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When the Detroit Tigers wisely decided not to bring back Brad Penny following an offense-aided 10-10 record in 2012, the competition for the fifth starter in their rotation was underway.

Justin Verlander, Doug Fister, Max Scherzer and Rick Porcello represent a strong—but incomplete—rotation. Not only are they a man short, but they’re all right-handed pitchers and lack the the lefty to complement them and keep opposing teams off-balance.

The lack of a left-hander could come back to haunt the Tigers as the team presumed to be their biggest competition for the AL Central crown, the Cleveland Indians, feature a predominately left handed lineup.

The Tigers are less than two weeks away from their first game, and there is no clear-cut candidate for that final rotation spot. Because of off-days in their early schedule they technically don’t need a fifth starter until April 15 at the earliest, so Jim Leyland and Dave Dombrowski have a little, but not much, time to make a decision.

Here’s how the top contenders shake out right now.

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Something tells me that Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland isn’t too enamored with Ryan Raburn.

Not that I can totally blame him. Raburn has never exactly hopped on any opportunity to show that he can be an every day player. Raburn’s early season struggles and mental lapses in defense have made him a player that is polarizing to fans.

Luckily—or perhaps unluckily—Brandon Inge is still on the Tigers’ roster. 

It’s lucky for Raburn because without him, Raburn would surely be the biggest target of public scorn that the Tigers have. It’s unlucky for him because Leyland’s infatuation with the Mendoza line straddling Inge likely means less at-bats for Raburn.

In 2011, Raburn’s story of his career came through once again in full fruition. After the first three months of the season, Raburn was hitting a mere .205 leading to a lot of DNP’s in his game log.

While it seems .205 would be a career year for Brandon Inge, a slow start like that just doesn’t cut it for Raburn, who is obviously depended on for his offense. 

In typical fashion, Raburn once again heated up and was good in the playoffs. Perhaps because of his annual early struggles he’s lost the complete trust of Leyland as a permanent, full-time answer anywhere in the field.

Raburn was thought to be the primary second baseman heading into the season, but it appears that Inge is going to be given every opportunity there and here’s guessing that he will open there to start the season.

The other likely position would be to play Raburn in left field. While he’s as adventurous as an Indiana Jones movie in the outfield, he’s superior defensively to Delmon Young. However, Young hasn’t exactly been quiet about not wanting to be the DH and Leyland doesn’t like to make his players unhappy.

So it’s looking like Raburn is once again finding himself without a home in the field. He’ll still get some reps in the field, though—filling in at second when Inge or Ramon Santiago aren’t there or spelling Young in left—and he’ll fill in at DH whenever Miguel Cabrera or Prince Fielder aren’t there.

This year has the look of a 300 at-bat season for Raburn and then off to free agency. Unless, of course, he can reverse his first half struggles and force Leyland to get him into the every day lineup.

Follow me on twitter @detsportsczar or at www.thesportsczar.com.

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While Texas manager Ron Washington was jumping up and down like a giddy school girl in the dugout during the Rangers’ seemingly apparent series-sealing victory, the Detroit Tigers‘ playoff run seemed to be like Kevin Costner’s acting career.  Dead.

There was little hope for the Motor City Kitties as their bats had failed to show up and their ace, Justin Verlander, would be unavailable late in the series for any possible Game 7.

The Tigers, however, fought off the Rangers in Game 5.  Their bats picked up and their dynamic duo at the back end of the bullpen was able to get much needed rest.

Tonight, the Tigers’ next step in their comeback begins and they’ll finish it tomorrow night, shocking the Rangers in front of their home crowd.

Here’s why it will happen.

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We’re counting down the hours to the start of baseball season.  Hopes are high in Minneapolis, Chicago and Detroit and not so much in Cleveland and Kansas City, as the AL Central race is about to get under way.

Most pundits have the Twins, White Sox and Tigers battling it out for the division title while the Royals and Indians play hot potato for last place.

All of the expected front runners have their weaknesses and could use a little more help as the season rolls on.  There are a bunch of players that will be, or are, available who could help each team in this division.

I’ll propose one player acquisition for each team in the division that could push them over the top as the favorite to win the division.

