Meow

Maybe the Tigers just aren't meant to beat the Twins in Minnesota. Detroit has struggled for years there (8-30 the last four season including a 5-5 slate in '04) and the first trip of '05 is not off to a start that make us Motor City Kitties fans jump for joy.

Troy Percival, the Tigers big-ticket free agent signing, hadn't given up an earned run against the Twins in 10 years, the length of his career, all with the Angels. That was a span of 39 games and 40 innings. WAS a span because it ended Tuesday night when Minnesota beat Percival and the Tigs 5-4.

Making matters worse is the fact Detroit's former closer, Ugie Urbina, failed to hold a 4-3 lead in the eighth. And starter Mike Maroth couldn't keep hold of a 3-1 advantage in the 5th inning. Oh well, it's a long season and that's just the first of 19 games between the Tigers and three-time defending AL Central champs.

However, I recently saw a story in the Detroit Free Press that began, "Casey Stengel, the Kansas City native who became a Hall of Fame manager, is said to have believed in this guideline: No matter what, a major league team usually will win one-third and lose one-third of its games every season. The remaining one-third are up to that team -- the one-third that determine whether the team finishes first, last or in between."

If this formula is correct, the Tigers are showing signs of being an also-ran rather than a contender. Detroit is 3-4 with wins of 11-2, 7-3 and 11-1. The losses have been 7-2, 4-3, 7-6 and 5-4.

The 11-2 and 11-1 wins obviously go into the "win one-third" category and the 7-2 loss goes into the "lose one-third" category. The remainder leaves Detroit 1-3 in the "up to that team" category.

Of course, the fact that I'm considering the Tigers' chances of being a contender just one season removed from 119 losses is remarkable.