What a week!

The past week has proven a couple of things to me. First and foremost, interleague play is amazing. There has been a buzz around baseball this past weekend unlike there has been this season thus far. We got Beckett vs. Peavy, A-Rod vs. Bonds, and the Tigers were fantastic.

That brings me to my second point. The Tigers are hitting their stride and at the perfect time. Most teams say that if they can come out of tough road trips playing 500 ball they're happy. The Tigers took it a step further and finished their tour of national league ballparks with a 8-1 record, making them 14-4 in interleague play, tied with the Angels for the best in baseball. Both the managers of the Nationals and the Braves were quoted as saying that the Tigers are the best team they have seen so far. These are both teams that have played the Red Sox and Indians.

The Tigers have made some interesting moves in the past week as well. Getting rid of Wilfredo Ledezma was a must, there was no space for him on the roster, and if they sent him to AAA they would lose him. He is really a starter anyways. They also dealt Mike Maroth to the St. Louis Cardinals, another necessity in order to make room for Kenny Rogers to return, and they won't send down Andrew Miller because he's been pitching too well. I feel bad for Maroth though. He's a great guy, and unfortunately missed the playoff roster last year, and now is traded a cellar dweller. The pitching moves have allowed Leyland to move Chad Durbin to the bullpen, where he was spectacular last night.

Watching Tigers baseball this weekend did bring one glaring thing to my attention. It made me realize how lucky we are in Michigan to be able to listen to the commentary of Mario Impemba and Rod Allen. The junk we heard on the Tigers games on Fox on Saturday and ESPN on Sunday was a disgrace. The announcers were stepping on each others feet, throwing out statistical cliches left and right, and were not interesting or insightful. Thanks Mario and Rod, you should be calling every important game, and every Tigers game year round.

It's amazing where the Tigers stand right now. Their bullpen is still not healthy, and won't be till a trade is made or Zumaya returns. The one reason they are staying afloat: Leyland is amazing at managing a bullpen and keeping his players rested. At the same time, even while not be 100 percent, the Tigers hold a two game lead in the Central. They really are an improved team from last year, and will continue to get better. Look for great baseball in the future Tigers fans.