Once you have started to do this you also need to consider whether you want to bet on one of the real favorites, meaning a lower odds bet with concomitantly lower winnings, or a bit more of an outside, higher odds bet – which would mean a higher payout if the bet proved successful. An example of this in action would be those who bet on the Baltimore Ravens, who had odds of 22/1 in last season’s NFL, as the Ravens ultimately went on to win the Super Bowl. This is where you need the background knowledge of the teams, to be able to spot the sides with the strengths to be able to upset the odds.

It can be quite a bit of work for those outside America to develop this knowledge, but one of the more fun ways of introducing yourself to the MLB is to play a slots game like Hot Shot at an online casino. To try Download here!.This game features reels surrounded by a green baseball field, bats and balls and will let you hear the murmurs of the watching crowd (which turn to roars if you secure a winning reel with the gold cup scatter symbol in it). Thus it should have lots of appeal to those keen to learn more about baseball, but it will also appeal to slots fans thanks to the $2000 maximum cash jackpot, and the cheap play (coins as low as $0.25), meaning that Hot Shot is a game with something for everyone.

Leyland’s quote:

"I will not use the player's name, but according to the sabermetrics there is a player that is better than Miguel Cabrera. So when the guy that gave me the sabermetrics told me that, I said, 'Well, should we trade Miguel Cabrera for the player you're talking about?' He said, 'Oh, no, you can't do that.'

"And I said, 'Well, then you don't believe in sabermetrics. And neither do I.' "

There’s actually three separate questions at play here that we should separate out first. (1) Who’s the better player, (2) who’s having the better season, and (3) who would you rather have on your team.

Question three is a completely different (though related) question. One could debate that Cabrera’s the better player (and I might concede that), but I don’t see any reason why you wouldn’t trade Cabrera for Trout in a player-for-player deal. If Dombrowski picked up the phone and the Angels organization was on the other line offering the trade, he’d say yes before the full question was even articulated.

The real issue at play here is their relative salaries. Cabrera is owed $65 million for the 2013-2015 seasons. Trout, on the other hand, will make the league minimum (or thereabouts) for 2013 and 2014, and will be an arbitration eligible player for the 2015-2017 seasons. So, from here through 2017, Trout might earn around $40 million.

This question is less about who’s a better player in a head-to-head comparison, and more about what you could do with your available payroll. Trout would give the team two extra years of servitude while eating a significantly lower chunk of the total payroll pie. So the question becomes what would you rather have: three years of Cabrera, or five years of Trout plus a simultaneous year of a top-tier free agent (or two years of a medium-tier free agent)?

Or put a slightly different way, would you rather the Tigers enter 2013 with Cabrera (and Prince Fielder and Victor Martinez), or with Trout and Josh Hamilton (and Prince Fielder and Victor Martinez)?

I’ll take what’s behind door number ‘B’.

Of course, it’s entirely possible that Leyland wasn’t actual speaking about an actual trade and still speaking in a purely statistical comparison, and that would make this post entirely pointless, but salary isn’t a factor that should be ignored if one was actually considering such a trade offer or proposal*.

*Obviously this whole thing is hypothetical. The Angels would never make such an offer.

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.

According to Cool Standings, the Tigers have a 30.7% chance of making the playoffs (broken down that’s a 27.2% chance of winning the division and a 3.6% chance of a Wild Card berth). That’s up nearly ten full percentage points from a day ago. So pretty much this: flip a coin twice. Did you get two heads? If so, the Tigers are going to win the division. Didn’t get two heads? Well there’s still about a 5% chance they get in anyway.

Baseball Prospectus is slightly more bullish on the Tigers’ chances for October. According to their playoff odds report, Detroit has a 34.9% chance of playing postseason baseball (29.4% to win the division and 5.5% for a Wild Card spot). Yesterday’s results meant a boost of just over 11% to the Tigers’ overall playoff odds. Roll a die. Did you get a one or a two? Then the Tigers are playing extra baseball. Did you get a three or higher? Well then, hopefully 2013 is a good year.

Scoreboard watching:

Tigers vs. Athletics, 1:05 PM – Tommy Milone (3.81 ERA) vs. Anibal Sanchez (4.19 ERA in the AL)

White Sox vs. Royals, 8:05 PM – Francisco Liriano (5.24 ERA) vs. Jeremy Guthrie (3.13 ERA in the AL)

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.

Had it been any other pitcher on the staff – save the recent (if healthy) version of Max Scherzer – we would have raved about his “gutty” outing, but it’s a disappointment when Verlander “only” lasts six innings while being unable to impose his will on the opposing batters. For 90% of the season we’ve been used to an automatic eight innings of zero-to-two run ball.

