Tigers Unveil New Batting Practice Hats

via ESPN

By Sean Gagnier
 
Because fans would revolt if their team changed their uniforms each season, the MLB has decided to take its fashion...."sense" out on the batting practice hats for all 30 teams each year, and this year's crop of BP hats are exceptionally horrific.

Some of the new designs do work well, notably the Houston Astros', but the alternate color front panel with a different colored brim just doesn't work with many teams, namely the Tigers.

On the home BP hat, pictured above, the front panel is gray. Gray. Since when is that a part of Detroit's color palate? It looks wrong and the blue Olde English "D" on the crown just looks out of place. Not to mention, the front panel is not the same color as the rest of the crown of the hat. Making it look very similar to those trucker hats that are oh-so popular with a certain swath of the fashion world.

It could also just be the way that the image has been rendered, but it appears as though the stitching throughout the hat will be blue and quite noticeable. It's supposed to be a hat made for professional ballplayers, not a knock around hat for a frat guy. 

via ESPN

The road version of the 2013 Tigers BP hat isn't much better than its home counterpart. The one good thing that can be said about it is that the entire crown is gray. The biggest problem with the hat? It's gray. The "D" remains blue, but is this time outlined in orange. And the brim remains blue.

Maybe someone in the uniform department had a nephew or niece that needed a job in design out of college and gave them the BP hat thinking they couldn't do much damage. Well, they did. These are horrifyingly bad and will hopefully find themselves in the trash for good come the 2014 season.

 

Detroit Tigers Must Hold Onto Porcello

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

It's been well documented that the Tigers are willing spend money in order to win now for their aging owner, Mike Ilitch, but when a team tries to play like the New York Yankees in the clubhouse, they lose to the Yankees on the field.


The Tigers payroll will top $156M in 2012, an unheard of figure for a mid-market team with a modest television deal. General Manager Dave Dombrowski has done his best to fill the needs of the team through trades and via free agency. While that has brought talent to the team, it has strained the pocketbook and emptied the farm system.

When the Tigers traded uber-prospect Jacob Turner and major-league-ready catcher Rob Brantly to the Miami Marlins in July for pitcher Anibal Sanchez and second-baseman Omar Infante, many said the only way the trade would be deemed palatable is if the Tigers won the World Series or resigned Sanchez.

Well, the Tigers made it to the World Series, but lost. Then Dombrowksi inked Sanchez to a five-year deal deal worth $80M, and the trade talk around the Tigers heated up. Yes, Detroit is a much better team with Sanchez on it than without him, but one cannot so easily give up on prospects.

The ink wasn't even dry on the deal Sanchez contract and there were rumors swirling as to where Detroit would be trading pitcher Rick Porcello. It was taken as a given, a throw away move on a prospect that was one of the top rated high school pitchers taken in his draft.

Porcello, who turns 24 on Dec. 27, does not have the best career numbers, but a closer look at his stats reveals that he is improving each season and could very well be better than many give him credit for.

from Baseball-Reference.com

Each year, after 2009, Porcello has shown improvement to his ERA numbers, cutting 0.33 off his career high of 4.92 in 2010. His WHIP has not been as steady, and has bounced around from season to season. In 2012, Porcello posted a WHIP of 1.53, nosing his career WHIP to 1.417.

Normally any pitcher with a WHIP north of 1.35 is not a starter, but there are other factors one must consider before relegating Porcello to the scrap heap. Porcello is a ground-ball pitcher, meaning that he is at his best when batters make contact with the ball. The style of pitching is why the WHIP of any ground-ball, contact-pitcher is notably higher than that of a power-pitcher.

Porcello has increased his ground-ball numbers and cut down on his home runs allowed each season, resulting in a career best 16 home runs allowed in 2012. The problem with Porcello is that when he is on his game, he is getting quite a few ground balls and those ground balls have to be fielded by arguably one of the worst infields in the league.

Miguel Cabrera, at third base, does an admirable job, but his range is minimal. To Cabrera's left is shortstop Jhonny Peralta, who despite an impressive postseason, only has decent range forward and not to his left or right. Omar Infante had nine errors at second base for the Tigers in only 61 games. And Prince Fielder, at first, has one of the worst ranges in the game. Meaning that if Porcello had a defense behind him, he would easily be a 20-game winner.

Now, poor infield-defense may be another reason to trade Porcello. Or, one could look at making a few roster moves in the 2013 offseason that would shore up the defense and make Porcello look a heck of a lot better each time he is on the mound.

Right now, Porcello does not have the highest trade value. Teams know that the Tigers consider him to be "surplus," so they are not willing to give up much in return. Meaning that a former first-round draft pick would have gotten Detroit Joel Hanrahan. There are reports that several teams are interested in trading for Porcello, but how many of them would give Detroit anything of use?

With the trade route being rather barren, and fairly short-sighted, the best option is for the Tigers to hold onto Porcello and roll with the punches. Porcello has shown steady improvement, and remember, this guy is 24-years old. Verlander went 11-17 with a 4.84 ERA in 2008 when he was 25, so there is something to be said for letting players develop.

The argument for trading Porcello has been that with the signing of Sanchez, there is only one open spot for a starter on the team. But think to yourself, when is the last time that any team went the entire season without an injury to one of their starters? Exactly.

Detroit has six starters. That's it. Seriously, there are no others. The Tigers traded Andy Oliver and shipped Adam Wilk to Korea this offseason. Casey Crosby has shown he isn't ready to start, and Duane Below has proven that he is best out of the bullpen. So should there be an injury to one of Detroit's starters, there is no help.

What Detroit needs to do, is to just take a deep breath and hold onto their young talent. Let Porcello and Drew Smyly duke it out in spring training for the final starters slot, and reward the other with a long-relief position in the bullpen. Both Smyly and Porcello have what it takes to be a starter.

The Tigers are good with one of the two of them on the roster, and they are even better with both of them. Having both Porcello and Smyly on the active-roster allows Manager Jim Leyland some flexibility with his rotation and also provides him with a safety net should something happen to one of his pitchers.

So the Tigers should let the stove remain hot and listen to offers, but unless something comes that blows them away they would be best suited to hold onto their talent. 

Detroit Tigers Top Ten Prospects for 2013

By Sean Gagnier

After trading away two of the two top prospects in the Tigers farm system during the 2012 season, what is left on the farm that could help Detroit in the near future?

1. Nick Castellanos 3B/OF
2. Avisail Garcia OF
3. Bruce Rondon RHP
4. Jake Thompson RHP
5. Austin Schotts OF
6. Danry Vasquez OF
7. Tyler Collins OF
8. Casey Crosby LHP
9. Eugenio Suarez SS/2B
10. Adam Wilk LHP

Everyone in Detroit knows who Castellanos and Garcia are. Castellanos is a natural SS, who was moved to 3B and then to the outfield when Miguel Cabrera moved to third base. General Manager Dave Dombrowski has maintained that Castellanos will remain in the outfield, which could work for Detroit. With the Tigers still searching for another outfield bat, having a solid young bat like Castellanos in the minors is a good backup plan.

Garcia is an electrifying outfielder who came to the majors at the end of August and made his presence known in Detroit. He has a plus bat and an incredible arm from the outfield. One problem with him however, is that Manager Jim Leyland only played him against left-handed pitchers, which he did well against. But, being a young player, if he only ever sees action against lefties, then his numbers against righties will only continue to fall. Garcia will be a very good outfielder, but he needs to play every day, and if he can't get that in Detroit, then he should spend half the season in Toledo getting everyday action before he moves permanently to right field in Detroit.

Bruce Rondon has had his name thrown around a lot lately, as a solution to the closer vacancy in Detroit. Rondon is known for his blazing fastball that can easily hit triple digits, but he also possesses what could be the best slider in the Tigers organization. If Rondon has a third pitch that even comes close to his fastball and slider, then he will earn the closer role in 2013 and will not relinquish it for years.  

Jake Thompson and Austin Schotts were both drafted by the Tigers in 2012. Thompson has a good arm and is capable of making hitters miss, but he is still very raw and will require several more years in the minors before he will be ready to break into the big leagues.

Schotts however, could have been the steal of the 2012 draft. The outfielder is said to have 80 speed and said to be able to beat Mike Trout and Michael Bourn in a footrace. Schotts elected to join the Tigers rather than go to college, and Detroit couldn't be happier about it. In his first 22 games as a pro, Schotts hit .388/.440/.538 with 7 doubles, a triple, a homerun, and 11 stolen bases in 13 tries.

