Kuzul

Tigers slugger Victor Martinez will undergo surgery for a torn meniscus, which could see the star hitter miss the start of the regular season. 

Continue for updates.

Martinez Out at Least 4-6 Weeks

Friday, Feb. 6

Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press talked to the surgeon performing surgery on Victor Martinez, who said that the slugger would miss a minimum of four to six weeks but could miss up to 16 weeks depending on the extent of the damage.  

Martinez to Undergo Surgery on Meniscus 

Thursday, Feb. 5 

Detroit Tigers star Victor Martinez’s status for spring training and the regular season is uncertain, as the slugger will have to undergo surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee.

According to a statement the Tigers released on Twitter, Martinez will have surgery February 10 after injuring the knee during an offseason workout:

This is the second time in three years that Martinez has suffered an injury to his left knee in the offseason. In January 2012, he tore his ACL and missed the entire season. 

Martinez, who finished second in American League MVP voting last year, is coming off the best season of his career. He set career highs in home runs (32), average (.335), on-base percentage (.409) and slugging percentage (.565). 

Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski talked about Martinez’s injury and what the club plans to do to replace him, according to Gabe Lacques of USA Today:

The Tigers rewarded Martinez’s efforts with a four-year contract extension worth $68 million in November. If Martinez can’t go on Opening Day, the Tigers lack a ready-made replacement for him at designated hitter. While first baseman Miguel Cabrera is a logical choice, the team was already thin on bench power. Either way, the Tigers would be adding a light-hitting bat to the lineup.

Given what he did last year, not to mention how Max Scherzer’s departure has weakened Detroit’s pitching staff, losing an All-Star hitter would put a huge dent in the team’s hopes of making the playoffs in 2015—even if Martinez isn’t able to replicate last year’s form.  

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When David Price first joined the Detroit Tigers last summer, he was joining a rotation that looked like baseball’s answer to The Avengers. It was a super-rotation, alright, with a collection of the last three American League Cy Young winners. 

But that was then. This is now. Where Price was one of the guys then, he’s must be the guy now if Detroit’s pitching is going to be worth a darn in 2015.

That’s is a dicey proposition, but we can get into it after we first get caught up.

You may have noticed the last few months haven’t been kind to Detroit’s rotation. Justin Verlander never pulled out of the cringeworthy slump that started last May, putting one former Cy Young winner on the rocks. Another departed when Max Scherzer signed a megacontract with the Washington Nationals.

Rick Porcello, he of the career-best 3.43 ERA last year, is also gone. He and Scherzer have been replaced by Alfredo Simon and Shane Greene, making Detroit’s projected rotation:

1. David Price
2. Justin Verlander
3. Anibal Sanchez
4. Alfredo Simon
5. Shane Greene

This is barring any additional moves, of course, but it sounds like we can bar them. 

“We’re happy with the guys we have,” Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski told Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. “And we anticipate this will be the five going into the season.”

Admittedly, things could look worse on paper. Price and Verlander are still former Cy Young winners. Sanchez quietly won the AL ERA crown in 2013. Simon was a National League All-Star in 2014. Greene broke through to the tune of a solid 3.78 ERA in 2014.

For each positive outlook, however, there’s one at least equally strong negative outlook.

Verlander is a soon-to-be 32-year-old with declining velocity who was among baseball’s worst pitchers in 2014. Sanchez is a 30-year-old whose 2014 was wrecked by injuries, and his overall injury history suggests good health is probably not forthcoming. Simon regressed badly after last year’s All-Star break. Greene’s breakout was limited to a mere 14-start sample size.

So no, Detroit’s rotation doesn’t look particularly strong. Definitely not as strong as your typical Tigers rotation, anyway, and the projections bear that out.

FanGraphs’ 2015 projections barely have the Tigers in the top 10 for starting pitcher Wins Above Replacement, which is saying something since Tigers starters have produced by far the most WAR of any team’s starters since 2011.

Once you factor in how Detroit’s bullpen is still weak and how the club’s offense will be banking on a badly damaged Miguel Cabrera, the Tigers’ chances of being contenders in 2015 may hinge on their rotation being at least as good as the projections expect it to be. Hopefully for Detroit, it will be even better.

And more than anyone, that will come down to Price.

On the surface, it doesn’t look like the idea of Price being the ace the Tigers need him to be is worth worrying about. The 29-year-old southpaw is elite by reputation, and he’s coming off an ace-like year.

Price led all major league pitchers in innings pitched (248.1) and strikeouts (271) in 2014. He also only walked 38 along the way, giving him a 7.13 K/BB ratio that ranked among baseball’s best.

