Detroit Tigers Links 10/10: Max Scherzer’s Brilliant Escape

Oct 8, 2013; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer (left) talks with catcher Alex Avila in the 8th inning against the Oakland Athletics in game four of the American League divisional series at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

Max Scherzer’s dance with death, pitch by pitch – Baseball Nation

"That’s the story of how the Tigers won Game 4. If the A’s win on Thursday, it isn’t going to make a lick of difference. But if the Tigers win, it’s one of those wins. It’ll be the kind that old-timers tell youngsters around a campfire. Let me tell you about the time Max Scherzer got out of a bases-loaded/no-out jam in the playoffs. It took a little good fortune. It took a golden arm. And it took about three years off the average Tigers fan’s life. But it was a part of the best playoff game this season, and it’s hard to see how it’ll be topped."

Crisp and Jackson, a tale of two leadoff hitters – Bless You Boys

"You don’t necessarily need your leadoff hitter to be a slugger who will potentially pound doubles and triples, but that’s a nice bonus. What you need is a leadoff hitter who gets on base and sets the table for the upcoming 3-4-5 hitters. Crisp’s crazy OPS is pretty to look at, but it’s his on-base rate of 56 percent that is so dangerous, and it’s Jackson’s on-base rate of 19 percent that is so frustrating for Tigers fans."

Tigers’ Game 5 lineup up in air, but Miguel Cabrera, Jhonny Peralta are locks – Detroit News

"Jim Leyland still was fiddling with his Game 5 lineup in his hotel room Wednesday evening, and he wasn’t ready to offer any solid plans to the media.But there are two certainties:* Miguel Cabrera will play third base;* And Jhonny Peralta will play – though he didn’t specify where."

A’s rookie Sonny Gray named Game 5 starter, set to battle Tigers’ Justin Verlander in decisive rematch – MLive

"“With the stuff he was featuring, it certainly does not mean we’re going to be in a comfort zone,” Leyland said. “But it makes you a little more comfortable, now that you know the action on the ball, the great breaking ball that he has.”"

National reaction: Detroit Tigers’ offense is now awake; Max Scherzer does the unthinkable – Detroit Free Press

"Citing the Elias Sports Bureau, only four previous times in MLB postseason history has a team had the bases loaded with nobody out in the eighth inning or later with a one-run lead.Scherzer’s jam was the fifth. And he was the first to get out of it without allowing a run, drawing two strikeouts and a lineout to center field in the Detroit Tigers’ 8-6 win vs. the Oakland Athletics."