00:00We can keep the Lions in the conversation.
00:02Call text 248-539-9797.
00:05But guys, we got a big baseball game tonight.
00:08John's rocking the old English D.
00:09Oh, yeah.
00:10Tigers, Guardians, playoff kind of mindset.
00:14It has to be playoff mindset.
00:16AJ told us, I mean, it's been a month now since he told us
00:19that every game was managing like it was game seven.
00:22Now, the next couple of days, we raised questions
00:25as to some of the moves he made,
00:26but he has a much deeper lineup now.
00:29And the pitching staff is pitching much better than it was.
00:34I don't know what to expect from Drew Anderson tonight.
00:37His last start was, I would say it's a quality start.
00:42He didn't go five innings.
00:43So I don't know if it counts as a quality start.
00:46It doesn't, but it was good.
00:46It was a good start.
00:48And you're going to tax the bullpen.
00:49So that means tomorrow when you see Frambois Valdez,
00:51he's going to have to go seven.
00:53He's going to have to find a way to be the pitcher
00:56that they signed to a record contract.
00:57You had the stat, they've played Cleveland six times.
00:59They've lost all of them, but four of them were decided by a run.
01:02Yeah.
01:03You know, these games are going to come down to one play,
01:06one at bat, one defensive play that you do make or don't make.
01:10These are playoff games, right?
01:12In terms of the mentality, I wonder,
01:15do fans feel that playoff mentality going into the game tonight?
01:18Are fans who had previously not renewed their month-to-month
01:22or canceled their TV buying back in?
01:24Are fans going to the ballpark for this six-game homestand?
01:27Are they treating this like Tigers are playing playoff games?
01:31I think they should.
01:32And I think that they will.
01:34I think you're going to see a good show tonight,
01:36a good showing of fans tonight.
01:38Because some of it is just the excitement about this team.
01:41It's your first opportunity to see Max Clark.
01:43It's an opportunity to see this lineup,
01:46to see this team since the trade deadline.
01:48It's the first opportunity to see
01:49what the new season looks like for the Detroit Tigers.
01:54And there is a lot of excitement about seeing the young kids.
01:59And it's Valencia.
02:00It's Max Clark.
02:01It's the continuation of the story of Kevin McGonigal
02:04and Dylan Dingler, who's going to get MVP votes.
02:07He has been playing terrific baseball.
02:10Could you describe your mindset as a Tigers fan tonight?
02:13And if it is that of heightened awareness.
02:17248-539-9797.
02:19Because we've talked about going out west
02:22and handling their business,
02:23even with the trade deadline, right?
02:26They're going to come home
02:27and they're going to have to anchor their success
02:29by beating the teams they're chasing in the division.
02:32I'm going into this as a fan.
02:35Like it's a gotta have it game.
02:37It's a gotta have it series.
02:39Now they're going to,
02:39I would anticipate they don't sweep the Guardians.
02:42That would be amazing.
02:43I think we would all lose our minds.
02:46But I'm going in with the expectation
02:48that they take two out of three.
02:51Um, and I say gotta have it
02:53because to me there's,
02:54it's semantics.
02:55It's not a must win,
02:57but you gotta have it game.
02:59That's my mindset as a fan
03:00because if they lose this series,
03:02say they only take one of the three games,
03:04it sets them back,
03:04but it doesn't set them out.
03:06No, like they can't clinch a playoff spot.
03:07They can't lose a playoff spot,
03:08but they can build credibility
03:09and they can currently sit in a playoff spot
03:12by the end of this.
03:13That's the perfect way to put it.
03:14They can continue to build credibility
03:16because when you look at the games
03:17that they've won,
03:18um, over the past,
03:20what, you know,
03:21since the trade deadline,
03:22you look at the athletics.
03:23Okay.
03:24You beat a team in a minor league stadium
03:27that's playing like a minor league team.
03:28You swept them.
03:29And then you went out to Seattle.
03:31You took two or three.
03:32Seattle has,
03:33has completely gone into,
03:34you know,
03:35the dumper along with the big dumper.
03:37There you go.
03:38And then you took two out of three
03:39against San Francisco.
03:40Again, it's,
03:41it's,
03:41it's not a team that you're going to build
03:42any credibility against.
03:43And you could sit there and say,
03:45well, Cleveland,
03:46they're not a great team.
03:47The white socks,
03:49they're not a great team,
03:50but they are two teams that you have
03:52to be able to compete against
03:54and beat.
03:56If you want to ultimately gain the respect
03:58and get back into a playoff position,
04:01one and a half games out of a playoff spot,
04:03you take two or three against Cleveland,
04:05two or three against the socks.