For baseball purists, I’m not taking salaries, WAR stats, BABIP, etc., into account here.  This is just for fun and it’s trying to match up a player who’s either unhappy, on a terrible team or on an expiring contract in his current situation and extracting him from there and putting him on a AL Central team.

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The December day the Detroit Tigers dealt Curtis Granderson to New York Yankees was a gloomy, winter day in Detroit matching the spirits of the Tigers fans.

Gone was a great ambassador for the Tigers, Detroit and baseball in general and few of the Old English D faithful wanted to see him gone.

A year and a half later, I doubt there is any Detroiter not in the same realm of existence as Charlie Sheen that wouldn’t do that trade again.

The Tigers acquired a leadoff hitter that Granderson never could be (Austin Jackson), a wily left-hander who’s transitioning to the rotation (Phil Coke), a young hurler expected to be the late-inning left-handed reliever (Daniel Schlereth) and, most importantly, right-handed starter Max Scherzer.

Scherzer did nothing to contribute to the second-half collapse by the Tigers last year.  After a terrible start to the season, Scherzer fixed his mechanics in Toledo and had a 2.46 ERA while striking out 158 in 153.2 innings after his recall to Detroit.

Despite an ERA close to seven for over a month of the season, Scherzer finished the season 13th in the AL with a 3.5 ERA.  This is the year for Scherzer to truly shine and be in the mix for an All-Star spot.

Tigers fans may not realize what they got when their team acquired Scherzer.  He was a top-level prospect and early draft pick who showed flashes in the majors before being acquired.  He’s got great stuff and is extremely intelligent and uses it to his advantage.  Maybe most importantly, he has the ability to be an ace on a team that already has an ace.

Scherzer was drafted 11th overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks and in 2008 was briefly rated as the top prospect in the minors by Baseball America when with the Diamondbacks. 

He struck out seven batters in his first appearance (in relief!) in 2008 and posted a sub-3.5 ERA until his last three starts of 2009.

He has basically pitched two bad months of baseball in his career and since they were consecutive baseball months (September of 2009 and April of 2010).  It appears to be that he momentarily regressed in his career and has straightened himself out.

Scherzer is a power pitcher but also has a good slider and changeup.  His fastball can hit mid-90s and his changeup is mid-80s, an optimal difference in speed as to confuse hitters. 

He’s also extremely intelligent (a 35 on his ACT?!?  He should have pitched for Harvard, not Missouri) and uses statistical analysis to his advantage. 

Based on the theory that he can’t control the percentage of fly balls that are hit for home runs, he started attacking the bottom of the strike zone to limit the number of fly balls that are hit off of him. 

His starts this spring have shown he’s inducing more ground balls and this statistical approach shows he’s a smart pitcher who’s always trying to improve himself.  Because of this, I like his chances to continue to improve.

Finally, Scherzer has the benefit of pitching behind a top-tier ace in Justin Verlander.  Even though he’ll be counted on heavily, Scherzer won’t have the pressure to carry the staff that Verlander will have on him.

Although they’re both power pitchers, Verlander and Scherzer are different types of pitchers.  Verlander’s style is more overpowering (with a wicked curveball) so there’s not a concern of hitters adapting to Scherzer after he follows Verlander in the rotation.

Max Scherzer isn’t a household name and not many Tiger fans were excited when the team traded for him.  I predict that those who aren’t excited about him now, will be when he pushes for an All-Star spot this July.

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Even with Miguel Cabrera, don’t be surprised when the Detroit Tigers are in last place in the AL Central division after the first month of the schedule. 

The MLB schedule makers have done no favors for a team that has been abysmal on the road the last two years, and the team has one major and a few minor issues to deal with.

To begin their 2011 schedule, the Tigers open with road trips to the New York Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles. In New York, the Tigers will see CC Sabathia and Phil Hughes in front of a boisterous Yankee crowd; they then will travel to face an improved Orioles team.

The schedule eases a little as the Kansas City Royals come to town for the home opener, but the relief doesn’t last for long as the defending AL Champion Texas Rangers will make a trip to Comerica Park on April 11-13.

Next up is a seven-game AL West road trip against the Oakland A’s and Seattle Mariners, followed by a home series against the AL Central favored Chicago White Sox.

