Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan • 16

DETROIT FREE PRESS WWW.FREEP.COM 4B MONDAY, AUG. 13. 2007 2" EiTorless Polanco ties 2B record Tigers schedule Home games shaded. "Also on ESPN. TIGERS CORNER ByJONPAULMOROSI Mil PRESS SPORTS WRITER Heisman winner wants job QB Smith vying for Ravens roster NFL ROUNDUP FRtE PRtSS NEWS SERVICES sun ImonI tue Jwed THU FRI SAT 12 13 14 15 16 17 18.

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K.C. K.C. Oak. Oak 1:05 7:05 8:10 8:10 2:10 10:05 3:55 Ch. 21 FSN I FSN I FSN I FSN I FSN I Fox '-4v i jS evident last year: The Tigers slumped when he missed five weeks with a separated shoulder and excelled as he batted .529 in the American League Championship Series.

"Polanco is amazing," Brandon Inge said. "He's the guy that, if you want to put a team together, you want nine of him." Inge said he has grown so accustomed to Polanco's steady play that, when a ball is hit to second base with two outs, "I catch myself sometimes heading toward the dugout." Polanco has yet to win a Gold Glove. When asked if Polanco deserved to win it this year, Inge said, "Absolutely. If he doesn't, it's a crock." VASQUEZ OR Tigers manager Jim Leyland declined to reveal who would be called up from the minors to start Wednesday in Cleveland, but it will likely be Triple-A Toledo right-hander Virgil Vasquez or Double-A Erie right-hander Jair Jurrjens. Jurrjens is a strong candidate, for several reasons: nuth, who sustained multiple facial fractures while attempting to be a peacemaker during a fight in the Toledo clubhouse two months ago, has rejoined the Mud Hens' active roster, according to his agent, Mike Mosa.

Shortstop Ramon Santiago has also been activated from the disabled list at Toledo a key development, given the Tigers' need for improved infield defense down the stretch. FAMILY AFFAIR: An added bonus for Magglio Ordonez on Sunday: His father, Maglio, and his son, Magglio were at Comerica Park to see him homer twice in the second inning. "They're having a blast," Ordonez said. Andrew Miller was pleased with his 10-minute bullpen session on Sunday and is still on course to make a minor league rehabilitation start for Toledo on Wednesday. Yorman Bazardo rejoined the Tigers' active roster on Sunday and allowed one unearned run in 22s innings.

Eulogio De La Cruz was optioned to Toledo before the game. Tigers first baseman Sean Casey congratulated Placido Polanco after Detroit's victory on Sunday afternoon, and, at first, Polanco wasn't sure why. Then Polanco heard the announcement and saw the scoreboard in leftfield: He had just tied Luis Castillo's major league record with 143 consecutive errorless games at second base. "It's an honor," Polanco said. "I take a lot of pride in that.

I do believe we can win a lot of games, just by having good defense. "The defense can be there every day. You might be a great hitting team, but you're not going to hit every day." Polanco is reluctant to discuss individual achievements "Who cares if I hit I'd rather win games," he said Sunday which partially explains why he is so widely respected in the Detroit clubhouse. His impact, as a run scorer I He is 3-0 with a 0.78 ERA in his last three starts, including an Aug. 1 shutout at New Britain.

I His next start had been scheduled for Tuesday, so he would be well-rested. I The Indians have several prominent left-handed hitters including Grady Sizemore, Kenny Lofton, Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez (switch) and Jurrjens has held lefthanders to a .248 batting average this season. HEALED: Reliever Jason Kar- GEORGE BRIDGESMcClatclwy-Tribune Troy Smith will make his NFL debut tonight for the Ravens. He's hoping for a third-string QB spot. summer.