But I must suppose that even Justin Verlander can’t be a full-fledged cyborg, so one must accept a certain number of rough outings. I just vote that we see this type of laborious effort rather than the nine-runs allowed kind. Those kind somehow feel less fun.

But the story of the game wasn’t Justin Verlander (or his pursuit of a second consecutive Cy Young Award), it was again Miguel Cabrera. Cabrera blasted a solo homer in the 7th inning (that gave Detroit a 5-0 lead at the time) – his third homer in the last two days. The home run was utterly meaningless to the outcome of the game, but it was number 41 on the year which brings him within one of AL leader Josh Hamilton. Cabrera already leads the AL in batting average and RBI, so now the Triple Crown is a very real possibility.

The debate rages on around the internet about whether or not Cabrera would be able to pass (assumed) leader Mike Trout for the AL MVP award should he accomplish the rare Triple Crown feat – I would personally still vote for Trout – but not to be ignored is the fact that Cabrera is having one of the all-time great years (or stretch of years) in Tigers’ history. He’s truly a generational hitter (or, rather, an every-other generational). He’s the type of hitter that will get a statue in the Comerica Park concourse and a likeness cast and placed in a certain museum in Cooperstown. Absorbing the memories and appreciating what he’s doing at the plate is more important than a fleeting yearly award.

Anyway, the Tigers beat the Athletics 6-2 (they’ve now outscored them 18-4 in the two games) and the White Sox lost to the Royals 3-0, so the Tigers gain a game in the division race and now sit just two games back. That’s still a sizeable deficit with only 14 games left to play, but making up the difference is certainly not out of the realm of possibilities. Especially when considering the remaining schedules of each team (the Tiger’s having the easier road). Still, there’s little room left to breathe and each Detroit loss from here on out would be a big detriment to their chances. But they’ve shown the last two days that they’re not about to give up.

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.

There’s no doubt that the Tigers are in “must win” mode from here on out, and the team certainly played like that was the case on Tuesday night. Detroit pummeled Oakland by a 12-2 margin despite losing starting pitcher Max Scherzer after only two innings due to what was dubbed shoulder fatigue. Scherzer was immediately sent for an MRI which showed no damage, but the team will play it safe and shut him down for a few days before re-evaluating his condition.

It goes without saying that the Tigers can’t count on making the playoffs – or making any sort of run in the playoffs – without a healthy Max Scherzer who’s been lights out for a stretch. It doesn’t appear as though he’ll be making his next scheduled start, but I don’t think that’s been officially ruled out at this point either. His rest-of-season playing time may depend on how competitive the team stays in the division race.

The bullpen filled in admirably in his absence. Darin Downs, Brayan Villarreal, Phil Coke, Joaquin Benoit, and Luis Marte combined for seven innings of one-run ball, scattering six hits and two walks to go along with five strikeouts.

• It was announced that that Alex Avila was not medically cleared to play after taking a Prince Fielder elbow to the head the other day, but the Tigers say he did not suffer a concussion. He’s considered day-to-day.
• Quintin Berry (2-4, 2B) left the game in the seventh inning with a shoulder injury after diving for, and missing, a fly ball. X-rays were negative.
• The Chicago White Sox defeated the Kansas City Royals 3-2, so they remain three games ahead of Detroit in the AL Central standings. You could say the win meant little because of Chicago's win as well, but the A's are the toughest team left on the Tigers schedule (two games remain), but Chicago still has seven to play versus the likes of Los Angels and Tampa Bay.

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.

In a micro sense, the two losses were a near-killer for the team’s playoff chances and a huge disappointment. In a more macro view, the team split the four-game series with Chicago and took the three-game series with Cleveland which is nearly all you could expect from a seven game stretch on the road. Either way, it leaves the Tigers three games out with sixteen games to play – not an easy gap to bridge.

The Tigers have a relatively easy schedule ahead – with the caveat that “easy” games down the stretch against teams such as the Royals haven’t been easy for this club to convert into wins in past years – so a 10-6 or 11-5 record isn’t completely out of the question. But even if Detroit was to finish up 11-5 (that’s one loss per remaining series), they would need to hope for an 8-8 record from the White Sox just to force a tie-break game. Needless to say, each loss from here on out will cut significantly into their comeback chances.