Schotts will not take much longer in the minors before he is ready for an everyday job in Detroit. With his exceptional speed, he could be a great fit in the massive Comerica Park center field. This would shift Austin Jackson to left field for the Tigers, which could work well, as Detroit has been on the lookout for a good left fielder for a decade.

Danry Vasquez was signed when he was 16-years old and given a seven figure signing bonus by the Tigers in 2010. There have been some mixed reviews on his fielding, but he stands out as being a good player even when not in the spotlight. Vasquez does possess a strong arm from the outfield and as his fielding improves he will only become more and more inticing for Detroit to either place in the lineup or trade for a top-tier MLB talent.

The Tigers continue the glut of outfield talent with Tyler Collins, who won the National Junior College Athletic Asssociation Player of the Year from Howard College in Texas in 2011. He batted .488 (105-for-215) last spring with 34 doubles, 19 homers and 82 RBI. Collins was selected in the sixth round of the 2011 MLB draft and will likely be a trade piece before he makes it to the majors in Detroit.

Casey Crosby is another name Tigers fans should know, he has spent some time in the Detroit rotation the last several years. Crosby has struggled to stay healthy since being drafted in 2007, and following Tommy John's surgery in 2008 Crosby needs to get some innings under his belt. He possesses a heavy, mid-90's fastball and while he has a good curveball, he needs work to consistently throw it for strikes. A changeup adds depth to his repertoire, but it needs a bit of work still.

Eugenio Suarez breaks the outfielder daze, and the switch-hitting infielder is a breath of fresh air for the Tigers. Although Suarez is on the smaller side, but he possesses good defensive ability while also hitting well. It appears as though the Tigers scouts found gold with this IFA prospect. The lack of infield prospects and his good skill set should have him in the majors quickly.

Adam Wilk is yet another familiar name for Tigers fans. Wilk is a control pitcher, who does not have great velocity, but he does have great control. He consistently throws strikes, but it is hard to see Wilk as anything more than a bullpen pitcher who could see occasional spot starts.

Below is a graphic representation of the Detroit Tigers 2016 projected lineup, there is a text version further down the page.

Projected 2016 Detroit Tigers starting lineup

Catcher- Alex Avila
First Base- Prince Fielder
Second Base- Jhonny Peralta
Third Base- Nick Castellanos
Short Stop- Eugenio Suarez
Left Field- Austin Jackson
Center Field- Austin Schotts
Right Field- Avisail Garcia
Designated Hitter- Miguel Cabrera
No. 1 Starter- Justin Verlander
No. 2 Starter- Max Scherzer
No. 3 Starter- Doug Fister
No. 4 Starter- Drew Smyly
No. 5 Starter- Rick Porcello
Closer- Bruce Rondon

Tigers Rumored To Be Pursuing Stephen Drew

By Sean Gagnier

After the Oakland A's turned down their $10M option on Stephen Drew, the free agent began popping up on several team's radars, including the Detroit Tigers.

Oakland is not out of the hunt for Drew though, they just want to ink him to a less rich deal. Other teams in the hunt are the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, although both teams see Drew more as an excellent insurance plan for their everyday shortstops.

Detroit however, despite picking up the option on Jhonny Peralta after the World Series, consider Drew to be a starting shortstop and are rumored to be pursuing him.

Picking up Drew doesn't add much to the Tigers roster, it is not a positive move, but more of a horizontal one. In 2012 Peralta hit .239/.305/.384 in 585 appearances while Drew turned in a .223/.309/.348 performance in 327 appearances.

Drew however, was coming off a year of rehab from a severe ankle injury, something Detroit believes held his numbers down.

If Detroit does indeed sign Drew, they will likely shop Peralta who has drawn interest from several teams, including the Arizona Diamondbacks. Should Drew don the "Olde English D" then the Tigers could trade Peralta quickly to get a prospect or two in return.

Tigers Close In On Hunter, Make FA Signing

By Sean Gagnier

It's no secret that the Tigers are targeting corner outfielders this offseason. With the struggles of Delmon Young, who is now gone, and the inexperience of Avisail Garcia, Detroit wants to add a veteran presence to the outfield, and Torii Hunter is perfect.

Hunter is being pursued by several teams, but the top two appear to be the Tigers and the Texas Rangers. One team will have their prize sooner rather than later, as Hunter told MLB Network that he expects to "sign quickly."

Detroit sees Hunter as a near perfect fit on and off the field in the Motor City. The corner outfield spots are important to the Tigers, and adding a veteran presence could help give the team the leadership in the clubhouse that appeared to be lacking during the 2012 season.

Texas is also an option for Hunter, who makes his home close to the Ballpark at Arlington in Texas.

Other teams in the hunt for Hunter are the; Red Sox, Dodgers, Yankees, Braves and Angels.

Free Agent Moves

Detroit has signed right-hander Shawn Hill to a minor league contract. Hill opted for free agency after appearing in just one game for the Blue Jays last season. The 31-year old rightie spent most of the 2012 season in Triple-A and posted stats of; 4.52 ERA, 5.2 K/9, 2.2 BB/9 in 89 2/3 innings.

Tigers Bring Back Bonderman....Maybe

By Sean Gagnier

Former-Tiger hurler Jeremy Bonderman is looking to return to the game, and the Tigers reportedly are interesting in bringing him back. It was reported on Friday that the team and Bonderman had reached a deal, but no details were released and when contacted by MLB.com's Jason Beck, Bonderman said that the deal was "news to him."

So, maybe Bonderman isn't on his way back to Detroit, or maybe he is, who knows.

Bonderman last pitched for Detroit in 2010 before suffering a shoulder injury that forced him to have surgery. In eight seasons with the Tigers, Bonderman posted a 4.89 ERA and 1.402 WHIP,  not exactly numbers that are going to blow the world away.

If the Tigers do indeed sign Bonderman, it will likely be to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training. Should Detroit like what they see out of Bonderman in the spring he could wind up with the club, otherwise he could spend some time in Toledo returning to form.

Closer News

The Tigers have said that they will not pursue former-Yankee reliever Rafael Soriano for the vacant closers role. Instead, Detroit has indicated that the closer role will be filled from within and has marked 21-year old reliever Bruce Rondon as a candidate.

Tigers Lloyd McClendon Is Candidate for Marlins Job

By Sean Gagnier

UPDATE: McClendon has missed out on the Marlins job and will return to the Detroit Tigers next season and continue serving as the hitting coach.  

The Detroit Tigers didn't waste any time in getting the team ready for next season, announcing several roster moves and the return of manager Jim Leyland. Leyland said at his press conference that the entirety of his coaching staff would be invited to return next season, with one change.

The invitation to return was extended to all of Leyland's coaches, but it was explained that there would be one change. Rumors are that the change will involve third base coach Gene Lamont, who is oft-criticized for his choices at that location. A replacement candidate for third base coach could be current first base coach Tom Brookens.

However, there may be more than just the one coaching move come next season. After a disappointing season in Miami, the Marlins have fired manager Ozzie Guillen and are now looking for his replacement. Apparently the "all-Latin team" went out the window when the Marlins record went south, and Miami has interviewed Tigers hitting coach Lloyd McClendon for the vacancy.

McClendon reportedly interviewed with the Marlins on Oct. 30. He makes sense for the under performing team, as he helped to turn Austin Jackson into a solid leadoff hitter and oversaw a Triple Crown winner. But McClendon isn't the only candidate by far; the Marlins are also looking at Larry Bowa, currently of MLB Network, and Mike Redmond, currently manager of the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays. Miami was also considering Bryan Price, but he has since withdrawn his name.

Tigers manager Jim Leyland set to return in 2013

By Sean Gagnier

Tigers manager Jim Leyland is slated to return for his eighth season as manager of the Detroit Tigers, according to Tom Gage. The contract extension through 2013 announcement could be made as early as today.

It was no secret that both sides wanted to try this again. General Manager Dave Dombrowski repeatedly said that he would love to have Leyland back, if he wanted to come back. And Leyland continually said that he wanted to manage more, but wanted to see how things went.

Well, the love birds have finally gotten back together. No information regarding the length or value of Leyland's new contract have come out yet, but reports are that the two sides have a deal done.

While it may not always be easy to agree with the calls that Leyland has made this season, it is hard to argue with the results. Under his management, the Tigers have gone to three postseasons, won back-to-back AL Central titles and been to the World Series twice. The outcomes of those Fall Classic's was not what was hoped, but it is hard to complain about being one of the last two standing.

If Leyland can keep his team playing like they did in the American League Championship Series next season, then things will be great for Detroit. His coaches will come back with him. We see no reason why they shouldn't. Back-to-back AL Central titles and an AL Championship speak a bit to not breaking up the team.

