What a
game! What a pitchers' duel! Verlander was dominant, and it seemed
early on very similar to that playoff game from last year against the
A's. It felt like nobody had a chance off Verlander. He was using all 5
of his pitches and was just plain filthy. Painting 97 on the outside
black, going up and in with fastballs for swings and misses, dropping
the big breaking ball for called third strikes
,etc. I really enjoyed getting a chance to watch him pitch live. I
liked the clear excitement he shows and the desire he has to be on the
mound. Immediately after the Tigers made their 3rd out of an inning,
Verlander was already headed out to the mound with some bounce in his
step. I hope every Marlins pitcher was watching him today b/c that is
exactly what you want anyone to emulate. He carries himself so well, and
he exudes greatness.
Still, at the end of the day, Henderson
Alvarez was AWESOME today! I was worried we were gonna "Pedro Martinez"
him. Thankfully that 9th inning went the way it did. I heard a lot of
hype about Henderson Alvarez when he was coming up in the Blue Jays'
minor league system. Everyone knew about his electric fastball and the
nasty movement on his 2 seamer that he throws at 93-96. I watched him
when he came up as much as I could and got a chance to see him dominate
the Yankees in a meaningful game last September. I was really happy to
hear his name as part of that trade last November. There has always been
questions about whether or not Henderson Alvarez can remain a starter,
as he hasnt shown much in secondary offerings, but I saw him show a good
changeup at times in Toronto, and he has shown it a bit this year.
Today he threw a couple of slow breaking balls, that I'm pretty sure I
never saw him throw before, and they were both good, with 1 helping him
record a nasty strikeout. For all of the people that said he cant be a
starting pitcher, including myself, he threw it in our face today, and I
couldnt be happier. Today there was some real electricity in the
ballpark, and it was an awesome atmosphere. Dont usually get a chance to
say that about games down here, and since I average 70 games a season, I
know what I'm talking about there. Regardless of what has happened this
season, the team has played hard, and we have seen the development of
some of these young players, especially the pitching staff. There are
more on the way, and the future feels bright (ignoring Loria for now).
Winning 5 of the last 6 games and sweeping the Tigers to end the season,
with THAT performance really makes the rest of the season feel a lot
better. I dont know about anyone else, but I'm pumped for 2014!!!
