I'm scared.

If the sight of a joyous Placido Polanco doing giant ballerina leaps from third to home doesn't put a huge smile on your face, nothing will! They were the best team in baseball all year, and they've confirmed the fact now. CONGRATS TIGERS!!! Now win the World Series!

(My BF) Placido Polanco has been putting a smile on my face for many years. But as a Mets fan, I'm frickin' terrified.

The Tigers are going to the World Series.

This is indeed a disturbing universe.

If the Twins could not win it, the Bengals are the only other option I'd countenance. I think, like last year's Bitches, you have seen their last loss already. So, they lose one to the 'Brenner's, then win 11. Leland definite manager of year.

I think I saw the four horsemen this morning.

It's a mix between a lion and a tiger, bred for its skills in magic.

Except that teams from Minnesota can beat the Lions, whereas the Tigers are different story.

I'm not that bitter. Congrats to Detroit, they've suffered long enough to deserve it. Drink it in, it always goes down smooth.

I am absolutely in love with placido polanco. Congrats Tigers. It really does seem like destiny. Leyland is such a classy guy. Can't argue with MOY for him.

I miss the twins.

Placido won ALCS MVP! Much deserved. He's had one heck of a season. Well done, Placido! That head warmer of his he's had on for the last two games just made me laugh every time I saw it, lol! :-P

YEAH!!!!!!!!!!

Nice BG, Dynamite ;-)
I love P.P. too (that's what I've been calling him). Bad, I know.
Go Ligers!

WAY TO REPRESENT THE AL CENTRAL MY BOYS. EXCELLENT.

Congrats, Motown! KenK, take a bow...

Way to go, Tigers! I'm so very impressed with those players and especially with Leyland. Now, if we could just have a "Central Division" World Series...

I think this means it is the Twins turn next year to represent the Central in the World Series. The central once again proves it is the best.

I'd rather see someone from our division go (BESIDES the Bitch Sox) to the World Series, than those stinky, hippie A's.

Who wants the stink of patchouli in the World Series?

Go Les Tigres!

The Oakland A's have been my second favorite team for several years now, but in this series I couldn't help but cheer for the Tigers. After all their fans have been through in the last few years, they deserve a championship.

GO TIGERS!

Congrats to the Tigers.

I just wish it hadn't been Magglio who hit the winning homer tonight.

I still have a hard time forgetting the time he slid hard into 2nd with his spikes up & tried to puncture Rivas.

But I do like the rest of the kitties.

As for the Cardinals, I must have missed the initial explanation of their weird little red dyed "tickler" (as Eric Byrnes called them last night on national television, embarrassing the other announcers & leaving them with no response) beards.

They sure do look strange.
I think I'll have to root for the Mets to won the NLCS.

Sorry Albert.

Did anyone know Morneau's middle name is Ernest?

How fitting.

It'll look fantastic when they carve "Justin Ernest Morneau" on that MVP trophy.

I'd like to see the tigers keep the ALCentral world series streak going. They should be heavy favorites, just because they are the AL team. I don't want them to sweep though. It's more fun watching baseball if the series if it goes more than 4 games.

Wooooo, Tigers! That was awesome.

See what happens when you promise Magglio Ordonez that you will never ever tell him to "get a haircut, you hippie!" ever again if he hits a home run? Eeeee.

Congrats to the Tigers and good luck in the WS.
I'm hoping for an all Central WS and I hope the Tigers take it in 7.
Why 7? B/c I want to watch baseball for as long as possible.

I have to say this sweet revenge after the way A's fan behaved at game 3.

I'l try to be as polite as possible in what follows.

I had my sexuality questioned b/c of my 'Radke is the Manke' sign
I had brooms shoved in my face before the game
When Hunter hit his homer someone made sure to yell 'if he beats us, we'll beat you'

A's fan pretty much behaved less than human to me and my friend (not a Twins fan) throughout the game. Oh, and I had pretty good seats. 2nd deck, section behind 3rd base. Not like I was in with the blecher bums.

Karma is a ***** isn't A's fan? I'm glad you lost. I used to root for the A's as long as they weren't playing the Twins but no more. I won't be a Giants fan but I sure as hell won't give Oakland another red cent (except when the Twins are in town)

The A's may be another example of small market does good but the fans are classless and just jerks.

Enjoy the winter A's fan and congrats on not making it to the WS AGAIN!

Funny I thought I was over it but I guess not. Sorry for venting.

Vamos los tigres!

The AL Central is hands down the best division in baseball 2006

I think the Tigers deserve to be in the World Series. I guess I don't know the history of the Tigers so I don't have that bias when it comes to them going this far. They had a good season and I'm glad a Central Divison team is represented.