Detroit Tigers tapped as World Series Favorites for 2013

By Sean Gagnier

Yes, that's right. The team that got outright trounced in the World Series and embarrassed on national television for four straight game apparently tests well in Las Vegas.

2012 was a year of extremely high expectations. Hell, even the Tigers' American League Championship feels empty. This team looked like world beaters, and they still do, not to mention they will add Victor Martinez next season, a guy who hit .400+ with RISP in 2011.

So while it may be too soon for most Tigers fans, it's never too early in Vegas. According to the betting service Bovada, the Tigers are 6-to-1 favorites to win the World Series next season. They are closely followed by the Yankees (not sure why, as there will be a lot of movement in the Bronx this off season) at 7-to-1 and the San Francisco Giants to repeat at 10-to-1.

Looking toward next season, it isn't out of the question, or even the least bit naive to say that the Tigers could win their third straight American League Central crown. The division will be just as bad, as if Detroit can actually put together a season where they appear to actually care about playing competitive baseball then it should be a cakewalk.

That being said, if you were a betting man, why not slap down a dollar on the new-to-the-AL Houston Astros to win the whole thing. Worst that happens is you're out a dollar; best case scenario, you win $150.

Full Odds:

Detroit Tigers............................6/1
New York Yankees..................7/1
San Francisco Giants...............10/1
Texas Rangers.........................12/1
Washington Nationals.............12/1
Los Angeles Angels................12/1
Philadelphia Phillies................14/1
St. Louis Cardinals..................14/1
Cincinnati Reds.......................14/1
Atlanta Braves.........................14/1
Los Angeles Dodgers..............18/1
Tampa Bay Rays.....................20/1
Boston Red Sox.......................22/1
Arizona Diamondbacks...........25/1
Baltimore Orioles.....................25/1
Milwaukee Brewers.................25/1
Oakland Athletics....................25/1
Chicago White Sox..................28/1
Pittsburgh Pirates.....................30/1
Toronto Blue Jays....................35/1
Seattle Mariners.......................40/1
Miami Marlins..........................40/1
New York Mets.......................40/1
San Diego Padres.....................60/1
Minnesota Twins.....................66/1
Chicago Cubs..........................75/1
Cleveland Indians....................75/1
Colorado Rockies....................75/1
Kansas City Royals.................75/1
Houston Astros......................150/1

What do the Detroit Tigers do to improve their pitching for 2013?

By Sean Gagnier

Even as the Detroit Tigers watched the San Francisco Giants celebrate their World Championship at Comerica Park, questions arose as to what happens for 2013. One of those questions could be, how to the Tigers improve their pitching?

There are several options but two stand out more than any other.

General Manager Dave Dombrowski could make a move to resign Anibal Sanchez and keep him in Detroit for the long term. While that could be the preferred option, it could prove to be an expensive one. Sanchez, despite not receiving much run support in Detroit, posted a 2.15 ERA and 44 K's in his last eight outings and has said that he is open to returning to Motown.

That being said, Detroit will not be the only team pursuing Sanchez this off-season. Teams such as the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Kansas City Royals will be in the hunt for Sanchez's services, which could drive his salary up quite steep.

Sanchez is 28 years old and only has a career record of 48-51, but ESPN's Buster Olney reports that he could get a contract worth anywhere from $30 to $60 million. If those figures are accurate, the Tigers could very well let Sanchez walk, seeing as he is slated to be the fourth starter behind Justin Verlander, Doug Fister and Max Scherzer.

The other option open to the Tigers would be the trade route, and despite popular thoughts by fans, Rick Porcello remains a viable trade asset for Detroit. Porcello is a solid ground ball pitcher and could bring a decent return, either in the form of a starter or bullpen help.

As a ground ball pitcher Porcello is well suited for a National League club, instead of the one he currently plays for that has very poor infield defense. A ground ball pitcher is only as good as his infield defense, and well...look who is in the infield for Detroit.

Porcello still is well regarded among other general managers and appears to be a fit in Minnesota, San Diego or Pittsburgh. A trade of Porcello for Joel Hanrahan or Aaron Crow could very well be a realistic possibility.

Who Closes for the Detroit Tigers in 2013?

By Sean Gagnier

The World Series is over and congratulations are in order to the San Fransisco Giants. Their pitching staff dominated the Detroit Tigers all series.

As the depression of being swept out of the fall classic subsides, the Tigers will have to look at themselves and see where they need improvement. And anyone with eyes can see that the biggest area in need of improvement is the closers role.

Jose Valverde may have been perfect in 2011, but he was anything but that in 2012. And in the 2012 postseason, he was the epitome of worthless. He was so bad that Manager Jim Leyland turned to lefty-specialist Phil Coke to serve as his inpromptu-closer for the length of the postseason.

Valverde has without a doubt seen his last game in a Tigers uniform, but while his departure will certainly come as a relief to many Tigers fans, it also leaves a void at the back end of the Detroit bullpen. Who should fill it? There are several in-house options to consider as well as a free agent and one on the trade market, here they are.

Free Agents

Rafael Soriano - New York Yankees, signed through 2013 (3yrs/$35M)

• 67.2 IP / 2.26 ERA / 42 SV / 1.167 WHIP / 9.2 SO/9
• While Soriano may not be a free agent quite yet, all indications are that he will opt out of the final year of his contract with the Yankees and will test the free agent market. And that market could become very lucrative for him.
• After the season ending injury to Mariano Rivera it was up to Soriano to take over the closers role, and he did an exceptional job. His 42 saves are the second most of his career and his WHIP among the best in the league
• Upside: Soriano is an elite caliber closer who could come in and immediately have an impact for the Tigers.
• Downside: He will cost a pretty penny. Soriano isn't opting out of the final year of a $35M deal to get less money and with the Yankees competing with several other teams for his services, his contract will certainly balloon out of the Tigers price range. 

Trade Market

Chris Perez - Cleveland Indians, signed through 2015 (arbitration eligible, $4.5M)

• 57.2 IP / 3.59 ERA / 39 SV / 1.127 WHIP / 9.2 SO/9
• Cleveland is starting a new era under Manager Terry Francona, and Perez showed that he was one of the most outspoken and driven members of last season's Indians club. However, Cleveland has it's eyes on their closer of the future in Vinnie Pestano. While Perez gives the Indians passion and energy, he could also bring them solid prospects in return.
• The Indians like Perez, the only way they part ways with him is if they believe Pestano is ready to take over the mantle of being the closer. And that has yet to be seen.
• Upside: Perez would bring a fire and passion to the Tigers that has appeared to be missing since the loss of Victor Martinez. He is unconventional, but his style of pitching would fit well in the cavern that is Comerica Park.
• Downside: Pestano doesn't appear to be ready to become the closer just yet, but if the Indians do decide to go with him, they will want quite a bit in return for Perez and they would be insane to trade him within the division.

In-House 

Phil Coke - Detroit Tigers, signed through 2015 (arbitration eligible, $1.1M)

• 54 IP / 4.00 ERA / 1 SV / 1.648 WHIP / 8.5 SO/9
• Coke was not the picture of consistency during the regular season, but when Valverde imploded in the postseason, Leyland turned to Coke and he delivered. In his 10 innings pitched in the 2012 postseason, Coke allowed just one run.
• Upside: Coke being a lefty, would be something different than most closers. He has shown that when the pressure is on him he is capable of producing and giving maximum effort. The guy sprints to the mound from the bullpen every single time his name is called and he refuses to give less than 100 percent, that's something you look for in a closer.
• Downside: The postseason is one thing, the pressure and adrenaline could have helped him, but it remains to be seen if he can take his playoff success and translate it into regular season consistency. If Coke pitches the way he did during the regular season then he is not closer material, but if the Tigers get the postseason Coke, then they would have found themselves something special.

Al Alburquerque - Detroit Tigers, signed through 2017, $495K

• 13.1 IP / 0.68 ERA / 0 SV / 1.050 WHIP / 12.2 SO/9
• Alburquerque possesses a devastating slider and a decent fastball to keep batters honest, but he has yet to complete a complete season after two injuries cut his 2011 and 2012 short. In 2011, Alburquerque was struck in the back of the head by a fly ball during batting practice and missed the final several months of the season. In 2012, he suffered a knee injury and was unable to return to action until late in the year.
• When healthy and on, Alburquerque is close to unhittable. However, his durability has to come into question as well as his relative inexperience. But if Alburquerque is capable of producing the same way he did to close out the season this year, next season, then he could be a very interesting candidate.
• Upside: His pitches have great movement and he doesn't appear to be phased with runners on base. Detroit has Alburquerque signed long term, meaning that if he does have what it takes to close games, the Tigers could use the money they save on him for other pieces.
• Downside: Alburquerque has yet to complete a season and is for all intents and purposes still a rookie. Handing the ball to someone as inexperienced as Alburquerque could prove costly to the Tigers if he isn't entirely ready for the pressure of the closers role.