If that sounds like a guy who pitched better than his non-ace-like 3.26 ERA indicates, there is an explanation for that. Per FanGraphs, the FIP, xFIP and SIERA metrics all think Price should have had an ERA in the 2.70 range. Knowing these metrics can be more predictive of future performance than ERA, that bodes well.

It also says a lot about Price that he looks like an ideal ace from some perspectives. He’s turned himself into an elite strike-thrower, as he ranked among the elites in strike percentage and zone percentage in 2014. But he also still has power stuff, as evidenced by his career-best 10.5 swinging-strike percentage.

So in theory, Price could be the ace the Tigers need him to be in 2015 by picking up where he left off. He was already really good, and him being even better could be a matter of him simply collecting on the good luck that didn’t come his way often enough in 2014.

There’s a chance, however, that it might not be that simple. Though there’s a lot to like about how Price pitched last year, that modest 3.26 ERA isn’t actually that misleading.

Price may have led the league in strikeouts last year, but he also led in hits allowed while allowing a career-high 25 home runs. The size of his workload was a factor, granted, but so was hard contact.

The two best batted balls a pitcher can hope for are ground balls and infield pop-ups. And according to FanGraphs, Price experienced career worsts in both categories (GB% and IFFB%) as a starter in 2014:

When batters aren’t hitting ground balls or pop-ups, they’re hitting line drives and fly balls. Those are two things that can really sting pitchers, and Price did indeed give up a bunch of both. He was one of only 12 qualified starters with a line-drive rate of at least 20.6 and a fly-ball rate of at least 38.0.

And in Price’s case, this isn’t fluky. Pitchers can invite hard contact, after all, and he was guilty of that.

For starters, Price wasn’t very subtle with where he threw the ball in the strike zone. He went right down the middle of the zone more than anyone else in baseball, per BaseballSavant.com, and gave up more fly balls and line drives in that vicinity than all but four others.

That’s the risk you run when you pitch down the middle, and the risk is heightened if you can’t blow hitters away and/or keep hitters off balance.

And on those fronts, Price’s outlook isn’t entirely positive.

Though Brooks Baseball can vouch that Price got plenty of whiffs on his heat in 2014, repeating that could be tough. According to FanGraphs, his average heater has declined from a peak of 95.5 miles per hour in 2012 to 93.2 miles per hour in 2014. In 2015, it should slip even further.

Price will have to change speeds effectively to hide that, and the catch there is his primary pitch for the job suddenly doesn’t look up to the task.

Over the last few years, Price has all but shelved his curveball in favor of his changeup. That’s a fine idea in theory, but it wasn’t an effective pitch in 2014. By True Average—Baseball Prospectus’ all-encompassing batting metric—it was actually one of the five worst among heavily-used changeups.

When Jake Dal Porto of Beyond the Box Score looked in June, he noticed that a lot of that had to do with how many of Price’s changeups were finding their way down the middle. Here’s an example, courtesy of George Springer:

But Price’s changeup velocity was just as big an issue. While his fastball velocity went down to 93.2 miles per hour, his changeup velocity went up to 84.9 miles per hour.

That’s only an 8.3 mile-per-hour difference, which is notably less than the 10-plus mile-per-hour difference that Harry Pavlidis of Baseball Prospectus says is ideal. And while location issues can be tweaked, this is something that will be considerably harder to fix.

If you want the short version of all this, here it is: Maybe Price improving on his 2014 season won’t be as simple as him picking up where he left off and collecting on some outstanding good luck. If he wants to avoid the hard contact that plagued him in 2014, he may have to adjust.

To this end, the bright side is that there’s hope. Maybe Price can become the next Jon Lester.

Price has already evolved into an all-out assaulter of the strike zone, so his next step should be to become more crafty with what appears to be fading stuff. That’s where Lester works as an example to strive for, as Grantland’s Shane Ryan highlighted how Lester found success by masking diminished stuff with pinpoint command and sequencing. 

All Price has to do to take after Lester is improve his already very good command and maybe become more unpredictable in how he distributes his fastball and changeup. If he can do that, he could turn into a strikeout machine who also manages contact well.

It’s hard to ask for a more ideal ace than that. But one way or another, that’s the kind of ace the Tigers will need. Such a pitcher would have been overkill if their rotation still had Scherzer and Porcello alongside a vintage Verlander and a functional Sanchez, but that’s not what the Tigers have.

No, sir. What they have is a rotation that needs to be strong enough at the top to make you forget about the bottom. 

Note: Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted/linked.  

If you want to talk baseball, hit me up on Twitter.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Detroit Tigers reached a settlement agreement on a one-year deal with ace David Price on Friday, avoiding salary arbitration in the process. The starting pitcher will make just shy of $20 million in 2015.