McNair is expected to start for the Ravens. He will probably play one series before giving away to Boiler, with Olson and Smith to follow. Quarterback Donovan McNabb won't play for the Eagles. NcNabb's first game action since he tore the ACL in his right knee last November will come Friday night when the Eagles host Carolina in the home preseason opener, coach Andy Reid said. BUFFALO: The Bills are considering releasing defensive end Anthony Hargrove after he landed in trouble for the second time in a week.

"Releasing him is an option," coach Dick Jauron said after the NFL suspended Hargrove for the first four regular-season games without pay for violating the league's substance abuse policy. The suspension capped a difficult week for Hargrove, who was arrested and charged with and run stopper, was especially BALTIMORE The last time Troy Smith played a significant football game, he was vying for a national championship. In his NFL debut tonight, the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner will be competing for a job. Smith and former UCLA standout Drew Olson are seeking to begin the season as the Baltimore Ravens' third-string quarterback behind Steve McNair and Kyle Boiler. The duel begins in earnest against the Philadelphia Eagles in the preseason opener for both teams.

The winner gets a spot on the roster with a team that has high hopes for reaching the Super Bowl. "I'm getting a chance and opportunity to be part of something special here, and it's my first Monday night football game. It means a lot," Smith said. If nothing else, Smith will have another game to think about instead of the debacle in the BCS title game, when unbeaten Ohio State got blown out by Florida 41-14. The 6-foot Smith, Baltimore's fifth-round pick in the draft, has been deemed by some critics to be too small to play in the NFL.

The 6-2 Olson has the edge in height and experience, having played in the preseason as a rookie last year and in NFL Europa over the VK-, ERNIE HARWELL BASEBALL three misdemeanors stemming from a confrontation with police outside a Rochester night club in the early morning of Aug. 5. Police say Hargrove broke an officer's glasses. He pleaded not guilty to the charges and is scheduled to appear in court Aug. 21.

SEATTLE 24, SAN DIEGO 16: The Seahawks got the go-ahead points on a 36-yard field goal from Josh Brown with 7:18 left Sunday. Brown had missed a 41-yard attempt, but got a second chance when the Chargers were penalized for having 12 on the field. I zA HVt' i LIONS I Duckett could be short-yardage specialist August trio for 72 Tigers Lately there has been much discussion about whether the Tigers should acquire new strength for the stretch drive. To trade or not to trade? That is the question. During the 1972 season, Tigers general manager Jim Campbell faced a similar decision.

That team didn't have the glamour of Detroit's 1968 and 1984 World Champions. But it did win the division with manager Billy Martin's gang of fading veterans and cast-offs. In August, Campbell made three moves that brought the title to Detroit. He added Frank Howard from Texas, Duke Sims from the Dodgers and Woodie Fryman from the Phils. Fryman proved to be the best addition.

The 32-year-old left-hander was near the end of his trail. His Philadelphia record that season was 4-10. But he found new life with Detroit, going 10-3 and pitching a four-hit victory to clinch the division title. Howard's contribution was From Page IB JULIAN GONZALEZDetroit Free Press Magglio Ordonez, right, gets a hand from Carlos Guillen after Ordonez' second homer of the second inning Sunday. Hall of Famer Al Kaline is the only other Tiger to homer twice in one inning.

TIGERS I Maggs tags two in 2nd inning Exhibit Matchup: Lions (1-0) at Cleveland Browns (1-0). When: 7 p.m. Saturday. TV: WKBD-TV (Channel 50). ing for his place on the team.

Asked how he thought he fit in and if things had gone the way he had envisioned, Duckett said quickly: "I'm just working. I just put my head down and just do what I can. Come to work every day, work hard and just how everything works out at the end. Just want to come out and have a From Page IB donez guided it toward the opposite field, with enough force to carry it over the 330-foot sign in the corner. When asked how many hitters were capable of hitting that particular home run, on that particular pitch, Inge said, "Proba spot and be able to make an im pact." Later, he said: "There's a lot of people, a lot of backs.