Bruce Rondon - Toledo Mud Hens, Triple-A

•  (A+, AA, AAA) 53.0 IP / 1.53 ERA / 29 SV / 1.094 WHIP / 11.2 SO/9
• From scouting reports and other outlets it is apparent that Rondon possesses an impressive fastball, upper-nineties, and several decent off-speed pitches. Rondon was good enough in 2012 to progress from High-A Lakeland to Double-A Erie and on to Triple-A Toledo all while serving as the closer.
• Upside: Rondon has a devastating fastball that could overpower many major league hitters, and being an unknown rookie could benefit him against batters who have not yet seen him. If he can improve his change-up, Rondon could be a very good closer for years to come.
• Downside: Much like Alburquerque, Rondon being a rookie is dangerous for the Tigers. His inexperience and complete lack of time in the major leagues could lead to him playing a role in the bullpen in 2013, but keep him from assuming the closers role for several years.

Detroit Tigers Will Have Work Cut Out for Them in Arbitration

By Sean Gagnier
It may be early, the Tigers aren't dead yet in the World Series, but looking at a 3-0 series deficit, it couldn't hurt to look to the 2013 season.

First off, the Tigers already high payroll could get much higher next season, with nine players eligible for salary arbitration.

Arbitration Eligible Tigers
Includes player's 2012 salary

• Max Scherzer, $3.75 million
• Rick Porcello, $3.1 million
• Ryan Raburn, $2.1 million
• Phil Coke, $1.1 million
• Don Kelly, $900,000
• Alex Avila, $510,000
• Doug Fister, $507,500
• Brennan Boesch, $502,500
• Austin Jackson, $500,000

Most of the eligible players are well deserving of a pay raise, but there are several that the Tigers should be kicking to the curb quickly following the World Series.

Of the nine players eligible for arbitration, Raburn does not deserve a pay raise at all, in fact he probably should have to pay Mike Illich for being as bad as he is. No chance he is back with the team next season.

With Detroit likely picking up the $6 million option on Jhonny Peralta, they will have no need for Kelly and will likely cut him.

Boesch more than likely has seen his last game in a Tigers uniform. He did not follow up his good 2011 season with a equally impressive 2012 season, and has been left off all three Tigers postseason rosters. If that isn't a sign that Detroit is ready to part ways with Boesch, then nothing is. Not to mention the glut of outfielders the Tigers have right now.

Scherzer will see yet another big pay raise; last season Scherzer saw his salary grow from $600,000 to $3.75 million. If things hold like they did last season, Scherzer could be bringing in quite a bit more money next year.

Like Scherzer, the other Tigers eligible for arbitration, aside from Raburn, Boesch and Kelly, will all likely see a bump in pay and return to the club next season without any incidences.

With Raburn, Boesch and Kelly being shown the door, Detroit will add to it's payroll without adding a single player. That doesn't bode well for being active with free agents.
 
Savings: $3.5 million


 Free Agent Tigers

• Jose Valverde, $9 million
• Delmon Young, $6.75 million
• Gerald Laird, $1 million
• Anibal Sanchez, $8 million

First off, Valverde will never play for the Tigers again. Even before his garbage postseason, he signed with agent Scott Boras, one of the two agents who drive up player contracts to ridiculous sums. Then Valverde tried to blow the Tigers postseason twice in the American division and league championship series. and for some reason Leyland decided to waste a bullpen spot with his arm in the World Series.

Valverde will be on the first plane out of Detroit in the off-season and will never come back. 

Delmon Young may have been named the ALCS MVP, but that doesn't make up for a horrible regular season and his bat, when hot, in no way comes close to making up for his defense in left field, if you can even call it that. Young's -29 RAA is one of the lowest in the entire league, meaning that when he plays left field, Young gives up 29 more runs than an average player. And even his bat doesn't save him, Young boasted a -9Rbat, runs batted in by position. So not only can he not field, he can't hit. Wave g'bye to Young this off-season.

Laird has struggled in the postseason offensively, and didn't have the best year at the plate during the regular season, but he has served as a solid backup for Alex Avila all year. With Victor Martinez returning next season, the Tigers would have three catchers on the roster, but it also depends on how they plan to use Martinez.

The only problem with using Martinez, Laird and Avila, is that Martinez is owed $13 million next season. While that is quite a hefty sum, if he can produce with RISP like he did in 2011 then he will be worth every penny.

That being said, we would prefer to see Martinez used as the DH on a daily basis next season and see Laird return at $1 million or a little more. Martinez is too valuable to this team to put him behind the plate and risk him getting hurt or wearing out what little is left of his knees. By resigning Laird, all three catchers could work with the pitching staff and if absolutely necessary Martinez could serve as the emergency catcher. Laird works well with Scherzer and Porcello, while Avila tends to work better with Verlander and Fister. Why break up the band now?

While Sanchez has yet to see any bump in run support moving from Miami to Detroit, he appears to like the club and the fans, but it has yet to be seen if that will turn into him resigning with the Tigers. With Detroit cutting ties to Valverde, Boesch and Young, there should be enough money to offer Sanchez a competitive deal to keep him in Motown.

He may not have had the best first few outings for Detroit, but Sanchez has shown that he is as capable a pitcher as any of the other guys on the staff. Sanchez will receive contracts worth absurd money, no doubt, but the Tigers will likely offer him something in the neighborhood of $9-10 million per season.

Savings: $15.75 million 

Total Savings: $19.25 million

What about the 'pen?

Phil Coke has shown that he is capable of handling the closers role in the postseason, why not keep him in that role? With Coke serving as the closer, the 7th and 8th inning roles could be left up to Octavio Dotel and Joaquin Benoit.

Moving Coke to the closer, leaves the Tigers in need of a situational lefty, which could be filled by Darin Downs. Continuing to use Al Albuquerque in tight situations would be a solid move and so would be moving Bruce Rondon up from the Toledo Mud Hens and into the Tigers bullpen.

Detroit made a good run in 2011, but was hampered by injuries. In 2012, an American League Championship is nothing to sneeze at, but the Tigers have no one to blame but themselves for under-performing in the World Series. If Detroit wants to stay at the top of the AL for a long time, they need to reward success while promoting young cheap talent from within.

Lamont's Call to Send Fielder in Detroit Tigers Loss to Giants Was the Right One

By Sean Gagnier

Yes, the Tigers are down two games in the World Series. Yes, they are struggling to score runs. And yes, I am not the biggest fan of Gene Lamont. But his call to send Prince Fielder home in the second inning of Thursday's Game 2 was the right call.

Everyone knows that Fielder isn't the best guy on the base paths, but he isn't completely incompetent either.

On the play, Delmon Young scorches a ball down the left field line that pulls the left fielder, Gregor Blanco toward the corner of the field. Before the ball reaches the left field corner however, it ricochets off a cutout and takes a weird hop into left field. At this point, Fielder is around second base and is looking to Lamont at third for direction.

Just as Fielder hits third and begins his sprint toward home, Blanco comes up with the ball and fires it over the cut-off man, where Marco Scutaro takes the throw and has to make a perfect throw to the outside of the line in order to both avoid hitting Fielder and give catcher Buster Posey a shot at tagging him out.

Here's where the defense of the call comes in. Lamont knows that this team is struggling to score runs and he knows that getting one there could give Detroit momentum, so he takes a gamble.

Keep these things in mind when thinking about this play. 1. Scutaro needed to make an absolute perfect throw to the outside part of the plate to even give Posey a chance. 2. Posey does not block the plate anymore after suffering a broken ankle blocking the plate a few years ago.

Now imagine that you're Lamont with Fielder charging to third base. You know both of those things and you know that your runner is a biggun who has an awful lot of kinetic energy heading toward the plate. Keeping those things in mind, sending the runner is the right move.

The blame, if there must be some assigned, lies with Fielder and Jhonny Peralta. Peralta was in the on-deck circle during this play. As the player on-deck, you are responsible for moving behind the plate and helping to tell the runner when and how to slide to avoid any tag at the plate.

Peralta moved to the plate too late and didn't give Fielder any signals on where the throw was coming from. Because of the lack of help from Peralta, Fielder opted for a hook-slide in the middle of the plate rather than a straight-slide on the outside part of the plate.

