http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com/news/...23&content_id=40002454&vkey=news_det&c_id=det
Tigers a championship team months in the making.
from the Tigers official site
OK, who are these Tigers now? They're 16-5 since September 24. No team has better starting pitching, and that's the No. 1 reason they should win the World Series. Baseball's best offensive player, Cabrera, is the centerpiece of their offense. And the Detroit bullpen is riding an unexpected hero, Phil Coke.
What could derail the Tigers? They've got their pitching lined up, they're rested, and they're confident.
If Verlander comes out and picks up where he left off in the ALCS, it'll be a terrific sign for the Tigers. Their rotation allowed two earned runs in 27 1/3 innings in the ALCS sweep of the Yankees and has a 1.38 ERA for the entire postseason. If they keep that momentum, they're probably unbeatable.
The Giants aren't going to win if Verlander is executing his pitches the way he did against the A's and Yankees. And the guys behind him -- Fister, Sanchez and Scherzer -- have been tremendous in the postseason.
There could be some mild concern about the workload of those starters. Verlander is at 262 innings, which is nine shy of his 2011 career high. And he did show some wear and tear at the end last season.
So far, he has given no indication that he's tiring. In his last two starts, he threw 254 pitches while allowing one earned run in 17 1/3 innings. Sanchez has pitched a career-high 208 innings, and Scherzer, who is at 197 innings, is approaching his, as well.