The Wildcard is now out of the question. The Tigers are 5.5 games out of the second spot, and even a sweep of Oakland (6.5 games ahead and in the first Wild Card spot) wouldn’t put them within immediate striking distance (unless Baltimore, Tampa Bay, and Los Angeles – to some extent – all begin collapsing at the same time).

In reality, the Tigers only hope at this point is to sweep a series or three and hope the White Sox stumble in some of their more difficult matchups (they still have a series each remaining with Los Angeles and Tampa Bay). It’s not time to bury them yet, but the end may indeed be nigh.

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.

That’s all.

But they hadn’t been able to do it lately. Entering Friday, the Tigers had won only six of their previous fifteen games. Included in that was a 1-5 record versus the Indians and Royals. Not strong. Detroit, of course, had taken care of business against the White Sox (they’re 8-1 versus Chicago since the All-Star break), but they weren’t going to stand a chance in winning the division if they couldn’t beat anyone else.

But they proceeded to roll past Cleveland on Friday – hopefully a sign that they’re going to turn a corner and seriously make a run at the division. Of course one game doesn’t prove anything, especially in baseball where the outcome of a single game is probably determined more by random variation than pure relative skill. Unless you have Justin Verlander. And the Tigers have Justin Verlander.

The reigning (and likely repeat) AL Cy Young winner gave seven scoreless innings scattering six hits while striking out six. The win puts pressure back on the White Sox to keep pace ahead of Monday’s make-up game. (For what it’s worth, the Sox are leading the Twins convincingly in the ninth inning).

It remains to be seen what will happen on Saturday and Sunday when Anibal Sanchez and Rick Porcello take the mound against Cleveland, but it goes without saying that starting the series with a win is better than a loss. One couldn’t point to any single remaining game on Detroit’s schedule and call it a “must win”, but it’s imperative to win series against sub-par competition.

Beside the one game remaining against each other, the Tigers only remaining opponent above .500 is the Oakland Athletics. The White Sox still have to play series against the Los Angeles Angels and Tampa Bay Rays.

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.

Valverde blew two of his first six save opportunities of the season, and two games into May he carried an ERA over 6.00, a WHIP of 1.80, only one more strikeout (8) than walks allowed (7), and an OPS against over .900.

But that was really the end of his struggles. We’ve made snarky rollercoaster comments on Twitter every time he’s come out in the ninth – and he certainly has made things interesting on occasion – but he’s been very good over his last 46 outings (since May 6). Valverde has converted 24-of-26 save opportunities (92%), allowed an ERA of 3.00, a WHIP of 1.08, and allowed opposing hitters to hit for a .206/.286/.297 slash line. That’s very, very good.

For all the talk of the “disappointing offense” and the bottom of the order producing nothing, most of the difference between last year’s 95 win team and this year’s (likely) 89-91 win team could be summed up in Valverde’s save percentage. If Valverde “only” ended up converting 90% of his opportunities a year ago, the Tigers would have “only” been a 90-91 win team (for his career, he’s saved 89% of his opportunities). This year he’s converted 88% of his opportunities and the club appears to be headed for the neighborhood of 90 wins.

He’s not been perfect (even recently), but the “oh no, he’s going to blow it” sentiment hasn’t been true in a long time. Valverde has really stepped up his game in the last few months which is good because he’s still a critical member of this team, and they’re going to need him if they hope to put the White Sox behind them for good.

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.

It wasn’t necessarily a pretty game for the Tigers. Starting pitcher Doug Fister labored through five innings allowing four walks and a home run while recording only a pair of strikeouts, but the White Sox never could quite take advantage of his lack of crispness on the mound. Perhaps he’s still feeling some lingering effects of the injury that caused him to miss his last start, or maybe he’s just a bit rusty after not pitching for ten days. Either way it felt nice to escape with the win.

For Young, it was the cap to a fantastic month at the plate. He finished August with a robust .313/.350/.521 with a season low in strikeouts (11) and a season high in extra base hits (12).

The back end of the bullpen was excellent in the winning effort. Octavio Dotel, Joaquin Benoit, and Jose Valverde combined for 3.2 innings in relief with five strikeouts, a single walk, and only one hit allowed. The highlight of this group was Benoit’s perfect eighth inning in which he struck out all three batters he faced.

The Tigers turn their attention to Saturday night where they’ll battle left-hander Francisco Liriano (at the plate) and the University of Michigan football team (for viewership).

Matt  Snyder writes about Baseball, Football, and College Basketball. He can be found online as the creator and editor of Forever Faithful, the editor of The Tigers Den, a contributor to Call To The Pen, and a contributor to SideLion Report. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.