Just trying to find my role, trying to get it and make something happen and get an opportunity. donez on Sunday became the first Tiger with consecutive 100-RBI seasons since Dean Palmer in 1999 and 2000. All from a man who leads the majors with a .357 batting average. "I've never played with a guy like this," Detroit third baseman Brandon Inge said. "He's the best offensive player that I've ever played with." Ordonez, already adored here for his pennant clincher (against these same A's) last October, was asked about the historical significance of Sunday's feat "I know that when I retire, they're going to have one of my pictures somewhere around here," he said, smiling.

"They'd better, huh?" Ordonez's first home run landed, fittingly, near the "Ka-line's Corner" sign in rightfield and, although it did not travel as far as the second, it might have been even more impressive. The pitch was a fastball, on the inner half of the plate, yet Or NOTEBOOK: The Lions were a little ornery during Sunday's morning practice. Center Dominic Raio-la kicked over a cooler of Gator- club adviser Al Kaline was in attendance at Comerica on Sunday afternoon. Kaline accomplished the feat on April 17, 1955, in the sixth inning of a 16-0 victory over the Kansas City Athletics, at what was then Briggs Stadium. "Unbelievable," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said, after watching Ordonez drive home half of his team's eight runs in the inning.

"All the years of the Tigers and only two guys have ever done it." For Detroit, at least, it has been rarer than a no-hitter. (The club has had six of those.) According to David Vincent, the noted home run historian, Ordonez is the second big leaguer to do it this season San Francisco's Bengie Molina was the other and the first to accomplish the feat against the same pitcher since Montreal's Juan Rivera in 2004. As if a twice-a-century achievement wasn't enough, Or bly one. The Tigers ended the inning with an 8-2 lead and won comfortably behind Nate Robertson (5J8 innings, four earned runs), who earned his first victory since July 17. Detroit is in first place for the first time since Aug.

2, and, with a win tonight, would take its first series since mid-July. The second-half stumble an 8-16 record over the last 24 games might be drawing to a close. "We're getting close to some proximity of normalness around here," Leyland said, "but we're not there yet." ade, upset with himself. Defen sive tackle Cory Redding "I watched it a couple times just to see exactly what happened, because I didn't know it came out," Duckett said. "I still couldn't really tell." The simplest explanation: Duckett was trying to do too much.

"I just saw the end zone, and I just was trying to get it in," Duckett said. "Maybe reached out a little bit when I shouldn't have. Take it one more play and then get it in." It wouldn't be surprising if Duckett were pressing a little bit. Training camp doesn't seem to have gone the way he expected it would. After Duckett became a free agent in the off-season, he visited the Lions, Jets and Seahawks.

He signed a one-year contract with the Lions, even though they had already traded for Tatum Bell and had Kevin Jones recovering from a foot injury. The feeling was that Duckett would be a short-yardage specialist He didn't play much in Washington last season, but he racked up 27 rushing touchdowns over the previous three seasons and 31 over the previous four in Atlanta. As a team, the Lions have scored 26 rushing touchdowns over the last three seasons and 31 over the last four. Duckett, however, said he didn't want to be labeled as a short-yardage specialist He said he wanted to compete for everything. And it looked as if he would in the off-season.

He got his fair share of reps in the noncontact drills, and he drew attention for his habit of taking every carry to the house. Duckett reported for training camp looking good. He weighed in at about 250, the lowest in a while. "I'm in the best shape I've been in," Duckett said. But early in camp, offensive coordinator Mike Martz experimented with him at fullback.

"Yeah, I did a little bit," Duckett said. "Something I've never done before. I guess just trying things out, seeing how they went." Duckett hasn't done much of that since, but he has been behind both Bell and Aveion Cason. He is a different kind of back than they are. Still, he seems to be search- not as spectacular, but the big, brawny slugger gave the Tigers some key hits and became an important factor in enhancing the winning atmosphere of Martin's clubhouse.