The Tigers always struggle out West and the White Sox will be a very strong team this year.

Twelve of the first 17 games are on the road, where the Tigers have played terrible over the past three seasons. Despite being a nearly combined .500 overall, the Tigers have won just 40 percent of their road games over the past three seasons.

In addition to the rough schedule to start the season, the Tigers will be dealing with some lingering internal issues that could cause some distractions.

Of course, the Miguel Cabrera arrest will be a major distraction for this team. Rather than accept the penalty and admit fault (making the issue go away quicker), Cabrera and his attorney have decided to plea not guilty to the DUI charge against him.

Rumor is that Cabrera has a decent chance of getting out of the charge, as evidence seems to be lacking that he was actually behind the wheel when approached by police. 

In my opinion, Cabrera should accept the penalty, let the embarrassing situation die and learn from it.

The fact that he is fighting the charge will no doubt drag the incident as a discussion piece for the team as the litigation plays out in the public eye. It also raises further doubt that Cabrera is a changed man. 

Either way, it isn’t good for the team to start the season but the media frenzy will die down eventually.

I do expect Cabrera to struggle to start the season just as he has to start spring training.

Leyland has a nice problem with the fourth and fifth outfield positions. Well OK, it’s not exactly a problem, but it’s something that still needs to play out. 

Ryan Rayburn has done nothing in spring training to lose his stranglehold on the starting left field spot, but three young players have been outstanding for the Tigers in the outfield thus far, meaning the team has some decisions to make.

Brennan Boesch has shown he actually can still hit after his 2010 post-All Star break free fall. He’s also shown improved defense, which was a huge knock on him.

Casper Wells has picked up where he left off late in 2010 and non-roster invitee Andy Dirks has probably been better than either Boesch or Wells this spring and has played his way into the mix.

The way it’s going, two of these guys will probably make the team and Leyland’s favorite utility guy Don Kelly (or Ramon Santiago if Kelly is moved to strictly a backup infielder) might be in trouble. 

Leyland is going to have to get rid of a couple guys who deserve to be on the team.

Since Leyland tends to out-think himself, it might lead to some early lineup mistakes. Again, not exactly a problem, but something that will need to play out.

Finally, it wouldn’t be baseball season without Joel Zumaya injury news. Zumaya is expected to miss a little time as scar tissue has broken up from last year’s surgery on his throwing elbow.

Although the process of scar tissue breaking is normal, every bit of news related to Zumaya’s health needs to be taken seriously. 

Zumaya is extremely important to the Tigers bullpen and a prolonged absence would hurt them significantly. Expect the Tigers to use him with caution the first several weeks of the season.

Despite the fact that they will likely struggle early, Tigers fans should not worry too much about the team. 

The rotation has looked excellent thus far and the rest of the issues should resolve themselves in time.

I have a feeling that this season the Detroit Tigers will be making the late season run to the division title rather than the team blowing it.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

In a process facilitated by MLB, medical specialists have evaluated Miguel Cabrera and recommended an outpatient rehabilitation program to deal with his alcohol related issues which re-emergered following his arrest last week for a DUI. 

Cabrera was also charged with two misdemeanor resisting arrest charges without violence.

The evaluation by all accounts means that Cabrera will miss no significant time during spring training and baring any changes, Cabrera will be ready to start the season. 

Although no specific details of the program were available, it will not require Cabrera to leave baseball for any period of time.

Despite no penalty from the league and Tigers, Cabrera still faces legal issues going forward and is set to arraigned on March 16th.

Cabrera spoke to the media on his own and through the Detroit Tigers Assistant GM Al Avila as a Spanish interpreter.

A humbled looking Cabrera apologized to his fans, the organization, the owner, his teammates, family and the police.  He also thanked the arresting officers for how they handled the situation.

Cabrera will not be in the lineup for tomorrow’s exhibition opener but went though a light workout in Lakeland today.

Despite an apparent outcome to a largely frustrating situation by all involved, it appears that the extent of Cabrera’s alcohol use and dependency which led to this situation will not be disclosed now and possibly ever.

