Liveblogging: Detroit Tigers @ Minnesota Twins, 9/23/13

Torii Hunter strikes again with his second double and then is driven in by (who else) Miguel Cabrera, who looks to be playing through the pain. The Tigers just got another one and it doesn't look like the Twins are likely to score too many more runs off Verlander, so I'm going to sign off after this inning. In other news, the A's have taken a 2-1 lead in Anaheim, looking to at least keep pace with the Tigers in the home field advantage battle. Middle of the 7th Inning (and wake me up if this isn't the final score): DET - 3, MIN - 0

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Twin traitor Torii Hunter finally drove in this game's first run in the 5th with a big ground rule double, complete with bat-flip. But that's all they can get with Miguel Cabrera striking out and Prince Fielder grounding out to the pitcher. I'm scared that with Cabrera's injury situation, if he can come back and contribute a couple of key hits down the stretch, the comparison's to Kirk Gibson's 1988 performance will be forthcoming, which are particularly painful to recall, due to my allegiances. If you'll recall, Gibson once played for the Tigers, making the comparison a little more relevant.

1-0 lead as we head into the 5th notwithstanding, I can't help but feeling as if the Tigers might be on a one way trip to cokesville, population Eric Chavez (or should I say "Choke-vez") based on the way they're getting mowed down my Mets castoff Mike Pelfrey. Sure it looks like we're seeing vintage Verlander, but remember it is the Twins after all. Speaking of the Twins, young catcher Josmil Pinto made the last out of the inning, but as his .362 average over his first 16 games shows, the kid can hit. A lineup featuring him behind the plate, Oswaldo Arcia in left field (not in the lineup tonight due to a batting practice injury) and a healthy Joe Mauer at first could look pretty good in a few years. End of the 5th Inning: DET - 1, MIN - 0

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One cool thing about watching a Twins broadcast is getting to hear deserving Hall of Fame player Bert Blyleven as part of the team calling balls and strikes. In the baseball universe depicted in my baseball card collection, I included Blyleven on the team made up of cards from my Donruss 1990 set (his first year pitching for the California Angels) but left him off my Topps 1992 team (pictured), due to the fact that he did not pitch at all the previous year. It's a nice card though, and seeing as it's going for up to two American dollars on eBay, I guess I'll give him a position of honor in a sleeve.

A player of whom I don't have a card is pitching tonight for the Tigers: Justin Verlander, who has gone unbeaten against the Twins since 2010. He also victimized the Oakland Athletics in last year's division series, facing them in Game 1 at his home of Comerica Park (despite the fact that the A's had home field advantage) and then again to end the series at the O.co Colosseum. In case you hadn't heard, the A's won their division yesterday, for the second year in a row, and if the season ended today, they would face these Tigers in the American League Division Series. However, the season does not end today, and the Tigers still need two wins to lock up the division, while the A's are now just playing for the same home field advantage that so screwed them last year.

It is all but certain that if the Tigers manage to lock up their division with enough time left to set their ideal playoff rotation, Justin Verlander will NOT start Game 1 of the ALDS. As of now, he is not first, not second, but THIRD on his team in pitching points with 1,680 (52.8 Points Per Game) compared to last year's full season total of a staggering 2,722 (82.5 PPG). Luckily for the Tigers, Max Scherzer is on track to notch stats about on par with the 2012 edition of Verlander, currently sitting at 2,665 (86.0 PPG). Surprising SP2 Anibal Sanchez (1,977 with 70.6 PPG) is turning into one of the smartest-looking free agent re-signings this year. In the fourth starter spot, Doug Fister is no slouch, scoring 1,583 total points with 51.1 PPG so far.

The reason I'm obsessing so much about Detroit's rotation is because I want to compare it position-for-position to the A's, who they will most likely face to start October. I wouldn't dare write something like this before the A's clinched their division, but I have no worries about jinxing things for Detroit. I'd be totally happy if Cleveland steamrolled from behind and earned a spot, with Tampa Bay and Texas facing off in the Wild Card game, if only because then the A's wouldn't have to go up against this incredibly talented top four. But I think Oakland has some pretty impressive pitching weapons to trot out there as well.

First is the ageless wonder Bartolo Colon, who missed time due to a PED suspension last year and due to injuries this year, but still leads A's pitchers in points and PPG. Compared to his prospective opponents, he sits somewhere between Sanchez and Verlander: 1,882 with 64.9 PPG. He clearly doesn't have the raw stuff of Scherzer, but he has been in the league while Scherzer was still going through puberty, so I wouldn't count the old work horse out. Starting our hypothetical Game 2 would be the underrated A's homegrown prospect A.J. Griffin, whose bushy moustache and flowing locks recall some of Blyleven's teammates in the 1970s. Then Jarrod Parker, who started the season poorly but has had only one loss in his last 21 starts. For the fourth game, the A's now have some choices. They could go with lefty Tommy Milone, a playoff starter last year who nevertheless had to spend some time in the minors in '13 to refine his mechanics, Rookie strikeout specialist Dan Straily, the narrow leader in points between the two (1,177 to 1,149), or 2013 debutant Sonny Gray, who has the highest PPG among any of them since his call-up from the minor leagues (56.5 to 45.3 and 42.6). Whoever is not chosen to start could also serve out of the bullpen, along with oft-injured lefty Brett Anderson who has seemed to embrace a bullpen role since returning from a long absence.

Going into the Tigers offense, it looks like their biggest weapon is injured, injured bad. To watch him try to hobble down to first base after grounding out in the first inning would have made me feel bad if he wasn't such an integral part of ending the A's season last year. Speaking of bad injuries, Prince Fielder currently leads the league in consecutive appearances with nearly a season's worth of consecutive games more than runner-up Adam Jones. Someone who was just starting to creep their way onto the "Iron Man" list played the same position as the current all-time leader - Orioles 3B Manny Machado - almost certainly had his streak snapped with a gruesome knee injury. All us fans of the sport wish him the best in his recovery.

Cabrera (2,782 with 19.5 PPG) has just gotten on base via a "seeing-eye single" in the third inning, and it'll be interesting to see how he runs the bases with the significant goin/oblique issues he's going through. Oakland's point leader also plays third base: Josh Donaldson has eclipsed the 2,000 point plateau for the first time in his first full season in the majors (2,089 with 13.7 PPG, far behind Cabrera, but eclipsing Prince Fielder's 2,019 and 12.9, who just grounded out to end the inning). But two of their other main offensive players have had their troubles with injuries: Yoenis Cespedes, 2013's Home Run Derby champion, is nursing a sore shoulder while Coco Crisp has missed plenty of time with various problems on the road to a career high in home runs himself.

"Sweet Home Alabama" blares over the PA system as former Oakland Athletic Josh Willingham comes up to bat with two outs in the bottom of the third inning, both Justin Verlander strikeouts. And it's not long until the Fox Sports Theme plays after Willingham's second strikeout of the day makes it 8 total of Verlander. Now I know it's just the Twins, but if JV's returning to his top form, making the playoffs shouldn't be too hard for this Tigers team after all. End of the 3rd Inning, no score.