April 4, 2008 - As noted in our American League Power Rankings a short while ago, the Detroit Tigers have a lineup that, on paper, could blow out every pitching staff in the league. The key words, of course, are “on paper”, and the Tigers have gotten off to the worst possible start in 2008.

After being swept by Kansas City in their opening series, the Tigers lost to the Chicago White Sox on Friday to drop to 0-4. Not exactly the kind of start that a team built to win right now prefers.

Compounding the early troubles in Detroit are injury problems which are already starting to chip away at the lineup. Curtis Granderson is out with a broken hand; now Miguel Cabrera and Gary Sheffield are both injury worries with a strained quad and a finger injury, respectively. Sheffield can play through pain all he wants, but there’s no way the tendon tear in his left ring finger isn’t going to affect his swing.

The rest of the big names in the lineup, with the exception of Carlos Guillen, have yet to catch fire. The rotation, heralded (by me, at least) as potentially one of the strongest in the AL, has an ERA near 6.00, with Dontrelle Willis scheduled to pitch tomorrow.

All that being said, this is still the first week of the season. There’s more than enough time for these Tigers to jell and become the dominant force that they could be. Studs like Cabrera and Justin Verlander will eventually raise their level of play, but in the cutthroat AL Central, time is of the essence. These Tigers, third in payroll behind the Yankees and the Red Sox, better get their act together quickly.

Now, onto more cheerful newsworthy items:

Hampton Scratched ... Again
Honestly, is anyone even surprised that Mike Hampton didn’t make it onto the mound on schedule? After suffering from a “strained left pectoral muscle” while warming up before his start against the Pirates Thursday, Hampton finds himself in the familiar embrace of the DL. Hampton hasn’t started a game in over two years; his last outing was on August 19, 2005. In the meantime, he will continue to collect money from the final year of his eight-year, $121-million contract.

It’s a shame, really, because Hampton had been having an exceptional preseason which has placed him on the fringes of our fantasy radars once again. We’ll revisit this situation once Hampton comes off the DL, but don’t hold your breath. If you’re looking to supplement your fantasy team with a former ace who’s bouncing back from years of injury problems, Randy Wolf is probably a safer bet.

Jays Lock Up Rios For Six Years
As reported by Yahoo! Sports, Alex Rios has finalized a $64 million, six-year contract extension Friday with the Toronto Blue Jays. Rios, who was almost traded to San Francisco in the offseason, has so far gotten off to a good start for the Jays with three RBI and two stolen bases in three games. Toronto, however, is 1-2 going into Friday’s evening game with Boston.

Is this the year that Rios delivers on his potential? He was a wonderful steal for astute fantasy owners in 2006, but was overrated and overpriced in 2007. He’s been favorably compared to Bobby Abreu in the past, and it seems that being offered to the Giants for Tim Lincecum over the winter hasn’t affected his desire to stay in Canada. So while Rios owners probably won’t be getting the contract-year-stat bump, Rios looks to be entering his prime just about now.

Fukudome Adjusting Well With Cubs
Kosuke Fukudome has looked extremely good in his first week as a Chicago Cub. Batting in the fifth spot behind Aramis Ramírez, Fukudome has homered once, notched three RBI, and swiped a base, all while hitting .500 after Friday’s game against Houston. Fukudome’s gain is Alfonso Soriano’s loss, as Soriano continues to be stuck in the leadoff spot, with Ryan Theriot behind him.

Fukudome has hit the ground running, but let’s not get carried away; I was in a live draft yesterday where Fukudome was taken in the third round. He would probably make an excellent third outfielder on a team, probably near the 8th-10th round. He’s a keeper, but he’s not going to be putting up Grady Sizemore-like numbers, people.

Hawk Attacks 13-year Old girl At Fenway Park
As reported by several major news outlets, a red-tailed hawk at Fenway Park attacked a fan named Alexa Rodriguez while she was on a tour of Fenway, drawing blood but doing no serious damage. The hawk had apparently made a nest near the press booth at Fenway. The nest and a single egg were later removed.

To the belligerent hawk I say: Let it go. This was obviously a retaliation attack for Randy Johnson’s 2001 dove-killing fastball. I hate birds with a passion; as a child, I was exposed to footage of a headless chicken and I have been traumatized ever since. The presence of a resident hawk raised my hopes that 2008 would be the year which hitting birds with fastballs once again became fashionable, but with Daisuke Matsuzaka showing great control against Oakland on Tuesday, it looks like I’ll have to go to KFC to assuage my childhood fears.