Karma is a bitch, A's. Getting swept sucks, doesn't it?

Actually most A's fans are really great. There are always going to be obnoxious fans at any game you go to. There are some obnoxious twins fans I'm sure some people will tell you. If the twins had the series 2-0 going into the third game, we would all have our brooms out too! It's not disrespectful, its just the excitement of the game. Plus it was also their stadium. But saying that A's getting swept is karma for them because they played much better than us in the division series... cmon, I didn't think we were those people... ya know, whitesox/yankee people.
(by the way, yankee fans are still blaming their elimination on the rain delay, that is sad that they can't admit who the better team was.)

the red beard things are because of scott spiezio - he's had a little beard thing that's been dyed bright red since spring training.

my comments on the LCS's:
- congrats to the tigers. i was kind of pulling for the a's, because they play a lot like the twins and they're a better team than they get credit for a lot of the time. but the tigers have been playing like a team on a mission for the last 7 games. it's kind of like a "we've gotten this far, now dammit we're going to go all the way" attitude, and i gotta respect that. they deserve to be where they are now, and i'm happy for them.
- that being said, i've pretty much adopted the cardinals as my playoff team for the rest of the way. this may or may not be a product of a) my current residence in st. louis, b) my aversion to the mets (they were my ex-boyfriend's team, and he's been really obnoxious about them and has been really snotty about the twins), and c) my lack of strong feelings toward either of the AL teams.
- in a tigers-cardinals WS, i will cheer cardinals. in a tigers-mets WS, i will most definitively cheer tigers.

Steve,

With all due respect...

There are some A's fans that are normal at the games but they are quickly becoming the exception to the rule.

It has gotten so bad that:
My wife will not go to A's v Twins series b/c she does not feel it is safe anymore

My friend who was a die hard A's fan has become a Twins fan b/c A's fan has embarassed him so much with their behavior

Sticking a broom in someone's face is never ok, I believe there is such a thing as personal space, if you cross it in an aggressive manner I view it as a threat

And finally there's the out right threats of physical harm.

I don't know if you live in the Bay area and so are speaking from experience but I do and have since 1999 and can tell you that A's fan has been sliding backward on the evolutionary ladder for sometime now.

I hate to say it again but I will be watching alot more National league baseball next year.

Oh and A's fan don't complain that people aren't calling you a homegrown team when Kotsay, Kendall, Thomas, and Bradly were not home grown players. Local bay area media sucks

Sorry again for yet another A's rant, maybe I should contact a good therapist.

Go AL Central!

I'm sorry cal that you were treated so badly at the A's game. No I'm not from california, I'm from NY and I go to every game when the twins come into town and I am superly SUPERLY obnoxious to yankee fans. Especially the game this year when Morneau hit the three run homer, and last year when santana shut out the yankees. Now I know that most twins fans are really nice so I hope people in NY don't get a bad impression of twins fans based on me being overly excited during a game. In actuality I'm a really nice person, I'm just different during the intensity of a game.
and I don't mean to bash yankeefans either in my earlier post especially not you YankeeFan. When I said that yankeefans are still blaming their loss on the rain delay, I meant yankeefans like my dad, my brother, my friends. Not people like you.

sad, i was kinda pulling for those hippie A's.

I don't have anything in particular against either the A's or the Tigers, so I would have been happy no matter who won the ALCS, but....

I sure am happy for the Tigers! Leyland is a class act and most of his players seem pretty cool too. And I have to say, watching Placido Polanco leap around joyously with his head-sock on was one of the most hilarious bits of baseball imagery I've seen in a while. :)

Although I do sorta wish Maggs would cut his hair. It looks very silly when he's wearing a batting helmet, all smooshed down on one side and poofing out on the other. But that's just me. :)

Go Tigers!

Magglio has a glorious flowing mane, Mel. ;)Could Placido be more adorable? SO cute.

Magglio has a glorious flowing mane, Mel. ;) Could Placido be more adorable? SO cute.

Newton,

Me, too! I love that little head warmer.

Eric,

Justin Ernest Morneau is a lovely name. It would look even lovelier on an AL MVP trophy.

Yay, Tigers! Sigh...it's a good thing I like them. If any team deserves to go to the World Series, it's them. And yes, Jim Leyland does deserve MOTY. I'm so glad to see an AL Central team headed for the Fall Classic. It does my heart good.

If anybody cares, Bradon Inge is my Tiger. He's almost as adorable as Jason Bartlett (but not quite, because Bartleby es mi amor).