04:07All of a sudden you are in likely
04:09would be in the playoffs.
04:10Yeah.
04:10Yeah.
04:11You'd be in the playoffs in that scenario.
04:12Now I know Tom's got a note.
04:14Texas is in the last wildcard spot right now.
04:16And Texas has a favorable schedule coming up.
04:18Well,
04:19then all of a sudden you shift gears.
04:20If,
04:20if the Rangers run away with that division,
04:23then Houston drops into the wildcard
04:25and you're chasing the Astros,
04:26or you say,
04:28screw it.
04:28We're going to win the division.
04:29That becomes the goal at that point
04:31because everybody's bottlenecked up
04:32in the American league central,
04:33especially if the tigers go out
04:35and take these next two series.
04:36And,
04:36and I'll even push it out a little bit further.
04:38When you look at the,
04:39at the next 12 games that the tigers have
04:42six at home,
04:43six on the road,
04:44you've got Cleveland in the socks
04:46and then you're at Pittsburgh
04:47and you're at Kansas city.
04:49This is a 12 game stretch
04:51where you've got to be able to win
04:55eight of 12,
04:56nine of 12
04:56to be considered a legitimate
05:00team.
05:00That's winning every series.
05:02And I know what,
05:02what it sounds like.
05:03Like we're just going to keep extending.
05:05The next series is the big series
05:06and the next series is the big series
05:07because it's,
05:08you're going to have to build up
05:09a buffer at some point
05:10because then after that,
05:11you've got Tampa,
05:12you've got the Dodgers,
05:14you've got the twins,
05:14which becomes a critical series
05:16because they're the ones
05:17that you're bouncing back
05:17and forth with right now.
05:18Yeah.
05:18Look,
05:19they're going to play
05:19a bunch of baseball games still
05:20to me though.
05:21Like when we see best run
05:23differential in the American league,
05:24I think sometimes people
05:25look at that crooked and say,
05:26yeah,
05:26but how good are you?
05:29These are the games
05:29where you get to show
05:30how good you are.
05:31Cleveland has been a nemesis.
05:33Like Tom was 11 runs
05:35all season.
05:36Well,
05:36yeah,
05:36in six games,
05:37six games,
05:38they scored 11 runs.
05:39Well,
05:39the bottom of the order
05:40doesn't have Jemai Jones
05:41or James Altman
05:42or Matt Veerling.
05:44It's got Max Clark
05:45who's been a pleasant spark
05:47since he's joined the team
05:48and Valencia
05:48who has his issues defensively
05:50but gives you a bat.
05:51Suddenly,
05:52you're not looking at a lineup
05:53that's like,
05:53do we have a number five hitter?
05:55You feel like you can go
05:56and that bottom third
05:57of the lineup
05:58can still give you
05:58a little bit of a jolt.
05:59I mean,
06:00yeah,
06:00no,
06:00it's been,
06:01this has been going on
06:01for three years
06:02since the Tigers
06:02got competitive again
06:03against the Guardians.
06:04they struggle to score
06:06runs against them.
06:07Cade Smith owns them
06:08so if you get late in the game
06:09you might as well forget it.
06:11You know,
06:11they're starting pitching
06:12all the Guardian starters
06:13this year
06:14is going to be sub four ERAs
06:16and the alleged difference
06:17with the Tigers
06:18is the offense.
06:19So the offense has to
06:20show itself
06:21against the Guardians,
06:22I think.
06:24no more of the,
06:25if they beat you
06:27it's because
06:27Drew Anderson
06:28got,
06:28you know,
06:29hammer shelled tonight
06:30or something like that
06:31but you still score
06:31four or five runs
06:32at least.
06:33You're saying
06:33if they lose
06:34eight to seven
06:35you go,
06:35okay,
06:35but the bats
06:36if they sustain
06:37you'll still take this series.
06:39Anderson has been better
06:40in a starting role
06:41this year
06:41and I do believe
06:43the number one reason
06:44they actually signed him
06:45was to be able
06:46to start
06:47in spot situations.
06:49I think you're right
06:50about that
06:50and then he had to go
06:51to the bullpen
06:52when they made
06:54the Valdez edition
06:56and the JV edition.
06:57And I don't understand
06:57the mindset
06:58of how you could be
07:00a good starter
07:01but a bad reliever
07:03but I'm naive enough
07:06to at least
07:07I think I'm smart enough
07:08to understand
07:09I'm naive enough
07:10to not understand it.
07:11I think preparation
07:12is everything.
