The Tigers have undergone a major cosmetic change in the month of July.  We’ll call it the Maggs factor.  As the Tigers head to the West coast for a trip through Seattle and Oakland, they bring with them the cleanup hitter they have missed the first three months of the season.  Since the return of Magglio Ordonez to the Tigers lineup on July 1st, the offense is really rolling.  Ordonez is hitting .373 with 3 homers and 17 RBI in July, but maybe more striking is the impact he is having on the entire offense.  The following is a breakdown of the Tigers offense with and without Maggs. 

Here are the team rankings for the month of July in the American League with Ordonez in the lineup:

Average:  .299 (2nd)

Runs:  117  (3rd)

Hits:   240  (1st)

HR:  26  (3rd)

Now, the team rankings from April 13th through June 30th without Magglio in the lineup:

Average:  .266  (8th)

Runs:  290  (13th)

Hits:   625  (11th)

HR:  56  (11th)

It’s clear that Ordonez means a great deal to the lineup.  Second year hitter Chris Shelton has opened up some eyes with his offense, and having Ordonez hitting behind him in the lineup can only help to insure that he will continue to see plenty of good pitches in the second half.  The 3-4 combination of Shelton/Ordonez has been as good as any in July.