I have to admit, I am a little sad that the A's didn't win. I have a thing for Zito( the blue hair thing, classic). I mean it was a mixed emotion thing, I wanted the Tigers to go and then the A's. Sweeps suck though, because I CAN NOT stand National league baseball, to slow.

Wow, I feel better now knowing that the Twins probably wouldn't have beat the Tigers in the LCS, either. I was suffering wondering if we could have beat the Yankees in the first round, if we would have just taken the wild card...

...I know thats a bad attitude and all, and why would I want to go into the postseason as the 2nd best team in the Central, how can I say the Twins couldn't beat los Tigres, and hindsight is BLAH BLAH BLAH...

But at least now I feel better.

Is it wrong to say that since the Twins stopped playing ball, I just don't care? (OK, after we lost and the the Yankees lost, because I couldn't stand to hear the national announcers tell me what a great team they are and what a genius Steinbrenner is, and well, they are the yankees--no offense personally Yankee Fan)I mean, intellectually I could play the "Central Division got so much crap for being the loser division, that it is great we kicked AL butt again" or the "Small market teams win because they don't have the luxury to buy the best individuals, so they make great teams.", but I guess I just wanted it so bad for my team, that I don't care. I have watched bits and pieces of the games, but I just can't make myself care. So once again I have discovered there really is not a lot on television from Oct-April. And I can read books, talk to the family (boy those kids grow up fast) and even have a non Twins discussion with the husband. I miss my baseball.

(oh, and I am confused as to why other teams can bring brooms and we can't--that was listed specifically as something we would not be allowed to bring in).

Careful, Sandee. You don't want to be bringing Tommy Lasorda down upon you.

That said, I'm following things tangentally. I'm interested in seeing the Central bag another world championship, but I'd also like to see the Cards take a title. My younger brother (who was born near St. Louis) is a lifelong Cards fan, and he would enjoy it so much...

click on my name...
I think this is just great. Maggs is officially a bitchsox no more for me. And HIS curls are beautiful.

you know when they showed the replays and you see the reaction of all the different people during the game when maggs hit the walk off... the dugout, placido, monroe, huston street, but the best was dave dombrowski sitting up in the booth. I hope that can be TR someday very soon.

OK...AJ Pierzynski is on FOX Pre-game. And they're letting him talk. I should probably go vomit.

aww, AJ looks so handsome.

but he lacks a neck

I can't describe the joy in Comerica Park when Magglio's s HR went out! People were hugging and crying and yelling like we'd already won the series. I imagine that was what the dome was like when Puckett hit that HR in game six. Let's bring the title back to the AL Central!!!!

Congrats to the Tigers!

The dyed red facial hair? Ugh. Although I have other reasons, that alone is enough to make me root for the Mets. And Albert Pujols is to Mr. Kennedy as Derek Jeter is to Mr. Buck.

On the plus side, Jose Reyes, shortstop of the Mets? I have an NL boyfriend.

What, A.J. lacks a neck now, too? Here I thought he only was without a chin.

Eric,

Actually if you read Justin's bio on mlb.com it says that his full name is Justin Ernest George Morneau. Doesn't that just make you smile?

I personally hope the tigers win Game 6, at least if I can get the tickets to that game. Wish me luck!

TwinsPrincess, I also love Brandon Inge ever since I read an article about him in the Detroit Free Press, maybe you can find it online. It is HILARIOUS.

You also have to love Curtis.

Go Tigers!

you're right. it is the chin he lacks. i knew there was something weird looking about him, but i just couldn't pinpoint what exactly it was.

curtis granderson? yum

Part of me still wonders: "Why couldn't that be the Twins?"

Melissa,

Thanks! I have to go find that article now. I'm so glad to have found another Inge-lover.

In addition to the chin, A.J.'s also lacking a healthy dosage of tact. Sigh..you know, Hatteberg was right in the pregame. I loved the guy when he was on our side.

QJW,
I hope you don't mind sharing that NL boyfriend, as he's mine too ;)

JOSE FTW!
Yet, go Tigers... AHH! I'm so confused! Bring back the Twins stat!!!

Oh and Cal,
I disagree. I'm a resident of both Minnesota and California. The games I enjoy the *most* at the Dome are the A's vs Twins because the fans are nice and respectful.

However, the best fans are at Dodger Stadium. Everyone is genuinely excited to be there and the atmosphere is amazing. I'd much rather fly to CA to see the Twins play if I had the means. The fans at the Dome this year were incredibly rude and I went to most of the home games. But it's a sacrifice I was willing to make. I do tend to find that the fans are worse in the lower level. The upper deck fans are loud and proud.

