Three Games, Three Wins, Fifteen Homers: Maybe DTE Doesn't Have A Monopoly On Power After All

The Tigers have hit 15 homers in their first three games.

No, don't keep reading -- read that first sentence again and let it soak in.

Fifteen homeruns in three freaking games.

Granted, 11 of them have been solo shots, but STILL -- come ON.

At this rate, the Tigers will hit 810 homeruns in 2006. And if 70% of 810 homers are of the solo variety, then that's nearly 600 runs right there.

I know, I know -- the Tigers aren't going to keep hitting taters at the rate of five per game, but the fact that they have their hitting shoes -- their power shoes -- on, this early out of the gate is refreshing for several reasons. One, the pitching is usually ahead of the hitting in the opening weeks of any season -- at least that's what the sabermetricians would have us believe. But I think it's mostly true. Two, if there was one thing the Tigers absolutely would need to do to balance the scales against their still-questionable pitching and defense, it was to hit the tar off the ball. Scoring 27 runs in the first three tilts is more than a little encouraging, even if two of those games were against the dregs of baseball -- the Kansas City Royals.

The Tigers could come home Monday 4-2 or 5-1, a refreshing change for a team that has put up lots of home opener red, white, and blue bunting with a 1-5 record after playing the first six on the road in recent years past.

Chris Shelton -- Big Red -- has four of those dingers, and maybe now some of the worry warts who wondered if Shelton was "for real", even though he's hit at every level from tee-ball on up, might simmer down their anxiety. Even Magglio "I've never met a first pitch I didn't like" Ordonez has gotten off his tiny schneide -- hitting two homers last night in Texas.

But perhaps the most encouraging sign after 27 innings of play is the fact that, until rookie Jordan Tata walked a man in the ninth inning last night, Tigers pitchers had only issued one free pass prior to that -- in over 26 innings pitched. Who do they think they're tossing to -- the 2005 Tigers?

Already manager Jim Leyland is proving himself to be a mad professor. Brandon Inge leading off last night, despite a monstrous game from Curtis Granderson on Wednesday. Throwing rookie pitcher Joel "Zoom" Zumaya into a tight, 2-1 game on Opening Day in the seventh inning. Shifting Shelton from his projected eighth spot in the order to sixth. Letting Tata try to pitch out of his self-induced jam in the ninth in Texas, so the youngster could get a save. Installing Pudge Rodriguez into the three hole, even though he had a lousy 2005. They're all working, these crazy-like-a-fox moves.

Sure, it's only 3-0, but how many times have we seen 0-3 around here and gotten that creepy feeling of impending doom? And how often was that feeling dead-on accurate?

The Tigers are 3-0 and can come home no worse than .500 for their opener Monday against the defending champion White Sox.

Oh, by the way, the White Sox finished just four games above .500 in 2004 -- the year before they became baseball's little darlings.

Just thought you might like to know that.