Cody Stavenhagen

6 days ago | nytimes.com | Cody Stavenhagen

Chet Lemon, the center fielder for the 1984 World Series champion Detroit Tigers, died Thursday morning at his home in Apopka, Fla. He was 70. Born in Jackson, Miss., and raised in California, Lemon played parts of 16 seasons in the major leagues. He debuted with the Chicago White Sox in 1975 and remained with the franchise through 1981. He played for the Tigers from 1982 until his retirement after the 1990 season. Lemon retired with a .273 career batting average and three All-Star selections.

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Cody Stavenhagen

DETROIT - It is May, and the 22-13 Detroit Tigers have the best record in the American League. The team's run differential of plus-63 is the best in baseball as of Monday morning, a sign that much of what they are doing could be quite real. Next up? The Tigers face the Colorado Rockies, who have only won six games all season. The vibes are high, hence the influx of questions about the Tigers being buyers at the trade deadline for the first time in a long, long time.

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Cody Stavenhagen

DETROIT - The Detroit Tigers finished their series against the Los Angeles Angels in dominating fashion Sunday, winning 13-1 and completing another series victory. Kenta Maeda is off the roster, which is one more sign that this team is serious about competing. And with Matt Vierling on a rehab assignment in Triple A, reinforcements are coming soon. With that good news comes complications.

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Cody Stavenhagen

DETROIT - Endings like this are always uneasy. Kenta Maeda entered this season with a renewed mission. He spent his offseason in Japan training harder than ever. He began his throwing programs earlier than before. In spring training, he showed small glimpses of hope. After his first outing, he stood under the sun and admitted he felt nervous. "My main thing going into this offseason was not to do a repeat of last year," Maeda had said. Maeda then was reaching 92 mph with his fastball.

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Cody Stavenhagen

DETROIT - Zach McKinstry was in college, during the thick of a summer playing in the Northwoods League, when the blaze burned. "You play like 72 games in 75 days," McKinstry said. "No off days. You don't really know the cities you're going to because you've never heard of them. "Then you get a phone call."McKinstry's Waterloo Bucks were playing way up in Canada when the phone started buzzing. His limited cell plan meant not all the messages were coming through.