminated from the International League playoffs on Friday night.
"They just showed us that it's the same game. It's just a different atmosphere," Loux said. "We've been doing that all year in Toledo. To come up here and maintain that just makes us feel better before we (Beverlin and Loux will start next week) go in. If we take it easy, then we're going to have success too."
Loux will make his Major League debut on Tuesday in Minnesota. He did not know he was going to get the chance to start until Saturday, when he was informed by Tigers manager Luis Pujols.
"I couldn't be more excited," said Loux.
Beverlin said that the key for the Toledo Nine is not to play like there is any extra pressure. All they have to do is play like they have over the last year and the results should speak for themselves.
"I think all of us are excited to go out and show what we can do," said Beverlin, who will start Sunday against Kansas City in Detroit.
Pujols started Munson at designated hitter and Infante at shortstop once again on Sunday against the Yankees. He said that if German continues to throw the way he did on Saturday, then he might get a shot to close games during the very end of the season.
Steve Sparks (left) is out of the Tiger rotation for now. (Ed Betz/AP)
Tigers News
Inside the Tigers
Monday, September 9, 2002
INSIDE THE TIGERS
A look at the Tigers heading into this week:
Who's hot: As a team, the Tigers are batting .225 from the seventh inning on, the lowest in the American League. Meanwhile, rookie shortstop Omar Infante is hitting 1.000 from the seventh inning on -- he is 3-for-3, including the game-winning single on Saturday and a single that set up the Tigers' ninth-inning run Sunday.
Who's not: Tiger pitchers gave up three home runs Sunday, including Jason Giambi's two-run shot and Rondell White's game-winning three-run homer. Meanwhile, the Tigers have hit one home run in their last six games. They haven't homered with a man on base since Aug. 17 (192 innings ago), and haven't hit a three-run homer in more than a month (Aug. 6, 283 innings ago).
Play of the week: It was stunning that the Tigers chose to call up 10 players from Triple-A Toledo, including nine in one day. It was even more interesting when the big question was about who the Tigers didn't call up. Because of the presence of George Lombard and Hiram Bocachica, they decided against promoting outfielders Craig Monroe and Andres Torres. "I was surprised they didn't call me," Torres told the Toledo Blade. "But I was shocked they didn't call Monroe."
Matchup of the week: OK, it's not the matchup of this week. But a preliminary copy of the 2003 schedule has the Tigers facing the National League West next year. But no, Barry Bonds won't be testing Comerica Park. Instead, the Tigers are supposed to travel to San Francisco, San Diego and Colorado, with Arizona, Colorado and Los Angeles coming to Detroit.
Injury report: Back in April, the Tigers worried about Matt Anderson's lack of velocity. So the Tigers regarded it as great news when Anderson threw batting practice Saturday and hit 93 mph on the radar gun, even when they told him not to go at full speed. The Tigers will remain cautious with Anderson, who might not pitch until the final week of the season.
Schedule: Tigers at Minnesota -- Monday at 8:05 (Mike Maroth vs. Rick Reed, Fox Sports Net), Tuesday at 8:05 (Shane Loux vs. Kyle Lohse, Fox Sports Net), Wednesday at 8:05 (Mark Redman vs. Brad Radke, no TV); Kansas City at Tigers -- Friday at 7:05 (Nate Cornejo vs. Paul Byrd, Fox Sports Net), Saturday at 2:05 (Andy Van Hekken vs. Jeff Suppan, no TV), Sunday at 2:05 (Jason Beverlin vs. Runelvys Hernandez, Channel 50).
Analysis: It seems crazy to call up a whole new team for the final three weeks of the season, but wouldn't you rather watch the new guys than the old guys? Too bad the Tigers didn't go a step farther. Why not play Monroe in place of Robert Fick or Bobby Higginson for a week or two?
-- Danny Knobler
September 10, 2002
BY JOHN LOWE
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
MINNEAPOLIS -- If Tigers right-hander Shane Loux gets run support to match his fan support, he'll win his debut tonight against the Twins by a dozen runs.
"Both sets of grandparents and my parents are coming," said Loux on Monday. "My sister, aunt, uncle and cousins will be here. One set of grandparents lives in South Dakota, and the other in Phoenix. My sister lives in Baltimore. And I've got family coming from Iowa."
According to catcher Michael Rivera, the Loux family could see quite a show if Shane keeps the ball down.
"When he throws that sinker down, and he starts throwing the off-speed pitch or a curve on the first pitch for a strike, he's untouchable," said Rivera, who caught Loux often this season at Triple-A Toledo.
Loux, 23, was drafted out of high school by the Tigers five years ago. In his debut season at Triple-A in 2001, his ERA was 5.78. It didn't drop that much this year (4.72), but he pitched several dominant games. In one stretch, he pitched three shutouts in four starts.
"When he uses all his pitches, he can be tough," said Steve Boros, director of minor league instruction.
Anticipating his debut, Loux said, "I hope this will be the best day of my life. This is why I play. This is why I've put all the years in."
WEIGHING HIS OPTIONS: The Tigers want left-hander Andy Van Hekken to add weight for next season, but not much. "We'll have him on an off-season program to build strength in his legs," said strength coach Denny Taft. "He could add five or 10 pounds that way. He'll do strength work for his upper body, but we don't want to change his physique." By making his legs stronger, Van Hekken could get even more mileage out of the lanky 6-foot-3 frame with which he has been a winner throughout the minors and has allowed one earned run in two big-league starts. The Tigers list Van Hekken at 175 pounds.