07:13When you know
07:13you're starting
07:14he probably has
07:15this routine
07:16that gets him
07:16in a better place
07:18to pitch
07:19versus randomly
07:20coming in
07:20and maybe
07:21being put
07:22in a tough situation.
07:23It is unique
07:24because it's typically
07:24the opposite, right?
07:25You failed starter
07:26can dial it up
07:27for one inning
07:29throw a little harder
07:30and get out of a jam.
07:31It's rare
07:31that you'd have a guy
07:32who you do not trust
07:33for one inning
07:34and say
07:36he'll be just fine
07:36for four.
07:38Right.
07:40It makes no sense
07:41to me.
07:41But hey
07:41it makes no sense
07:43I show you
07:44the 2026
07:45Detroit Tigers.
07:46Right.
07:47It's a team
07:48that right now
07:50without the black cloud
07:51hanging over their heads
07:52anymore
07:52of the trade deadline
07:53and all of that stuff
07:54that was leading up to it
07:56it feels like
07:58there was a clean break
07:59there's a new season
08:00and this team
08:01is exciting to watch.
08:03Text coming in
08:03my feeling is
08:04regardless of the records
08:05please just get a damn
08:06win against Cleveland
08:07tonight.
08:08Win the series.
08:090-6 against them
08:10this year
08:10and I hate Cleveland
08:11in all sports.
08:14Anytime you play
08:14the Guardians
08:15it feels like
08:15a playoff game
08:16make or break
08:17whether they can
08:19makes or breaks
08:20the season series.
08:21That's from Nick.
08:23I do think Cleveland
08:24the fact that it's Cleveland
08:25that they're starting
08:26with at home
08:26after the road trip
08:27adds some extra juice
08:29to it.
08:29It should be a little
08:30personal.
08:31I mean I thought
08:32personally the darkest
08:33moment of the season
08:34was when they got
08:35swept by the Guardians
08:36even though they fell
08:37a couple more games
08:38under 500 in May.
08:39I know they lost
08:40that series at home
08:41against the Angels
08:41that was kind of
08:42the end of it all
08:43but this 0-6
08:46against them
08:47not being able
08:48to score
08:48when this is your
08:49strength now
08:51I kind of want
08:52to kick their ass.
08:54Hell yeah.
08:55Yeah.
08:55Hell yeah.
08:56Like I'm fired up
08:57but I'm still
08:58a little guarded
08:59because I want
09:00to see it against them.
09:01Because it's
09:01entirely plausible
09:02they lose
09:03two or three
09:05and score
09:07two runs
09:08in those two losses.
09:09Right.
09:11No I don't
09:12total.
09:12I don't come in
09:13with this
09:14chest puffed out
09:15like we're gonna
09:16beat them.
09:18I'm settled in
09:20because I want
09:20to learn about
09:21what this team's
09:22really made of.
09:23I want to see
09:24them go grab
09:25a playoff spot
09:25in terms of
09:26strong deeply
09:27held belief
09:28they will.
09:28Well they've done
09:29all the hard work
09:30and all the heavy
09:31lifting to get
09:32to this point
09:33like they were
09:3316 back in the
09:34division and now
09:35they're only three
09:36and a half back
09:37they're in striking
09:37range of a wild
09:39card spot and
09:40you just don't
09:41want all that
09:42hard work to be
09:43for naught by
09:44laying an egg
09:45against the
09:45Guardians.
09:47Tech says
09:47does it make you
09:48wonder if they
09:50wouldn't have stuck
09:50with Rogers and
09:51Jemai Jones for so
09:52long they'd have a
09:52few more wins
09:53Gary at work.
09:55Sure I think we
09:56were wondering that
09:57at the time.
09:59Two four eight
10:00five three nine
10:01ninety seven
10:01ninety seven.
10:02We've got Tigers
10:03in the mix some
10:04more Lions
10:04feedback some of
10:05your text on the
10:05Lions says I was
10:07panicking last night
10:08about the maze
10:09injury but John is
10:10making me feel
10:11better.
10:11I can finally
10:12breathe now Andy
10:13in a car.
10:14They press says
10:16are we sure this
10:17injury didn't
10:17happen at 12
10:18Oaks.
10:22I have a P word
10:23but it pertains to
10:24Lions fans.
10:25Okay noted the
10:28Cade maze injury
10:28the Lions injury
10:30but also the Tigers
10:31playing some big
10:32games this week at
10:33home.
10:33Are you going to
10:34the ballpark?
10:34Are you buying back
10:35in with the TV
10:36package?
10:37Are you sitting on
10:38the edge of your
10:38seat?
10:38Are you mentally
10:39treating this more
10:40like a playoff game?
10:41It's ninety seven
10:42one.
