There is an old cliché in baseball: Bases on balls will kill you.
        It is as true today as it was the first time I heard those words uttered, 100 or so years ago.
        Jim Leyland admits it: “We’ve walked way too many people.
        “Look at our strikeouts versus our walks _ our ratio is one of the worst,” Leyland said.
        Not true, skipper. In fact, the Tigers’ walks-to-strikeouts ratio is not one of the worst -- it is the very worst in the American League.
        As play resumed after the All-Star break, the Tigers had walked 369 batters and struck out 508.
        Next worst are the Baltimore Orioles, with 387 walks and 531 strikeouts.
        The Toronto Blue Jays own the best such record in the league with 281 walks and 694 strikeouts, followed closely by the Chicago White Sox with  260 walks and 670 strikeouts.
        Which is one big reason why the ChiSox are in first place while the Tigers are stuck in third.