IN THE WINGS: Despite not being part of the large contingent called up from Toledo, Andres Torres apparently will be involved in the centerfield competition in spring training. For now, the Tigers want to continue to look at mid-season acquisitions George Lombard and Hiram Bocachica in center.
The Tigers' also didn't recall outfielder Craig Monroe, who has been with the Tigers periodically this season and had a torrid bat down the pennant-race stretch for Toledo. He also is expected to get more than a cursory look in spring training.
STAT OF THE DAY: By scoring the winning run in the eighth inning Saturday, the Tigers broke their streak of 11 straight losses in games in which the winning team went ahead to stay in the seventh or later. But on Sunday, the Tigers suffered another late-inning loss when the Yankees' Rondell White hit a three-run homer in the eighth.
09/08/2002 1:26 pm ET
MLBeat: Kids repeat success
Mud Hen imports show few big-league jitters
By Patrick Mulrenin / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- New Tigers pitchers Jason Beverlin and Shane Loux were not overly surprised by what they saw from their former Triple-A teammates in Saturday's 2-1 win over the Yankees.
Eric Munson went 2-for-4 with a solo homer against Mike Mussina. Omar Infante made a leaping grab at shortstop and drove in the game-winning run in the eighth inning with his first Major League hit. Franklyn German capped the trio's performance by pitching 1 1/3 scoreless innings for a win in his Major League debut.
Beverlin, Loux, Munson, Infante and German joined the Tigers on Saturday, along with catcher Mike Rivera, left-hander Eric Eckenstahler and right-handers Nate Cornejo and Fernando Rodney, after the Toledo Mud Hens were eliminated from the International League playoffs on Friday night.
"They just showed us that it's the same game. It's just a different atmosphere," Loux said. "We've been doing that all year in Toledo. To come up here and maintain that just makes us feel better before we (Beverlin and Loux will start next week) go in. If we take it easy, then we're going to have success too."
Loux will make his Major League debut on Tuesday in Minnesota. He did not know he was going to get the chance to start until Saturday, when he was informed by Tigers manager Luis Pujols.
"I couldn't be more excited," said Loux.
Beverlin said that the key for the Toledo Nine is not to play like there is any extra pressure. All they have to do is play like they have over the last year and the results should speak for themselves.
"I think all of us are excited to go out and show what we can do," said Beverlin, who will start Sunday against Kansas City in Detroit.
Pujols started Munson at designated hitter and Infante at shortstop once again on Sunday against the Yankees. He said that if German continues to throw the way he did on Saturday, then he might get a shot to close games during the very end of the season.
Steve Sparks (left) is out of the Tiger rotation for now. (Ed Betz/AP)
Tigers News
Inside the Tigers
Monday, September 9, 2002
INSIDE THE TIGERS
A look at the Tigers heading into this week:
Who's hot: As a team, the Tigers are batting .225 from the seventh inning on, the lowest in the American League. Meanwhile, rookie shortstop Omar Infante is hitting 1.000 from the seventh inning on -- he is 3-for-3, including the game-winning single on Saturday and a single that set up the Tigers' ninth-inning run Sunday.
Who's not: Tiger pitchers gave up three home runs Sunday, including Jason Giambi's two-run shot and Rondell White's game-winning three-run homer. Meanwhile, the Tigers have hit one home run in their last six games. They haven't homered with a man on base since Aug. 17 (192 innings ago), and haven't hit a three-run homer in more than a month (Aug. 6, 283 innings ago).
Play of the week: It was stunning that the Tigers chose to call up 10 players from Triple-A Toledo, including nine in one day. It was even more interesting when the big question was about who the Tigers didn't call up. Because of the presence of George Lombard and Hiram Bocachica, they decided against promoting outfielders Craig Monroe and Andres Torres. "I was surprised they didn't call me," Torres told the Toledo Blade. "But I was shocked they didn't call Monroe."
Matchup of the week: OK, it's not the matchup of this week. But a preliminary copy of the 2003 schedule has the Tigers facing the National League West next year. But no, Barry Bonds won't be testing Comerica Park. Instead, the Tigers are supposed to travel to San Francisco, San Diego and Colorado, with Arizona, Colorado and Los Angeles coming to Detroit.
Injury report: Back in April, the Tigers worried about Matt Anderson's lack of velocity. So the Tigers regarded it as great news when Anderson threw batting practice Saturday and hit 93 mph on the radar gun, even when they told him not to go at full speed. The Tigers will remain cautious with Anderson, who might not pitch until the final week of the season.
Schedule: Tigers at Minnesota -- Monday at 8:05 (Mike Maroth vs. Rick Reed, Fox Sports Net), Tuesday at 8:05 (Shane Loux vs. Kyle Lohse, Fox Sports Net), Wednesday at 8:05 (Mark Redman vs. Brad Radke, no TV); Kansas City at Tigers -- Friday at 7:05 (Nate Cornejo vs. Paul Byrd, Fox Sports Net), Saturday at 2:05 (Andy Van Hekken vs. Jeff Suppan, no TV), Sunday at 2:05 (Jason Beverlin vs. Runelvys Hernandez, Channel 50).
Analysis: It seems crazy to call up a whole new team for the final three weeks of the season, but wouldn't you rather watch the new guys than the old guys? Too bad the Tigers didn't go a step farther. Why not play Monroe in place of Robert Fick or Bobby Higginson for a week or two?
-- Danny Knobler
