Bless You Boys: for Detroit Tigers fans

After a road trip that saw the Detroit Tigers finally flex a little offensive muscle, the club returns home to meet up with Justin Verlander and the Houston Astros. Some of the young guys are contributing, and we'll take a look at their vital signs, as well as examining and speculating irresponsibly about the Rod Allen/Mario Impemba kerfuffle.

The story of the day is the reported scuffle between the long-time broadcast duo. Just know that the chair is not the chair.The Tigers have finally found a bit of power as players like Mikie Mahtook, Niko Goodrum, Dawel Lugo, and Ronny Rodriguez have brought a spark to a miserable lineup.Daniel Norris is back and we’re happy.Pennant races are shaping up with a wild finish expected in the National League.Shohei Ohtani is amazing, Sean Doolittle and Ian Kinsler are fun, and sometimes amazing.The service time games continue to look bad, and may herald part of a contentious collective bargaining agreement.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ashley and Brandon return to discuss the week in Tigers baseball, for better and for worse.

Daniel Norris is on the way back and Christin Stewart should be coming with him.Matt Manning looks like one of the better pitching prospects in the game after a fantastic 2018.The James McCann era nears its end, and we aren't sad about it.Women's baseball at the highest level has been pretty awesome.On the art of becoming a fan favorite.Baseball is becoming too insular and inaccessible for its own good.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Brandon and Ashley welcome in the honey voiced perspective and insight of one Andy Dirks to the podcast. The native born Kansan, transplanted Michigander, former Tigers outfielder, real estate maven, podcast host, and all around life coach talks his current endeavors, Tiger tales, and the mentality of success on the field and in life. There’s also that time that Jim Leyland challenged Jered Weaver to a fiery bout of fisticuffs. Hold onto your butts.

Dirks retirement and how he applied lessons learned in baseball to his life after retirement.Get Your Game Right- How Andy’s podcast aims to teach the mentality of the game through conversations with coaches, scouts and player development personnel.The role of confidence is playing consistently good baseball.Brandon wonders if plate discipline can be taught (asking for some friends).Sometimes Miguel Cabrera just sees things other can’t, and how a normal player makes adjustments.What’s in a good clubhouse?Andy Dirks doesn’t really want to hear players complain about West Coast travel.Looking back at a three year major-league career in which the Tigers never missed the playoffs.Jim Leyland’s greatest hits.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ashley and Brandon return to touch on all things Tigers, except that no one really wants to touch the Tigers right now.

Ashley rants about MLB's weird resistance to the future regarding the All-Star game blackout.We look back at the All-Star game and the many ways in which it was a microcosm of major league baseball writ large.The Tigers are struggling along, and while their appear to be a lot of trade candidates, the market continues to look a little bloated with options to expect much in return.We look around the league at team's position heading toward the deadline.Listener questionsAlan Trammell and Jack Morris are about to be inducted into Cooperstown and it's awesome.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With the Tigers stumbling toward the break, the editorial staff assesses their chances of a profitable trading season and an interesting second half. 

The Tigers are scuffling, and too many players they hoped to trade are going in the wrong direction.Jordan Zimmermann is suddenly pitching some of the best baseball of his career despite the endless plague of injuries.How will the Tigers fill out their pitching staff in the second half if they move multiple starters?Joe Jimenez is an All-Star, and Nick Castellanos isn't, and we're kind of alright with that.All-Star selections always seem to whiff on a few players, and Chris Archer and Justin Verlander have some ideas for improvements.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After a hiatus, we return to unpack the Detroit Tigers season at the halfway point. Ashley McClennan and Brandon Day take on the past few weeks of Tigers baseball and try to make sense of it all.

Injuries and poor performances have the Tigers looking like modest sellers at best this July.Chris Bosio was fired and it seems like the Tigers handled the situation about as well as an organization can.The SixOneNine podcast is kind of a landmark in bridging the gap between players and fans.Nicholas Castellanos has matured into the heart of the Tigers clubhouse. Should they keep him?A look around the NL Central.The Tigers farm system is proving more entertaining that the major league club

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bless You Boys managing editor, Rob Rogacki, joins host Brandon Day for some early reactions to the Tigers' picks in the 2018 MLB draft. The first 10 rounds are in the books, and beyond is chaos, so it's time to look at the Tigers' approach and break down their picks. Early returns seem positive. The Tigers played the percentages at 1-1, and then made some pretty bold plays by their standards in the later rounds. They got a nice collection of athletes and guys with loud tools in hopes of a big reward.

Does the birth of the Tigers analytics department show up in their draft strategy?The Tigers selected quite a nice mix of college and high school positional talent.Casey Mize freed the Tigers to take some shots in the next few rounds.Parker Meadows has the potential to be a power-hitting centerfielder. A look through the later round selections.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Host Brandon Day welcomes Max Bultman, who covers the Detroit Tigers for the Athletic, to the show. Join us for a wide-ranging conversation about the Detroit Tigers season, state of the rebuild, and some of the wider issues in major league baseball.

IntroWhat is a quintessential Detroit Tigers loss in 2018?Which Tigers have been a pleasant surprise in the early going?The secret history of Shane Greene.Casey Mize is totally unphased by all the draft hoopla.Bullpenning and the changing economics of the game.The advent of national sports betting and the implications for MLB.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Brandon and Ashley, staff writers and editors at BlessYouBoys.com return to talk you through the dark times. The Tigers got off to a fun, respectable start considering their last place finish in 2017. We even had dreams of seizing first place for a little bit and sending the AL Central, and many fans, into a tizzy. The spell is broken. The bullpen has blown leads repeatedly, and the offense is really starting to miss Miguel Cabrera and Jeimer Candelario. But, there are a lot of Tigers topics to discuss despite these woes.

The fun start is giving way to reality as injuries and the team enters the long midseason grind.Is there any help for the bullpen?Is JaCoby Jones slumping a bit, or turning back into a pumpkin?The Tigers look to have some trade chips to deal, but one of the big ones hasn't helped his value so far.Casey Mize is a lock to the Tigers at 1-1, but maybe then again he isn't.The Rays used Sergio Romo to open a pair of games and a Hyperbowl broke out.Sports gambling is coming and everyone wants a share, but how are they going to preserve the game's integrity and get all these players a piece of the pie?Listener questions

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ashley and Brandon return with a sense of complete bemusement at the 2018 Detroit Tigers and their scrappy and ridiculous ways. There is a lot to discuss both around the league and in the Tigers' neck of the woods, as they attempt to seize first place this week against the Cleveland Indians.

The Tigers are ridiculous right now, winning games they shouldn't, booting the ball around and coming through with huge performances to bail themselves out.Blaine Hardy broke Robinson Cano's hand, but you'll never guess what happened next!Ashley and Brandon made it to episode 20 without a big ol' PED discussion, but no further.MLB and their petty fight over custom cleat designs.Expectations have been a bitch for years, and there is something freeing about watching the Tigers without them.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices