Gästebuch » uld ask me to come back be persistent

Blaine Hardy was supposed to be a short-term starter while injured Tigers pitchers recovered.

A string of solid outings by the veteran left-hander Adidas Anze Kopitar Jersey , though, has Detroit management reconsidering that plan.

Nicholas Castellanos homered and Hardy pitched one-run ball into the sixth, leading the Tigers over the Chicago White Sox 3-1 on Sunday for their fifth straight win.

Hardy (3-1) allowed one run on six hits in 5 1/3 innings. He has given up two runs or less in six of his seven starts – the first starts of his five-year career.

Manager Ron Gardenhire said he’s considering a six-man rotation when Francisco Liriano returns from the disabled list – a week after dismissing that as an option.

”We got some guys in there who might need extra days that could probably use it,” Gardenhire said. ”We started thinking we could probably do this with some of these guys, give them a breather going into All-Star break.”

Hardy said he won’t be sweating out a decision.

”I’ve really gone start to start from the get-go,” he said. ”Even if they tell me I’m in the rotation for the rest of the year, I’m probably going to do the same thing. You never know what’s going to happen.”

Jose Iglesias added an RBI single as Detroit improved to 8-1 against the White Sox this season, including 6-0 at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Castellanos homered twice on Saturday and connected again in his first at-bat Sunday. Before Saturday, he was mired in a 1-for-21 slump over the previous five games.

Matt Davidson hit his 12th homer and Kevan Smith had two hits for Chicago Kyle Long Bears Jersey , which has dropped four straight.

James Shields (2-8) allowed three runs on six hits in six-plus innings. Shields walked Jeimer Candelario with one out in the first and Castellanos followed with a homer.

”I got behind in the count to Castellanos,” Shields said. ”I thought he just popped it up, but it ended up going over the fence. They’re hot right now.”

After Davidson’s solo homer in the second – his first since May 13 – Iglesias drove in Niko Goodrum in the fourth to make it 3-1.

THE HEAT IS ON

The temperature at the start was 92 degrees and it rose a couple of degrees from there.

”The only place I’ve probably seen hotter weather is Texas,” Hardy said. ”It’s one of those things where you go out there and try to go as long as you can.”

CLOSING TIME

With closer Shane Greene unavailable after pitching four straight days, Joe Jimenez struck out the side in the ninth for his second save.

”He’s been throwing really well as a setup guy whenever we put him in,” Gardenhire said. ”You can see the velocity. He’s a power guy and he’s confident now. He’s gotten over that I-don’t-want-to-make-a-mistake thing and he just attacks.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Tigers: LHP Daniel Stumpf (ulnar nerve irritation) is expected to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo on Tuesday.

White Sox: RHP Miguel Gonzalez (rotator cuff inflammation) reported no problems following a 25-pitch session on Saturday. The plan is for him to throw another session – 25 pitches or more – during the three-game series at Cleveland.

UP NEXT

Tigers: LHP Matthew Boyd (4-4, 3.23 ERA) starts the opener of a two-game series at Cincinnati on Tuesday night. RHP Sal Romano (3-7, 5.67) pitches for the Reds.

White Sox: RHP Dylan Covey (3-1, 2.29 ERA) takes the mound in the opener of a three-game series at Cleveland on Monday night. Covey is 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA in his last three starts. RHP Trevor Bauer (5-5 Nick Chubb Jersey , 2.69) goes for the Indians.

—

Tennessee’s new coordinators each saw opportunities by joining Mike Vrabel’s first Titans staff – though they looked at the situation from completely different vantage points.

For offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur, 38, coming to the Titans from the Los Angeles Rams marks the next step in his coaching career.

Meanwhile, 68-year-old defensive coordinator Dean Pees actually ended a two-week retirement from coaching to head up the Titans’ defense.

”This is something when you get into the coaching profession, you’re always looking for the next step,” said LaFleur, who served as the Rams’ offensive coordinator in 2017, as Los Angeles went from the NFL’s lowest-scoring offense in 2016 to the highest-scoring last season. ”In L.A., I think Sean McVey is one of the best play callers there is in the NFL Authentic Jason McCourty Jersey , and I don’t see him giving that up anytime soon. To get this opportunity, I couldn’t be more excited.”

LaFleur was allowed out of his Rams’ contract in part because he will get the chance to be a play-caller with the Titans. Head coach Sean McVey handled the play-calling duties in Los Angeles.

LaFleur plans on opening up the Titans’ offense and trying to accentuate what quarterback Marcus Mariota does well as part of that.

”He’s as coachable as they come,” LaFleur said. ”That really stood out to me. We’re still kind of going through and trying to evaluate what each one of these guys does well, and we’re going to try and tailor our offense to our guys’ abilities.”

LaFleur said Mariota, who struggled with 13 touchdown passes and 15 interceptions last year, has what he looks for in a quarterback.

”You can see the talent he possesses. . Some of things that we’ll be working on with him – and you never know what a guy has been taught in the past – but we’re going to be extremely detailed with his fundamentals and his footwork, because I think that leads to more consistent quarterback play,” LaFleur said.

Pees, a 45-year coaching veteran B.J. Hill Jersey Giants , had retired at season’s end as defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens. But he said he began to second-guess the decision and was encouraged by his family after Vrabel called and asked him to become his defensive coordinator. Pees was Vrabel’s linebackers coach and later his defensive coordinator when Vrabel played for New England.

”When Mike called, it kind of got us reassessing where we were and did we really want to stay retired, and to be honest with you, my kids and my wife were super excited about it,” Pees said.

Joining the Titans marks the second time Pees will now work under a player he previously coached. Ravens coach John Harbaugh played for Pees in college

”Mike convinced me. I felt very humbled that a guy that I coached would ask me to come back be persistent on me coming here,” Pees said. ”The other part of it was it was Nashville. We love this city. Whenever we’ve been here, we’ve loved this place. And also looking at the Titans and how they’ve been playing. The arrow is pointed very much up.”

—

.