Sure, if Lamont holds Fielder at third then the Tigers have runners at second and third with no outs and Peralta at the plate. You would assume that at least one of the next two batters could at least lift a ball to the outfield to score Fielder, but that wasn't the case.

If Lamont holds Fielder and the Tigers fail to come up with a hit, likely as they only had two, then it becomes a mistake to have held Fielder. Either call is a good one for different reasons, but this is the World Series, you have to go big or go home.

The Detroit Tigers need to clean house

By Sean Gagnier

In light of Francona's hiring by the Cleveland Indians, it would be the right move for Detroit to hire Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pitching coach Mike Butcher as the next manager.

Mike Illich is a fiercely loyal man, it is evident in the way that he treats members of the two sports teams that he owns. He knows family comes first and he will go out of his way to make sure everyone is in the best place, but it might be time for him to change his tune.

Indictment of Dave Dombrowski

Last season general manager Dave Dombrowski signed a four-year contract extension with the Tigers through the 2015 season. That however, may have been a bit premature.

It is known that the Prince Fielder trade reeks of Illich, meaning that he was tired of Dombrowski not pulling the trigger and did so himself. That was the first indication that things may be amiss in Tigertown. Dombrowksi told Tigers fans during Tiger Fest that he and the team were not pursuing Fielder and that he would not be a good fit for the club. Needless to say, Dombrowski was probably just as surprised as the rest of the baseball world when Fielder signed.

With the addition of Fielder to a club that was largely intact after a American League Championship Series run the year prior, expectations were high for Dombrowski and the Tigers, but they never got the ball rolling. Instead of running away with the division, they struggled to sustain win streaks and trailed the Chicago White Sox most of the season. With a little less than two weeks remaining in the 2012 season the Tigers trailed the White Sox in the Central Division by two games and the Wild Card by four games.

2012 was supposed to be a cakewalk for Detroit, it was anything but. The team that Dombrowski fielded struggled and was never able to get things together on both sides of the ball at the same time. Despite Illich's vote of confidence for Dombrowski in 2011 with his contact extension, the Tigers struggles could be grounds for early termination.

It took Dombrowski until August of the 2012 season to realize that he didn't have a second baseman on the roster, and when he did make a trade at the deadline he acquired yet another right-handed pitcher and regained Omar Infante while giving up two of the three remaining bright lights in the Detroit farm system.

With the Tigers farm system consisting almost entirely of Nick Castellanos, Dombrowski is mismanaging that as well. Castellanos has long been a third baseman, where his arm and bat are both a plus, but Dombrowski has shifted him to the outfield where his bat, arm and defensive ability are no longer a plus. Instead of shifting Castellanos to one of the middle infield positions where his major league club struggles, Dombrowski insists on creating yet another young outfielder for Detroit.

Mismanagement of the farm system and overall incompetence should cost Dombrowski his job, it is simply a matter of if Mr. Illich can see just how far Dombrowski has driven this club into the ground.

The Old Man

It is not a lack of respect that requires manager Jim Leyland leave this team, it is his overall failings this season. Leyland insisted on playing a rotation of Brandon Inge, Ryan Raburn, Ramon Santiago and Danny Worth at second base, even admitting to mishandling Inge before doing the same thing with Raburn.

Countless failed roster lineups and explanations of those lineups that are beyond convoluted. When a player, Raburn, is hitting .160, it doesn't matter where he is playing or what he has done there in the past, he won't hit.

Aside from lineups, is Leyland's complete misuse of the Tigers bullpen throughout the season. Relievers are brought into games when they are not needed and Leyland has bought wholeheartedly into his friend, Tony La Russa's system of using pitchers for single outs and matchups. This piecemeal approach to relievers is outdated and damaging to the team. When your starter is still going strong or the reliever on the mound has struck out his last two batters, why take them out for the lefty reliever other than because of "the system?"

Perhaps it is his advanced age, but Leyland has a nasty habit of leaving some relievers in games much longer than any sane person should. It is one thing to leave a reliever on the mound who is hot, it is another entirely to leave a pitcher on the mound who is in the process of imploding. Take the Tigers early season collapse against the Seattle Mariners, Octavio Dotel couldn't find the plate and everyone except for Leyland apparently could see that. But Leyland allowed the game to get out of hand before he even placed a call to the bullpen.

The man knows baseball, but he seems to have lost a step and his mojo this season and for that he needs to get the boot after his contract expires after this season in order for this Tigers team to perform to it's potential.

The Replacements

With both Dombrowski and Leyland needing to be shown the door, there will need to be two new faces in Detroit. Personally, there is an affinity for the philosophy of Billy Beane, it's working in Oakland right now, and with the lack of talent in the farm system it is that philosophy that could save this club.

Billy Beane isn't leaving Oakland and Theo Epstein is comfortable in Chicago, but there is another. He currently works as the special assistant to New York Mets general manager Sandy Alderson and has eight years of general manager experience, his name is J.P. Ricciardi.

Ricciardi has bought into the "moneyball" philosophy and had his Toronto Blue Jays competing in the American League East each season, not finishing as high as he would have liked, but each Blue Jays team would have fared well in the much weaker American League Central.

If Ricciardi could come into the Tigers organization and add some young, cheap talent then he would be worlds better than Dombrowski ever was and could have the Tigers on the road to actually winning something.

Of course a general manager with no manager isn't likely to win many games, so Detroit must look to add someone who is different than Leyland, someone who understands how to use pitchers and how to set lineups. It appears that there could be quite a few openings for major league managing positions, but there is one name that has been thrown around Tigertown that could really shake things up, Terry Francona.

Francona has two World Series rings from the Boston Red Sox and understands how to run a club filled with big names and big contracts. Experience aside, Francona has had some history with the Tigers, serving as a coach in the past and even throwing batting practice to a young Prince Fielder at Tiger Stadium.

He has said that he would consider coaching again if the right job presented itself, and what better option could there be than a former club with three superstars and a legitimate shot at a World Series title in a town that loves the game? Let Tito watch begin.     

What Should the Tigers 2013 Bullpen Look Like?

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

It's clear that the bullpen has struggled at time for the Detroit Tigers this season. When the bats are hot the pen is cold, very rarely do the two ever sync up to provide Jim Leyland with a complete team effort. With so many relievers struggling this season, there appears as though there will be quite the turnover next season in the Tigers bullpen. Here's what I would like to see out beyond the left field wall.

First off, lose Jose Valverde. Yes, it was impossible for him to repeat his performance from the 2011 campaign in which he converted 49 of 49 save opportunities. He also appeared in a career-high 75 games in 2011, but things haven't been as smooth this season.

In 2011, Valverde sported a 2.24 ERA and a 1.189 WHIP, but in 2012 those numbers have ballooned to 3.62 and 1.228 respectively, not exactly closer caliber numbers. He has turned in an admirable season though, but it won't be enough to live up to the surely high salary that he will demand when he becomes a free agent after this year.

There are too many young arms in this organization to throw money away on someone who gets their nickname from a spud.

Octavio Dotel has a club option on his contract and given his performance in this campaign they will likely pick it up to bring him back into the bullpen for another season. A good move on their part. Dotel consistently gives the Tigers solid innings when they call on him, as with any reliever his ERA is a bit elevated at 2.95 but his 0.914 WHIP much more indicative of how well he is performing this year.

Retaining Dotel in the bullpen would be a good move for Detroit and they will most likely do just that.

The number of current bullpen members that should be in the 2013 pen should be small, they have not proven that they are quality relievers and should not be trusted in tight situations.

With Dotel returning, Detroit needs to return Duane Below to the bullpen and keep him their as their long reliever. Below has not been as consistent as he was last season, but he gives the Tigers innings out of the pen, and they happen to be from a lefty, something that is rare on this team.

In 2012, Below has a 3.38 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP, not the greatest numbers but his K/9 and SO/BB ratios remain good enough to anoint him as the long reliever to come out of the Tigers bullpen. He has a 5.6 K/9 and a 3.63 SO/BB ratio, both of which are evident of a solid long relief man.

Phil Coke has also drawn the ire of Tigers fans several times this season, but he has shown that when he is on, he can be a great situational lefty Detroit can run out in the later innings. His 3.78 ERA and 1.615 WHIP are scary high, but he has had a few outings in which he has imploded which has elevated his numbers as a whole.

 If Coke can regain his early season form he will become a valuable part of this Tigers bullpen in 2013. He continues to be under Detroit's control until 2015, so he will continue to be a familiar face in the pen, although not necessarily a bad one.

