Pudge And The Tigers Return To Form

One of the amazing things about watching the Tigers last season was their ability to turn things around late. I don't remember how many times I saw this team play like zombies for eight innings, and then in the ninth inning come to life and get a win.

It's one of the biggest factors for their American League pennant, and it returned on Sunday afternoon in Kansas City. From the Detroit News:

Through eight innings of their 3-2 victory Sunday afternoon, the Tigers did so little at the plate against the Kansas City Royals it looked like they were going to leave town with two defeats in a ballpark where they won all nine games last year.

They were dead in the water. Scoreless. Until the ninth.

The Tigers came to the plate in the ninth inning down 2-0 and quickly got to work. Magglio Ordoñez led the inning off with a double, and then David Riske walked Carlos Guillen. Ivan Rodriguez then came to the plate, and Riske made a fatal mistake.

"I thought he was going to bunt, so I threw one right down the middle. I was thinking about fielding a bunt and getting the next guy out instead of making a high-quality pitch."

Yeah, Pudge wasn't looking to bunt. Instead he took that first pitch and re-directed it 420 feet over the fence as the Tigers left Kansas City with a 3-2 win.

It was an all too familiar feeling for the Royals, who went 0-9 against the Tigers at home last season but managed to win one game in this series. It was also a reminder to the American League that if you're going to beat the Tigers, you're going to have to fight them tooth and nail for the victory, because they will never quit on themselves.