I know BG this had better be my last comment on A's fan...

Shaundra, I really don't think you can compare fans at Dodger stadium and fans at Oakland the only thing they have in common is that they are both fans. Kinda like saying LA and Oakland are the same b/c they are both in California.

I'm sticking by what I said before b/c I've been going to A's games regularly since 99' Now it could be that I have the worst luck in who ends up sitting near me but I don't think so.

Unfortunately my mind is kind of made up on the subject now. I think the last 4 years is a large enough sampling so it's not just fluke. Gulp, I'll be watching my games at AT&T park next year except for the Twins annual visit.

Best fans in CA (per my experience as a Twins fan)
Angels fan, very funny and nice and laid back
Padres fan
Dodgers fan, just stay away from the bleachers and don't even mention the Giants
Giants fan, normally too busy doing something other than watching the game to be rude, except of course if you mention you like the Dodgers
and of course now dead last A's FAN who have become Raiders fan just in Green and Gold

Last thing, I'm sad to hear that Twins fan might be less than nice at the Dome. Perhaps instead of looking at teams, it's time to just aknowledge that fans everywhere are just not as nice as they used to be.

I doubt there was an era when baseball fans (or players) were kinder and gentler than they are now. There's just a tendancy to do a mental photoshop on the past, blurring it and adding a gold-toned hue.

Who's your Tiger?

Pudge. Pudge is my Tiger.

WooooHooooo! Go Detroit!

The chinlessness of A.J. was noted by a very observant friend of mine long ago. Since then, I haven't been able to focus on anything else whenever I see him on the screen. But now I must do a neck check, too.

Myself, I've been focused on The Doctor's nostrils.

Shaundra, I'm sure there's enough of Mr. Reyes to go around. ;-)

A World Series for the Tigers equates to additional revenues. Those will inevitably trickle into their payroll, and make them all the tougher in coming years.

That said, it will be nice to keep the title in the AL Central.

Well, White Sox won last year and ended up in 3rd. Who knows?

Who's MY Tiger?

Carlos Guillen, baby! Since 2002 when he was still a Mariner. I'll be wearing my signed "Guillen 9" Detroit home jersey proudly around Seattle all through the Series. GO TIGERS!!

Justin Ernest George Morneau - well at least that what is in the media guide - he looked nice at the wild game last Thursday - when he told everyone to LET'S PLAY HOCKEY!

Congrats to the Tigers - I don't mind Magglio - I've liked him since he was with the White Sox besides I made him laugh once or at least shake his head in bewilderment ;-)and he didn't go running the other way - LOL

I see I might be the minority again -as wonderful as it would be for the Tigers to win - I am pulling for the Cardinals - red facial hair and all.
And for Albert being the so called 'Derek Jeter'of Mr Kennedy PULEESSSSSeeeeeee of the NL -that is absurd -

maybe AJ had a ill fitting suit - 'eh I don't care - Eric Byrnes needs a comb =)
And there is nothing wrong with hippies either =)

Much Love
Wonder Woman

Cal, regarding your comment about the best baseball fans in CA - I can't agree with you about Angels fans, and I lived in California most of my life. You're confusing politeness with indifference. Dodgers fans in general are good, though they suffer from the LA mentality - arrive in the third inning, leave in the seventh, regardless of the score. A's fans have the same chip on their shoulders as Raiders fans, just not as pronounced. Giants fans...well, they cheer for Barry Bonds, for Heaven's sake. 'Nuff said. Pads fans are the best, in my opinion. Solid, knowledgable, faithful. San Diego is like Minneapolis in a lot of ways, oddly enough - at least I think it is. And the Pads have those cool gold road unis, which garners them extra points.

And Eric Byrne looks ridiculous, and A.J. is A.J. (unfortunately). A.J. looks like some punk skateboarder from seventh grade with a too-big suit on; he's the kid who mouthed off too often and got pounded by the football players behind the gym after school. The point of either of them as part of the broadcast team escapes me.

On the subject of fans. A couple years ago my sister and her boyfriend went to an A's game wearing their Twin's attire. They live in Santa Monica. Through the game a couple of fans harrassed them, but they ignored them. When the Twins lost and people were leaving one of the fans pushed my sister hard and she fell down 2 rows of chairs.Several A's fans came to help her and apologized for not saying anything to the obnoxious fans during the game. Other fans offered to be witnesses and walked them out of the stadium. Security was indifferent. Needless to say she was quite traumatized, but she said the other fans could not have been any more sorry. There are good and bad folk just like "real life." Cal, I do not doubt anything you are telling us. It sounded like a bad experience.