Joaquin Benoit should be the last member of this season's bullpen to keep their job in 2013. While it appears to many that Benoit is having a terrible season, he is in fact having a very good statistical year. With a 1.074 WHIP and 3.33 ERA Benoit is more often than not going out and giving the Tigers solid innings late in games.

Being under team control until 2014, Benoit will definitely return to the bullpen in 2013 but given his numbers are remarkably similar to what they were in 2011, he appears to be a consistent pitcher who will be good to have in the bullpen for another season.

To those returning four pitchers there must be three new faces, some more familiar than others.

The first player that must be in the bullpen is Brayan Villarreal, granted he is currently in the bullpen but given his supposed arm troubles he may not stay there for the remainder of the year. Villarreal gave the Tigers consistently good innings, even leading some to call for him to take Valverde's closer role, but then he had a bad weekend and complained of arm weakness, even though the doctor he was sent to see found no injury.

Statistically speaking, Villarreal is having a great season. Much like Benoit, despite the numbers being in his favor the fans aren't. He has a 2.29 ERA and a 1.169 WHIP, both evident of a strong pitcher who consistently has control of his pitches when he takes the mound.

The next is Bruce Rondon. Fans may have heard a lot about Rondon and his blazing fastball, but many don't know much more than that. During 2012, Rondon has advanced from Single-A Lakeland all the way to Triple-A Toledo and has a combined 1.31 ERA and 1.042 WHIP. Staggering numbers for a 22-year old.

He will need more time in Toledo before he is considered for the Tigers, but he will undoubtedly get an invite to spring training and if he has mastered a few off-speed pitches to keep batters from sitting on his fastball, then he needs to be in the Detroit bullpen. Having an Aroldis Chapman type player in the bullpen is like having a secret weapon that can be brought out at any time and end a threat.

There still would be the question of who fills the closer role left vacant by Valverde, and there is a simple fix for that, the man who nearly won rookie of the year last season and has a devastating change-up, Mr. Al Alburquerque.  

Alburquerque is currently on a rehab assignment with the Lakeland Flying Tigers and Toledo Mud Hens; in his nine total innings pitched he has combined for a 4.00 ERA and 1.667 WHIP. Not exactly the numbers you want to see from a future closer. But he is incredibly rusty, having not played in a game since he was struck in the head by a fly ball during batting practice in Baltimore in 2011.

Once Alburquerque can shake off the rust and get his pitches working again he should regain his form and be able to return to the Detroit bullpen. When he was healthy, Alburquerque could throw his change-up to batters even when they knew it was coming and still beat them with it. Add that to a solid fastball and another pitch that he was working on prior to his injury and you have yourself a very good, very cheap new closer.

In all the Detroit Tigers 2013 bullpen needs to look like this in order for them to have any hope of success;
RHP: Octavio Dotel, Brayan Villarreal, Joaquin Benoit, Bruce Rondon, Al Alburquerque
LHP: Duane Below, Phil Coke.

Tigers Trade For Sanchez Among Dombrowski's Worst

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

Starting pitching was supposed to be the savior of this ball club; yes, Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera can rip the cover off the ball, but when's the last time you heard "two big hitters beat good pitching"? Fielder and Cabrera have done just that several times this season, but when it comes down to it, good, solid starting pitching is the backbone of any successful club, and this club doesn't have that.

Of the Tigers five starters only one has an ERA under 3.20, that is Justin Verlander and his ERA is 2.53. A far cry from his Cy Young numbers of last season. Detroit's WHIP numbers aren't much better, each pitcher has a 1.0+ WHIP. Verlander once again setting the pace with a 1.01 with Doug Fister, Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello and Anibal Sanchez trailing in that order.

All hasn't been bad for general manager Dave Dombrowski, but his moves this season haven't clicked the same way they did last year. When Dombrowski pulled the trigger on a deal that sent two of Detroit's top prospects to Miami for a veteran starter and a second baseman, things looked good. Sanchez had a no-hitter under his belt and was receiving very little run support in Miami, reminiscent of Fister, but since he has been in Detroit his ERA is 7.97 and he sports a WHIP of 2.11. Those numbers are numbers that should be coming from a spot starter up from Double-A.

Omar Infante has stepped up and fit perfectly into the Tigers roster, giving them exactly what they needed in every aspect. With Infante, Detroit now has an every day second baseman who can actually field the position and they know what they will get from him at the plate, and that is hit around .300.

While Infante is a nice get, he was a throw in piece in the trade, meaning that Dombrowski is on the hook for how Sanchez performs more so than Infante. And from the looks of it, Dombrowski blew yet another trade for the Tigers. He traded away the Tigers top pitching prospect, a guy who will be a No. 1 starter, and a top catching prospect.

Rob Brantly, the catcher, was a bit of a trade chip to begin with. With Alex Avila having solidified himself as the starter behind the plate there is a battle for the back-up role, Gerald Laird currently fills that spot but Brantly had his eyes set on that job. But they still have James McCann to step in and fill that role.

Turner is the biggest loss and when Sanchez's time with the Tigers comes to a merciful end and he signs with another team, this trade will become one of the worst Dombrowski has ever inked. He traded two top prospects for a second baseman, that he previously traded in an equally terrible deal, and the king-of-all-dud's pitcher.

When the Tigers miss the postseason, it's on Dombrowski, but good thing he got that contract extension, because Detroit is definitely a better team with him pulling the reins. Note the sarcasm.

Tigers Bullpen Will Make them Miss Playoffs

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

To be honest, Anibal Sanchez didn't have a good game, something that is becoming a bit of a routine in a Tigers uniform. But when Manager Jim Leyland finally, mercifully, gave him the hook on Monday night, the Tigers were down just 3-1 to the lowly Minnesota Twins. That was before the bullpen got the ball.

After Sanchez struggled, Leyland went to his situational lefty Phil Coke, instead of his more reliable long-relief man, Duane Below. Coke has experienced his own struggles of late, and things weren't much different Monday night. The Twins were able to plate both of the runners that Coke inherited and then went on to beat up on the aforementioned Below.

In the seventh inning Ryan Doumit crushed a Below offering for three runs that gave the Twins an insurmountable lead. The offense wasn't able to hit a pitcher that had been described as wild and the pitcher that the Tigers traded a future No. 1 starter for continued to do less than impress, but the bullpen sealed the casket on this game.

After the game it was announced that Detroit was sending Duane Below to Toledo and recalling Luke Putkonen. While this move is clearly not motivated by Below's performance, it goes to show that the bullpen has been so poor lately that it has been taxed to the point that the Tigers are forced to bring in fresh arms from the minors to keep up with the innings needed.

Why it was Below that was sent down and not the hit serving Coke or Brayan Villarreal is not known. But this Tigers team needs changes in the bullpen and they need them now. When Al Albuquerque comes off the DL he needs to be in the pen, Below needs to be in the pen and Villarreal needs to be riding the pine in Toledo while Detroit gets a look at the phenom known as Bruce Rondon.

Villarreal Claims Elbow Weakness

By Sean Gagnier

Brayan Villarreal has not had a good weekend for the Tigers; he struggled in the ninth inning on Saturday, walking the first two batters he faced, one of which came around to score the winning run.

He struggled again on Sunday after Manager Jim Leyland ran him out there the day after his struggles. Leyland likes to get relievers back on the mound as soon as he can after they struggle so they can improve and shake off any bad feelings.

That wasn't the case for Villarreal, but now he says that he is experiencing arm fatigue. Villarreal claims that his arm feels weak and the Tigers are sending him to a specialist to examine his arm to find the source of the weakness.

He was considered by some to be a closer option, he threw hard and his stuff had good movement, but Detroit's recent track record with promising pitchers who can throw hard isn't all that stellar. Arm weakness could be many things, but it is likely a strained muscle or tendon, elbow tendinitis, a muscle or tendon tear or a dead arm. All of those things are bad, but not the end of the world.

Jacob Turner experienced a dead arm earlier in the season and was sat down for a while, it took a while to work back to his previous level but when he got there it was like nothing had happened. In fact, Turner looked so good that the Marlins asked for him in a trade.

Detroit will just have to wait and see what they hear on Villarreal's arm.

Tigers Farm System Ranks Near Bottom in MLB

By Sean Gagnier

ESPN's Keith Law recently ranked all of the farm systems in Major League Baseball, and the Detroit Tigers didn't fair that well. Law had the Tigers ranked as No. 24 out of the 30 teams and their farm systems; there were only two redeeming parts of the farm system that kept it from falling lower than 24th.

