Zumaya injury

Bloggers -- When Joel Zumaya's elbow gave out in the eighth inning of Monday night's game at Minnesota, I have to admit it was one of the sickest things I've ever seen in a game. It ranks right up there with Joe Theisman's compound fracture on Monday Night Football many years ago.
Ironically, as Zumaya pitched in the seventh inning, I thought to myself how good Zumaya has been pitching this season and how key he is for the Tigers quest for a division title. Ten minutes later the injury takes place and all that hope looks like is all gone for this season.
What Zumaya can do with a baseball is utterly freakish. How many people do you know can throw a fastball 100 mph pitch after pitch after pitch. Eventually something had to give and on Monday night it did -- his elbow.
Will he back? Probably. It won't be soon, though. If he has Tommy John surgery where they can take a ligament or tendon from another part of the body and put it in his elbow, he won't be back until at least 2012.
If he does comeback, the days of 100-plus fastballs may be gone. He has to realize he can be just as effective with a 92-95 mph heater, which would take some pressure off that elbow and his shoulder.
So what do the Tigers do in the meantime. After all, their win on Monday night put the in first place in the American League Central.
In the short term, they've brought up Casey Fien from Toledo. It's his job to lose right now. Is he Zumaya? No. Can he do the job? Maybe. We'll see. However, if he can't get the job done, the Tigers better hope Ryan Perry can straighten out his control problems in a hurry down in Toledo and can get back up to the big club to fill the eighth-inning gap left by Zumaya.
If you remember, the Tigers blew a lot of leads in the seventh and eighth innings last year and it ultimately cost them the division title.
This year, they went out and got themselves a proven closer in Jose Valverde, who has been sensational through the first three months of the season. However, a lot of his chances to save games came off the shirt tails of work done by relievers like Phil Coke and Zumaya in the seventh and eighth innings. That's why it's important for Fien, Coke, Perry, Ni or anyone else in the bullpen to step up and fill the shoes left by Zumaya.
Another idea would be for the Tigers to go out and trade for a reliever. However, to get one would mean parting with a key prospect or two, which is never good, especially for a set-up guy. They may need to test the trade waters for a hitter or a starting pitcher before the deadline comes next month. If that's the case, I would rather see them trade a prospect or two for an every day hitter or a starting pitcher like Cliff Lee or Roy Oswalt. That would be appealing to me rather than a set-up guy.
What do you think about the Zumaya situation? What would you do if you were the Tigers? Send me a note and we can discuss this further.

Izzo and stuff

Hey there bloggers.

It's been a long 24 hours as much has happened. Stevenson's girls softball team lost to Troy 5-0 in the quarterfinals at Bishop Foley on Tuesday afternoon, while L'Anse Creuse North defeated Rochester Adams 4-2 in a baseball quarterfinal game. The Crusaders will head to Battle Creek on Friday to play in a state semifinal contest.
As for the Titans, their loss to the Colts put a damper on what turned out to be a great run through the state tournament.
After finishing fourth in the MAC Red Division standings, it's a good bet there weren't too many people who would've gone out on a limb and said the Titans would win a district and regional title. However, that's what Stevenson went out and did.
This team cruised through the district, before knocking of their nemesis, Anchor Bay, 4-3 in the regional semifinal. The Titans followed that effort by jumping out to a 7-0 lead over Lakeview in the finals, before holding on for a 7-6 win and first regional softball title in school history.
The good thing for Stevenson and coach Tony Misuraca is that many of the key players on this team will be back next year. The Titans rode the right arm of freshman pitcher Alyssa Huntley, giving her solid defense throughout the season, but especially in the tournament. The experience she gained in a pressure-packed contest like the quarterfinal game against Troy, will only make her and the rest of the Titans work harder in the off-season with hopes of taking the next step next year, getting to the final four in Battle Creek.

Tuesday was also a memorable or in some case, breathing a sigh of relief day for MSU fans as men's basketball coach Tom Izzo announced he will not leave Michigan State to take a job in the NBA with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
I can honestly say all along the recruiting process by Cleveland that Izzo wasn't going to go. I'm sure the reported offer of $6 million a year was tough to deny, but he's already making $3 million per season at MSU. I don't know about you, but I think I could get by on $3 million a year.
Plus, do any of you think that Izzo's sideline manner would have worked in the NBA. Izzo likes to rant and rave throughout the game. He likes to get into player's faces when something goes wrong. It works in college because he's dealing with youngsters who are 18-22 years old and don't have the money in their pocket that NBA players have.
In the NBA, each player is a millionaire. Many are multi-millionaires. If Izzo were to pull one of these rich men over and got in their face over a bad play, I'm afraid his words of wisdom would be on deaf ears.
Izzo's a great college coach and that's where he belongs. He's one of the best coaches in college baseketball and he knows how to get the most out of his players. Each year he gets the best recruits in the state and around the country drop everything and come to MSU.
What do you think of Izzo staying? If you're a Michigan fan, did you shed a few tears when the announcement was made because it might be a few more years now before the Wolverine basketball program can keep pace with the Spartans.
I'd love to read your thoughts.

Until next time, have a great day.