Turning down Red Sox tickets is not something I'm in the habit of doing. But when your wife is nine months pregnant and could go into labor at any moment, you only have one choice to make.

As a result, I've missed a couple of opportunities. I am most certainly bummed I won't be at the diamond when the Tigers come to town. (that sounds funny, doesn't it.)

At the beginning of the year all those people who thought they got "stuck" with this matchup have got to be rejoicing today.

The Tigers hold the best record in baseball. They lead their division by 5 1/2 games and look to be the team to beat.

If they gave comeback of the year awards to teams, the Tigers would certainly be the odds-on favorite. Let's not forget that Detroit only a season ago had lost 91 games. In fact, the Tigers have had 12 consecutive below-.500 years.

The Boston Globe questions whether the Tigers are for real.

Though most of the baseball world is surprised by the Tigers resurgence, they shouldn't be. The Tigers have done a few things right over the last few years.

Adding Ivan Rodriguez to help these young pitchers develop was huge. Adding the offensive power of Magglio Ordonez and being patient through his injuries was gigantic. Replacing the struggling first baseman Chris Shelton with Sean Casey was enormous.

But nothing is as big as hiring Jim Leyland. Leyland not only has brought the team his knowledge, but has brought out its character. Players seem to succeed under his tutelage, especially pitchers (perhaps because he used to be a catcher).

I also believe that coaches Andy Van Slyke and Don Slaught, both former players under Leyland in his Pittsburgh years, have had a huge impact on youngsters like Curtis Granderson.

Detroit comes into the Fenz, with the best pitching rotation (from top to bottom) in baseball. Four of their starters are in double-digit wins (and the fifth, Zach Miner, has a 7-3 record in 13 starts.) They are the only AL team with a sub-4 ERA.

Tonight, the hard-throwing lefty Nate Robertson starts for the Tigers. He has a 3.82 ERA and 98Ks in 148 innings. His has an effective slider to go with his fastball and changes speeds well. But because he throws so darn hard, he has control issues, leading the club in walks allowed.

Detroit also comes into Boston with a five-game losing streak (sound familiar). They are fighting to keep the lead in the AL central over Chicago who swept them over the weekend. The Detroit Free Press' Micheal Rosenberg says the recent, err, slump is nothing to worry about.

It will not be easy for the Tigers either especially when you consider that the White Sox are home vs. the Royals (I don't mean to sell the Royals short).

ESPN wonders if this is the beginning of a Detroit collapse.

I hope they are still wondering after the next three days, because after Detroit, it's five with the Yankees.

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