The Tigers, Law said, were similar to the Philadelphia Phillies farm system, but are even thinner. There are quite a few prospects at the lower levels, but trades have erased most talent in the upper levels. There is raw talent to be had in the Tigers system, but aside from two exceptions, none of it is finished or nearly finished.

Just two prospects saved Detroit's farm system from slipping even lower than it did; Nick Castellanos and Jacob Turner. Turner, 21, is ranked No. 29 among all prospects. The right-handed pitching prospect has had the uber-prospect thrown on him in the past, but several MLB outings have proved that he is in need of more time in the minor leagues.

Castellanos, 20, is ranked as the No. 37 prospect in all of the MLB. He has torn up the minors at every stop he has made in his young career, hitting over .400 in Single-A Lakeland this season and batting over .300 at Double-A Erie. Castellanos is one of the most highly regarded Tigers prospects ever, with comparisons being drawn to Evan Longoria. If he can turn out to be a Longoria, the Tigers will be incredibly lucky.

He has been playing some games in the outfield lately for Erie, but is still considered to be a third base prospect and Dave Dombrowski says that is where he plans to play him for the foreseeable future. It wouldn't be the first time a highly touted third baseman made a transition to the outfield (see Ryan Braun), and that didn't turn out all that badly.

Detroit needs to address positional deficiencies in the system in the draft and consider stopping the nearly constant flow of prospects out of town for rental players for the major league club. If they're going to trade prospects away, they need to be signing the major league players they get in return.    

Lay Off Leyland

By Sean Gagnier

So you think you know more about the Detroit Tigers than manager Jim Leyland? Are you sure about that one?

Last week was the first time I spoke to Leyland in person and his knowledge about the game was stunning. The man knows what he is doing, he just doesn't always show it.

You know what Leyland did on Wednesday night after the game with Minnesota before the day game the next day? He stayed up until the early hours of the morning trying to decide whether to play Quintin Berry or Ryan Raburn, and then he slept on the couch in his office.

Leyland genuinely stresses over each decision that he has to make when it comes to his lineup and his ball team, and yet all he does is catch flak for it. I admit, I have been one of the people who has called for his job in the past, but after hearing exactly what goes into one of his decisions, I no longer believe his job should be in jeopardy.

When asked about Ryan Raburn Leyland had this to say,

"I had to toss and turn with it today whether to play Berry or Raburn and I ended up playing Raburn. The thought process is, if Raburn doesn’t help us against left handers, then we got issues, so you give him the benefit of the doubt to see if you can maybe get him going a little bit. Peralta, Young and Raburn gotta do something against left-handed pitching, it’s that simple. It’s that simple, Jhonny Peralta, Delmon Young and Ryan Raburn gotta do something against left-handed pitchers, it’s that simple"

Now does that sound like a person who doesn't know what their talking about? Not at all. Leyland is smarter than people give him credit for; he knows that his players are struggling but he also knows that he only has three extra players on the roster, one of which is a catcher. He is doing everything he can with what he has.


Leyland isn't  a stranger to being called out though, he talked about a story where he was at his own pool and someone began telling him that he was screwing up the Tigers because he wasn't batting Brennan Boesch second in the order.


"The guy kept saying Boesch hits better in the two hole. Well, it seems to me that wherever I play him Boesch keeps hitting .238, so he's going on about how Boesch needs to hit second but I told him, my stats show that hitting him second or f%&#$ing third or eighth the guy is hitting .238," Leyland said. 


The guy understands statistics and he knows that his team is scuffling, but he isn't just sitting around doing nothing, he is trying everything he can to get this team on a roll and in doing so he may make a misstep, but what do you expect? He's working with what Dave Dombrowski gave him.

Tigers Nick Castellanos Must Stay at Third Base

Originally published on http://blog.detroitathletic.com/

By Sean Gagnier

It’s no mystery that the Detroit Tigers have a gaping black hole at second base, with no sign of anyone being able to fill the void. The Tigers have tried using Scott Sizemore (although they gave up pretty fast), Will Rhymes, Ramon Santiago, Brandon Inge and Danny Worth and none of them have been able to step in and take control of the position. It is because of this that Tigers fans are grasping at straws trying to find some fix for second, but they’re favorite “solution” just won’t work.

No matter how much Tigers fans pine for and argue for it, Nick Castellanos will not and should not become the second baseman in Detroit. Yes, he is having an incredible offensive season, but he has never played second base, and contrary to public belief, it isn’t exactly an easy job to just start doing.

General Manager Dave Dombrowski has repeatedly said that Castellanos will continue to play third base in the minors, because that is what he is, a third baseman.

Some people point out that Castellanos is too big to play second. While he is 6’4” and 210 lbs, he isn’t the only big guy to have the option to play second; Cal Ripken, Jr. was a big guy too and he played shortstop.
But his size isn’t the factor; he’s just too good of a prospect at third base for them to be messing with. Think about Evan Longoria, and you have a good comparison for Castellanos. In 298 at-bats during the 2012 season (through late June), Castellanos has 113 hits, a .379 batting average, with a .421 on-base percentage, .544 slugging and .965 on-base percentage plus slugging.

He’s on fire this season, having moved up from Single-A Lakeland to Double-A Erie and hasn’t missed a beat. While he should not be hurried along to the majors any time soon, he is proving that he truly is the “can’t miss” prospect that the Tigers think he is.

But how do the Tigers use him when they are ready to have him in the majors? They have an All-Star in Miguel Cabrera at third base and another All-Star, who they just invested more than $200 million in at first in Prince Fielder. Where does Castellanos fit in? the answer? Right where he is – at third base.

Victor Martinez (remember him?) has two years remaining on his contract in Detroit, once that expires Tigers fans should expect to see Castellanos joining the major league club. When healthy, Martinez is a great designated hitter, hitting over .400 last season with runners in scoring position and filling in for Alex Avila early in the year to give him some rest. But Martinez will be 35, going on 36, in 2014 and will not be worth the amount of money he will want in a new deal.

Castellanos fills that hole left by Martinez for Detroit. The Tigers have seen that Fielder is, to put it nicely, not the best defensively at first base, and Cabrera is not much better at third. However, when Cabrera was at first base he fielded his position well, which is why he needs to be placed back there.

With Cabrera back at first base and Castellanos filling his vacated position at third base, that leaves Fielder without an every day job. While he has said that he does not want to be a designated hitter, his defensive play has shown that he should not be the everyday first baseman because he will cost the team runs. At DH he can contribute offensively, which he has been able to do this season, without costing Detroit runs in the field.

If that scenario plays out – and it’s the best path for the Tigers to follow – come ’14 the club will feature a lineup of Miggy at 1B, Fielder at DH, and Castellanos at 3B.

It's Time the Tigers Went Back to '68

 Originally published on www.detroitathletic.com/blog

By Sean Gagnier

Throwback fashions have become increasing popular in recent years, most notably the hideous snap-back hats from the 1990’s that looks terrible then and continue to do so now, but the throwback craze has also extended into the sports realm, and it’s about time it made its way to Detroit.
The Detroit Tigers have one of the most recognizable home uniforms in all of baseball, and one of the few that can never be changed, lest they incur the wrath of millions of Tigers fans. Both the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees are also included with the Tigers among those teams with classic home uniforms that can never be changed.
Notice the repeated use of the term, home.
The Yankees road uniform is the traditional gray with block navy lettering and white trim; it stands out against the gray and has been a staple for the Bronx Bombers for many years now. Until just a few years ago the Red Sox had sported a different look than usual on the road, their jerseys still had “Boston” spread across the chest in the traditional Red Sox font, but it was red and the sleeves were trimmed in red. It was a new look, but it wasn’t right.
Boston took a look at their uniforms and decided a storied franchise such as themselves needed to go back to a classic, throwback, look, something that fans could remember from their childhoods and something that others could build memories with.
Simple tweaks made the Red Sox road uniforms classic looking while being trendy. Boston changed the color of their word mark to black and removed the red trim on the sleeves. They also added a full color logo on the left sleeve that makes the uniform pop.
Detroit needs to take notice of the changes the Boston has made and make some of their own. Currently the Tigers are the only team in the entire league to have a color on their road uniform that does not appear on their home uniform; that being orange.
While the connection can be made, tigers are orange and so the color on the uniform makes sense that way, but why did they depart from the classic look of the 1968 jerseys? Those were gorgeous, they were a bit plain, but a move back to them would be similar to Boston changing their road uniforms.
The script Detroit logo, while nice, could use a change similar to that made in Boston. A change back to the simple block lettering of the ’68 jersey would be a throwback in one sense, but also a change for the better in another.
Much like the new Red Sox road jerseys, the ’68 Tigers uniforms are gray with simple black block letters. The one change that Detroit should make if they do go back to the ’68 look would be to add names to the back of the uniforms; the players are important and they deserve to have their names on their uniforms.
Instead of a color logo on the left sleeve the Tigers could go back and return the uniform number to the sleeve of each jersey, giving them a unique look that no other team in the league would have. In doing so, the Tigers could both update their lockers and return to a classic look while continuing to be unique.
What do you think? Do you like the current Tigers road uniform? Why do you like it or dislike it? If you don’t like them, what do you think Detroit should do to update their look? tell me in the comments below

Berry Interesting

By Sean Gagnier

He may have been just five of his last 27, but on Sunday Quintin Berry made the most of his time in the Tigers lineup, going five-for-five and swiping his ninth base of the season. That kind of performance is the reason that the Tigers must keep Berry playing as much as possible.

