Detroit Tigers Notes And Quotes 5-26-11

--RHP Brad Penny had his start washed out by the rain and, having pitched three shutout innings, he won't pitch again until his turn comes up in the rotation. Penny has pitched well recently, utilizing his two-seam fastball to get a lot of ground ball outs. His reputation might still be as a pitcher with a mid-90s fastball who blows high fastballs past hitters, but so far this year he's topped out at 94 mph, and then only occasionally. Like RHP Rick Porcello, Penny is most effective when his fastball, the two-seam variety, is down in the strike zone at 89-92 mph. He gets his strikeouts on changeups, split-fingers and the occasional well-spotted heater.

--3B Brandon Inge was not in the starting lineup for the second straight game, probably a subtle message that his 38-game stretch with a .190 batting average isn't getting it done. UTL Don Kelly has started for Inge both games, the second of which won't go into the record books because of rain. Inge provides more power and run production than Kelly, but not at .190.

--3B Don Kelly had a single washed out by rain Wednesday after getting two hits Monday night as Detroit's third baseman. Kelly was hitting second for manager Jim Leyland, as much of a problem as 3B Brandon Inge's lack off offense this season. The Tigers have used their second basemen, first Will Rhymes and then Scott Sizemore, in the No. 2 spot in the batting order but both have struggled to hit .200. Kelly makes contact and can bunt, which makes him a productive option behind CF Austin Jackson when the leadoff hitter is getting on base.

--LF Andy Dirks has been the choice to play left field against right-handed pitching in recent games. Dirks made two excellent catches of fly balls near or beyond the left field foul line recently, which might not have been by an outfielder wearing a glove on his left hand. Dirks throws and bats left-handed. While his batting average isn't much higher than Ryan Raburn's, he makes contact, puts the ball in play and goes a nice job of taking outside pitches the other way. Raburn offers more power, but has fizzled in May after a decent first month of the season.

--LHP Phil Coke is staying in the Detroit rotation when he returns from the disabled list. "He'll be back out there," manager Jim Leyland said. "There was never any talk about putting him back in the bullpen. Someone thought we were doing that. That's absolutely not true at this stage, hasn't been true, and still isn't." Detroit brought up two southpaws who were in Triple-A Toledo's rotation, Charlie Furbush and Adam Wilk, and is bringing up a third, Andy Oliver. Furbush and Wilk will work out of the bullpen but Oliver comes up Saturday to make two starts for Coke, who bruised a bone in his right foot Monday and will be out two weeks.

--C Alex Avila might be a heaver hitter this season because he's using a heavier bat. Avila, at the urging of new teammate Victor Martinez, switched from a 31- to a 33-ounce bat this spring. He hit his eighth home run Tuesday, one more than he hit last season, and has 27 RBI, four fewer than last year. "The thinking behind a heavier bat is that when you hit the ball, you don't have to put as much effort in the swing for the ball to jump," Avila said. "I don't know how much that's helped, but it helps me concentrate on keeping things simple, rather than trying to do much or muscle up when I'm swinging." He goes to a 32 1/2-oounce bat when he feels tired. The catcher is 3-for-3 against left-handed relievers this season and overall is 6-for-28 (.214) against southpaws. Avila, hitting .292, said it wouldn't bother him to hit higher in the batting order. "My approach would be the same whether I'm hitting eighth, first, ninth or second," Avila said. "After the first inning, it doesn't matter where you're hitting in the order. Everything just goes along as the game plays out."

--2B Scott Sizemore, pushed down to ninth in the batting order, had a hit washed out by Wednesday's rained-out game after getting two hits the previous night. "He's taking too many pitches to hit, from what I've seen," manager Jim Leyland said. "All good hitters swing at a bad pitch every now and then." Sizemore had hit exclusively in the second spot since being brought up from the minors, but was 2-for-19 until being dropped in the order. "I'm not being passive, I'm just being too patient," Sizemore said. "Really, what I'm trying to do is be more aggressive in the strike zone and be offensive, not defensive."

BY THE NUMBERS
3 -- Hits by C Alex Avila against left-handed relief pitchers this season. He has batted against left-handed relievers only three times and his last hit was a game-winning two-run home run Tuesday night.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"My approach would be the same whether I'm hitting eighth, first, ninth or second. After the first inning, it doesn't matter where you're hitting in the order. Everything just goes along as the game plays out." -- C Alex Avila, who generally has hit seventh or eighth, commenting on what it would be like if manager Jim Leyland moved him higher in the order.

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