In the 23 years since Leyland got his first managerial job, he's learned a lot. Not the least of which is that there are some things you just can't know.
Like whether a 20-year-old kid is really ready to pitch in the majors.
"I can't say I knew [Porcello] was ready, to be honest with you," the Tigers manager said. "I'd be lying if I said I knew he was ready, but I'd be telling you the truth if I said he was one of the best five we had.
"I still don't know if he's ready, but he's one of the best five, and you're supposed to take the best five up here. It's the big leagues."
MLB Power Rankings:Where MLB FanHouse's editors, writers and bloggers team up to break down the who's who and the what's what in the baseball world.
It's a funny thing, sometimes, to see how Power Rankings shape up over the course of the season. Just like when we started the year, there are a number of teams from one particular division sitting atop the rankings. Of course, there are plenty of surprises -- WHERE DID THE FREAKING GIANTS AND ROCKIES COME FROM?? -- and some other interesting stuff, like the fact that the Mets and Cubs just haven't been that good, which we discussed on the inaugural BaseCast recently.
OAKLAND -- The Tigers are in first place, winners of eight of their last 11 games, but manager Jim Leyland isn't satisfied.
"Our offense is going to have to step it up in the second half if we are going to stay in contention," Leyland said before Tuesday night's game in Oakland. "There is no question about that."
A day after the Tigers were held to one run by the A's young pitching staff, including 21-year-old lefty Brett Anderson, Leyland was still steamed at the pattern he's detected.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That the Marlins and Tigers are on fire.
Exactly two weeks ago, Florida was eight games behind Philadelphia. Since then the Marlins have gone 9-3, all in interleague play, to close within a game of first place. The hot streak includes four one-run wins and Thursday's 11-3 victory that sealed a sweep of the Orioles and ran Florida's win streak to five.
During this 12-game stretch, Hanley Ramirez has batted .400 with three home runs (one of them a grand slam Thursday) and 19 RBI while Cody Ross has hit .400 with five homers and 12 RBI.
In case you've been living under a rock for the past 17.2 innings, Dontrelle Willis is back. That frenetic, majestic delivery of his, which you see to the right, was a piece of Major League Baseball canon when he pitched for the Marlins. It was as Bob Gibson as one can get in this decade.
To understand the real-life resurgence of D-Train, I strongly suggest you read Andrew Johnson's piece. To understand his place in the history of The Dugout, I suggest you read our Wikipedia entry. Good Lord, I'm glad he's back.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
Remember 'Five Alive,' the juicy blend with five fruits that's fun for all the family? Well, Rick Porcello is a unique blend of rookie flavor who's reeled off five straight victories. You can hardly find that syrupy drink on the shelves anymore, but you can still find Porcello in about 30 percent of Yahoo! leagues. And that's not all there is to like about Porcello. After the jump, it's fun time for all fantasy owners! (sugar rush optional)
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That there were two particularly thrilling games Monday -- of totally different ilk.
The Cardinals and Brewers, who entered the game tied for first in the NL Central, played a classic pitchers' duel. St. Louis' Chris Carpenter (0.00 ERA in 23 innings this season) took a perfect game to the seventh, but Yovani Gallardo matched the zeros. Then Milwaukee scored a run off Kyle McClellan in the bottom of the 10th to win 1-0.
Later, the Indians rallied from a 10-run deficit against the Rays, scoring seven runs in the bottom of the ninth for an 11-10 win. Cleveland benefited from five walks in the ninth inning, including three straight by Jason Isringhausen before Victor Martinez snapped a 0-for-18 slide with the game-winning, two-run single.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
Big Apple, we have a problem. And one that could be a major concern in fantasy baseball leagues, too.
Jose Reyes, undoubtedly a top-10 fantasy pick, left Wednesday's game against the Dodgers after aggravating a right calf injury while trying to leg out an infield single. Reyes had missed five straight starts with the injury, and it looks like a trip to the disabled list is a possibility at some point. The Mets can consider alternatives to watching Ramon Martinez twirl his toothpick bat -- like the versatile Mark DeRosa -- but the solution isn't so simple for fantasy owners relying on his speed.
Tuesday night, Magglio Ordonez was called out on what he deemed to be a questionable call. As he expressed his frustration, in a respectable fashion, home plate umpire Paul Schrieber gently pushed Ordonez toward his dugout. Now, let's be careful to not go overboard here. He didn't shove Ordonez and there really didn't seem to be malicious intent. It was more of a just get outta my face nudge.
The aftermath was phenomenal, as Tigers manager Jim Leyland went absolutely ballistic on Schrieber (you can view the video here), and rightfully so. Umpires are very protective about being touched by players and managers, even if the contact is accidental and lacks any malicious intent. As well they should be. Any contact could escalate matters into ugly territory. Thus, physically moving a player is a double-standard.
Curtis Granderson is already having quite a year for Detroit. With nine home runs and 19 RBI, he's seemingly developed a new power approach to his game and on pace to shatter his career highs.
But on Friday night, it was the gifted center fielder's glove work that wowed the crowd and had Cleveland's Grady Sizemore dropping his jaw in disbelief.
Jim Leyland was a major league manager before Rick Porcello was even born.
OAKLAND -- The Tigers are in first place, winners of eight of their last 11 games, but manager 
Starting Five
In case you've been living under a rock for the past 17.2 innings, 
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
Starting Five
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
Tuesday night, 
