Monday morning reminiscing

As Detroit gets psyched up for a three-game showdown with the White Sox, I have one last thought about the departing Royals, who salvaged a 9-6 victory yesterday.

Wilfredo Ledezma hit Joey Gathright in the back in the seventh inning, prompting Gathright and Vance Wilson to share (one would guess) unpleasant words with each other on the way to first base. With such animosity and tension in the air to match the oppressive humidity, and the players in each dugout ready to pounce onto the field for yet another Tigers-Royals brawl, do you think Jeremy Affeldt began to backpedal his way toward the clubhouse?

Had a fight broken out, would someone have found Affeldt curled up in the shower, bobbing back and forth, crying "Please don't body-slam me, please don't body-slam me."

(Just for the memories, here's The Detroit Tigers Weblog's post from last year.)

And after the situation was defused and the game resumed, did a teammate, bat boy, or clubhouse attendant inform Affeldt that Kyle Farnsworth was no longer with the Tigers, and thus wouldn't zero in on him like a heat-seeking, body-tackling human missile?

Oh, let's cue the video on that, shall we? It's almost been a year to the day.

To quote Rod Allen, "You knew when Big Boy got there, it was gonna get on!" If you're pressed for time, it "gets on" about halfway through the file, at the 2:50 mark.



Ah, The Farns. What a guy. Tackles Royals in brawls and fetches Zach Miners in trading deadline deals. Who's your former Tiger?