While he doesn't have home run power, he can do just about everything else. Comerica Park could have been built for the Austin Jackson and Berry, it is spacious in the right places and if they can get a ball in the gaps they could run forever.

Baseball, unlike any other sport, has a true home field advantage. In basketball, football and hockey each venue has to have the same dimensions for the playing surface, so home field advantage is limited to the fans in the stands. But in baseball each playing surface is different from the last and lends itself to a different style of play; Berry's style of play is what Comerica Park was built for.

With his five-for-five performance on Sunday, Berry was able to bump his batting average from .288 to .333. Berry brings a different style of game to the otherwise home run reliant Tigers; speed. One of his hits on Sunday was a bunt base hit that was unable to be fielded by the pitcher. No other Tiger has that ability to be able to change the makeup of a game so quickly.

Berry is able to take a one out, no-one on base situation and get a squib base hit in the infield and then steal second on the next pitch. On two pitches he has changed the game completely, putting a runner in scoring position and pressure on the pitcher and defense. That is the thing that Detroit has been missing of late, the ability to stress pitchers.

Even though opposing pitchers and defenses know that Berry has the green light and is looking to steal every time he gets on base, they have yet to throw him out. Sunday marked Berry's ninth steal in as many attempts, and more often than not, everyone in the stadium knew he was running and there was still nothing anyone could do about it.

If the Tigers want to keep winning, they need Berry to keep producing and keep stressing pitchers.

Evalutating Tigers Draft Pick Jake Thompson

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

The Detroit Tigers had to wait until the second round of the 2012 MLB Draft, because they had given their first rounder to the Milwaukee Brewers as compensation for Prince Fielder. With their first pick of the MLB Draft the Tigers selected Jake Thompson out of Rockwell-Heath High School, a prep school in Texas, and Texas Christian University commit.

Thompson stands 6-foot-4 right-handed pitcher and tips the scales at 234 lbs, but at only 18-years-old the solid righty still has some growing and maturing to do.

ESPN says that Thompson is a big, mature bodied pitcher who has a fastball that clocks in at around 88-92 m.p.h., with it touching 94. His pitches have good life on them but he needs work on his slider, which currently is average, at best.

On the face of it Thompson looks like the prototypical Dave Dombrowski draft pick; a big pitcher that can hit the mid-90's. But with Thompson coming out of high school he can still blossom from where he is right now, and become a pitcher that Detroit could really use.

Currently, Thompson uses his slider as his out pitch, which could be a problem if he doesn't improve it. While it does have late life on it and makes batters miss, there is still room for improvement, as there is with any high school player.

Thompson is not just a terrific pitcher, he also excels with the bat. At Rockwell-Heath Thompson not only serves as the team's ace he also leads the Hawks in every offensive statistic.

The versatility that Thompson possesses is something that the Tigers would be happy to have in their system and they believe that they can lure Thompson away from the Horned Frogs and TCU and into their farm system and on the way to wearing the Old English "D."

Detroit has had a history of signing high school players, which may come in handy when dealing with Thompson, and with him serving as their first selection of 2012 he may be able to command a considerable payday.

If Thompson does indeed sign on the dotted line, it shouldn't take him too long to move through the Tigers organization and be knocking on the door to Detroit. Depending on how he develops and how the Tigers see him progressing he could either become a very successful bullpen pitcher, perhaps closer, in the near future or as a solid outfielder.

Wednesday's Tigers Lineup; What the Heck is Leyland Thinking?!

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

The Tigers are struggling, that's obvious. They have run into the second best offense in the American League in Boston and are scuffling to score runs. Even their ace Justin Verlander couldn't give them a win, so Manager Jim Leyland sent down the wallowing Ryan Raburn and brought up catcher Omir Santos from the Toledo Mud Hens.

Why would he do that? Bringing up Santos gives the Tigers three catchers on the roster with Alex Avila and Gerald Laird; well Leyland's lineup for Wednesday's game with the Red Sox shows why he called up Santos.

Quintin Berry CF
Danny Worth 2B
Miguel Cabrera 3B
Prince Fielder 1B
Delmon Young LF
Brennan Boesch RF
Jhonny Peralta SS
Alex Avila C
Gerald Laird DH

First off, what the hell is Leyland thinking? Oh the team just lost two games to the Red Sox and we're trying to avoid being swept; let's put Delmon Young, the worst left fielder possibly to ever play baseball in the field and have him to to catch wall balls off the Green Monster. And you know what? We've shown absolutely no confidence in Worth to this point, so lets throw him in at second in the order and see what happens.

But wait, there needs to be a designated hitter and we already put the butcher in left field so who can give us a big bat in the order? Certainly not Andy Dirks, one of the best hitters on the team, let's put Laird out there as the DH, he can get us some big hits.

Santos was needed specifically for this lineup, because with Laird DH'ing, if Detroit needs to replace Avila they can't use Laird or else they would lose the DH, so Santos fills that void. Because of that reason Tigers fans can expect to see this completely idiotic lineup several more times before Austin Jackson returns from the DL. 

This lineup is complete lunacy and shows that Leyland has no idea what to do with this team and his lack of a consistent lineup is hurting this team. If the Tigers can go out and have the same lineup each day they would begin to gel as a club and begin to hit.

Boston has Jon Lester pitching tonight, which if you look at it could be why Leyland pulled Dirks out of the lineup "to play the matchups," but Lester is 0-4 against the Tigers in his career; put the best team on the field every day, regardless of the pitcher and you will win games.

Sorry, but if this doesn't put a fork in Leyland, nothing will. 

Tigers Demote Ryan Raburn; Who Do They Call Up?

 By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

It finally happened, the Tigers were out of options to deal with the struggling Ryan Raburn and opted to send him down to the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens after Tuesday's game with the Boston Red Sox. Raburn had a very respectable spring training, but once the season started so did Raburn's troubles. When he was demoted on Tuesday he was hitting just .146.

While it has been his style to struggle in the early portion of the season before flipping a switch and playing like an all star after the break, but this season's swoon, coupled with the team's struggles, caused Detroit to pull the leash on their second baseman.

Following the Tigers loss to the Red Sox on Monday, Jim Leyland said that he thought that he may have given Raburn too much leash so far this season and that he would have a much shorter one from then on. Well, it must have been very short.

There was no corresponding roster move made in Toledo after Raburn was optioned down tonight; one is expected to come on Wednesday. Raburn's struggles have been historic for him; the only time his on-base percentage was lower was in 2004 when he played just 12 games with the Tigers and had only 29 at-bat's. Currently, his OBP is sitting at .209 with a on-base percentage plus slugging of .420, which is terrible in the major leagues.

There was speculation abound Tuesday night as to who would be called up to replace Raburn in the Detroit lineup; first instinct was that the Tigers would call on another second baseman in Eric Patterson. But that was quickly shut down when Tigers beat writer Jason Beck tweeted that the player to be called up would not be a second baseman, per Jim Leyland.

That being said, speculation shifted elsewhere that the Tigers would go and bring up a reliever. Only problem with that is that the Tigers already have seven relievers in the bullpen and five starters. By carrying 12 pitchers on staff, Detroit limits itself on the bench.

The Tigers should bring up Mud Hens designated hitter Brad Eldred to replace Ryan Raburn. By recalling Eldred, Detroit would maintain a more normal bench and would add a big bat that they could bring into a game in the late innings. As it stands, if the Tigers need to go to the bench in the late innings they can turn to Danny Worth, Gerald Laird or Don Kelly. Not exactly murder's row is it?

By adding Eldred the Tigers would be able to have pop off the bench that they dont currently possess and because he can't play a position in the field they would have no problem sending him back down to Toledo when Austin Jackson comes off the disabled list.