Sims was a journeyman catcher who sometimes played the outfield. He had never reached the .300 mark in his career. But after batting only .192 in 51 games with the Dodgers in 1972, he jumped to a .316 mark in his 38-game, late-season stint with the Tigers. Martin had convinced Campbell that the team had a chance to win, and the three August acquisitions keyed the Tigers' stretch drive. Both Martin and Campbell found vindication in the success of Campbell's bold moves to strengthen his club.

The 72 Tigers put up a valiant fight but lost to Oakland in an exciting playoff series. For the next two seasons, Campbell made the mistake of depending on his fading veterans too long, and the Tigers slumped into mediocrity. However, Detroit fans can still look back and remember fondly that time when the Tigers won in the stretch drive of '72 because of the August additions of Frank, Woodie and the Duke. Contact JON PAUL MOROSI at 313-223-4097 or jmorositdfreepress.com Check out his Tigers blog at www.freep.comsporta. Mets' catchers can't catch a break fumed, hands on hips.

The coaches did a lot of yelling. "We're back in training camp now," Raiola said. "Just getting wired-in." It was the Lions' first padded practice since Tuesday because of the schedule surrounding Thursday night's exhibition. "I think it's edgy," coach Rod Ma-rinelli said. "I think we're pushing pretty hard, and those things will The coaches surprised the players with a two-minute drill at the end of the morning practice.

"That's when we've got to communicate," Marinelli said. Linebacker Teddy Lehman (shoulder) returned to practice and might play Saturday night at Cleveland. "I was surprised very happy that he came out and got the work in," Marinelli said. Defensive end Kalimba Edwards (shoulder) should return to practice today and play Saturday. Marinelli said he's shooting for defensive end Dewayne White (groin) to play Aug.

25 at Indiana polis. AROUND THE HORN mt PRESS NWS S1RMI IS NEW YORK The New York Mets can't seem to catch a break with injuries, especially to their catchers. On the same day the Mets placed Paul Lo Duca on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained right hamstring, backup catcher Ramon Castro left Sunday's game against the Florida Marlins in the third inning because of back discomfort. An MRI exam showed mild arthritis in Castro's lower back. called up from Triple-A New Orleans, took Castro's place.

He is the only other catcher on the roster. Lo Duca, who hurt his hamstring earlier this month, aggravated the injury Saturday night in the fourth inning after hitting into a force-out at first base. Lo Duca stayed in the game and was replaced by Castro during a pitching change in the top of the seventh. The move was announced Saturday night, and Lo Duca didn't speak to the media. Minaya said that night that Lo Duca wasn't thrilled with the decision.

Lo Duca, who will have an MRI exam today, was in the clubhouse on Sunday dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. "It's frustrating because I want to play," Lo Duca said. "I probably could play through it, but they don't want me to re-injure it, and that's that." CHICAGO CUBS: Outfielder Daryte Ward was activated from the 15-day disabled list, and Cliff Floyd was placed on the bereavement list. CINCINNATI: Catcher David Ross left Sunday's game against San Diego with concussion-like symptoms after a collision with Mike Cameron at home plate. But results of a CT scan were normal.

OAKLAND: Centerfielder Nick Swisher left Sunday's game against the Tigers with a sore hamstring. ST. LOUIS: Second baseman Adam Kennedy will be sidelined two to six weeks with torn cartilage in his right knee. More transactions, 6B. Contact ERNIE HARWELL at Detroit Free Press, 600 W.

Fort Detroit 48226. Order his four-CD audio scrapbook and his two Free Press books "Stories From My Life Contact NICHOLAS I. COTSONI-KA at 313-222-8831 or ncrjtisonika freepress.com. Check out his Lions blog at general manager Omar Minaya said. Castro is considered Baseball" and "Life After Baseball" for $34.

95 at www.freep.combookatore or by Former Tiger Mike DiFelice, www.freep.comsportjL calling 800-24o-WH2..