When asked if he considered himself an alcoholic by reporters, Cabrera avoided the question replying that that was better left answered by the doctors who evaluated him but that he is willing to follow all of their recommendations.

Unfortunately for Tigers fans, it appears that because of the non-disclosure of an immediate problem they will be left with the possibility that a future incident from their superstar may occur at anytime.

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Opinions on Miguel Cabrera following his recent DUI arrest have varied widely. The media and fans have spun the situation as anything from a “boys will be boys” story to “take the season off for rehab.”

We all know that alcoholism isn’t something to laugh about and should be handled very delicately. What we don’t know is the extent that alcohol has had a grasp on Miguel Cabrera.

Cabrera is set to be evaluated by league doctors early this week in order to have a clearer understanding of how to proceed. Dave Dombrowski has relayed that this was the first time Cabrera “fell off the wagon” since his well-publicized encounter with the law in 2009.

Let me start off by saying I cannot think of a situation where I would do anything with Cabrera except help him through any problems he has. I also think it’s very unlikely that the team would consider trying to move Cabrera, but the topic has been brought up.

Miguel Cabrera is often considered the second best hitter in baseball behind Albert Pujols. He is also more than three years younger than Pujols. He’s the type of hitter that comes around a couple times in a decade. The Tigers recognize this despite his troubles.

That being said, if something happened that forced the Tigers to move Cabrera, I see several attractive landing spots. I don’t buy into the theory that Cabrera’s value has diminished much because of his problems. As opposed to drugs and steroids, alcohol seems to have been a part of the game, and several Hall of Famers were known to have an issue.

I’m not saying it’s right. I’m just saying it’s the truth. I think any team would take a chance on the best hitter in the game under 28.

Here are my 10 possible landing spots for Cabrera should the Tigers move him.

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In what is sure to become the major story of the Detroit Tigers spring training, reports are surfacing that Miguel Cabrera has been arrested on suspicion of Driving Under the Influence. Widely considered one of the best hitters in the major leagues, Cabrera was the runner up for the American League MVP last year and is vital to the Tigers success going forward.

According to the AP, Cabrera was found in his vehicle on the side of a road in Fort Pierce, FL. His speech was slurred and he had an open bottle of scotch.

Cabrera had a previous drunken disturbance with police in Birmingham, MI the night before a pivotal game vs. the Chicago White Sox in 2009. The Tigers went on to lose the game the next day and ultimately lost the division in a play-in game to the Minnesota Twins. Cabrera was never convicted for that incident.

Since the 2009 ordeal, Cabrera had apparently gotten his life back on track and stopped drinking. Hopefully for the Cabrera family and the Tigers organization, the current incident will end up being a mere relapse in Cabrera’s recovery. 

Cabrera is key to the season for the improved Detroit Tigers. The organization brought in high priced free agent Victor Martinez and resigned Magglio Ordonez to help protect Cabrera in the lineup, as he was ofter pitched around in 2010.

This story will definitely be met with concern from the fanbase and front office, and more information will soon follow.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

In honor of the recent Valentines Day and upcoming 2011 MLB Season it’s time to show a little love to the foes of the AL Central. 

There are some likable players on your favorite teams rival and I’d like to pay a little attention to these guys.  After all, not everyone is AJ Pierzynski in this division. 

Over the last couple seasons the rivalries from the AL Central have been a case of the Good (Twins and Tigers and their managerial love-fest), the Bad (Royals and Indians battle for the cellar) and the Ugly (Sox brawling with everyone at one time or another).  

Since the five teams play each other for nearly an eighth of the season, you learn to hate the opposing players.

But every once in awhile you’ll find a guy on one of these teams that you can actually tolerate. 

I’ve provided a list of the top guy from each team in the AL Central that I love.  You could think of it like Romeo and Juliet but without the romance, suicide and reciprocal adoration. 

It might be the teams best player but isn’t always.  It’s usually a guy you’d see and say…”I’d love to have that guy on my team” or at least “I’d have a beer with him.”  That, and when you see him you don’t want to puke.

Before you say it, yes I am a Tigers fan, so to add a little more to the article I’ll even give my fellow AL Central fans a player on my hometown Tigers to root for.

In honor of this time of year, it’s time to share the love and hug your enemy.

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