Jon Heyman of CBS Sports passed along word of the deal:

Aaron Gleeman of Hardball Talk notes the agreement sets a new standard for these types of contracts:

“David Price will get $19.75 million in his final season before free agency, avoiding arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal with the Tigers that represents the highest arbitration-based salary of all time.”

Given the high price tag, it’s a bit surprising the Tigers didn’t attempt to go through the arbitration process. It may have allowed them to reduce the cost a bit. But Price was always going to get compensated extremely well for next season.

The left-hander arrived in Detroit ahead of the trade deadline last season, after spending the first six-and-a-half years with the Tampa Bay Rays. Between the two teams, he posted a combined 15-12 record and a 3.26 ERA in 34 starts, while striking out 271 batters in 248.1 innings.

Quite simply, Price is one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball when he’s on top of his game. The fact that he’s a lefty simply adds to his value. The Tigers will slot him in as their ace, but he could end up elsewhere before 2015 is over.

The 29-year-old starter is set to become a free agent next winter. If he’s able to get that much money while under arbitration, it’s amazing to think what type of money he could command on the open market. The Tigers could look to trade him to retain some value.

The new contract marks the start of what could be a very interesting 15-month stretch for Price. 

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The Detroit Tigers have had yet another frenzied offseason. They didn’t waste any time getting started—within a few weeks of the season ending, Victor Martinez was re-signed, and they had picked up Joakim Soria’s option.

This early activity set the tone for the weeks to come. Other noteworthy additions included Yoenis Cespedes and Alfredo Simon, while Rick Porcello and Torii Hunter were among the significant departures.

Don’t expect the drama to end there, either. Detroit’s incumbent ace, Max Scherzer, is still unsigned with a possibility of coming back to the club.

Ultimately, some will win and others will lose in this revolving door of players. Let’s see who has (and hasn’t) fared well so far.

Begin Slideshow

The Detroit Tigers have spent the last few years putting all their resources into the MLB club and ignoring the farm system. Therefore, while they’re winning at the highest level, the organization’s lack of impact talent and depth on the farm puts a lot of pressure on its big league roster to stay healthy. 

It certainly didn’t help the state of Detroit’s system that it traded arguably its top three prospects before the July non-waiver deadline, with right-handers Jake Thompson and Corey Knebel going to Texas in the Joakim Soria deal, and highly touted 19-year-old shortstop Willy Adames going to Tampa Bay as part of the three-team trade for David Price.

The Tigers have continued to ship off prospects in trades this offseason, trading second baseman Devon Travis to the Blue Jays, Robbie Ray and Domingo Leyba to the Diamondbacks, and finally, right-hander Jonathan Crawford (and Eugenio Suarez) to the Reds.

However, pitching prospects Kevin Ziomek and Austin Kubitza, the team’s respective second- and fourth-round picks in 2013, are still in the picture, with both coming off equally successful seasons as part of Low-A West Michigan’s starting rotation.

Center fielder Derek Hill, the team’s top draft pick (No. 23 overall) in 2014, gives the Tigers system some much-needed upside at an up-the-middle position, while right-hander Spencer Turnbull (second round) is another power arm who’ll be given a chance to stick as a starter.

Lastly, left-handed slugger Steven Moya enjoyed a monster year in the Eastern League, clubbing a career-high 35 home runs while pacing the league in most offensive categories. However, the 6’6” left-handed hitter’s swing-and-miss issues continue to fuel questions about whether he’ll make enough contact in the major leagues to utilize his robust power.

Here are the Detroit Tigers’ top 10 prospects for 2015.

Begin Slideshow

It’s still hard to tell where Max Scherzer is going to sign, but logic says that he’ll end up signing with the team that simply has to have him.

According to the latest report, that team is the Detroit Tigers. And if we once again ask our pal logic, it says said report might be right.

Courtesy of Tony Paul of The Detroit News, here it is:

Now, this shouldn’t be taken as a sign that the Tigers are going to go out of their way to re-sign the 30-year-old right-hander. Paul noted in a subsequent tweet that the same source told him Scherzer‘s market remains quiet and that, not surprisingly, the Tigers aren’t about to bid against themselves.

Further, it’s a good guess that Paul’s source isn’t Detroit general manager Dave Dombrowski. He’s too smart to let something like that slip, and it was only last month that he was downplaying his pursuit to re-sign the 2013 American League Cy Young winner.

“I guess anything can happen but we’re not in active pursuit of that situation at this time,” he told Anthony French of the Detroit Free Press.

Still, this is the time of year when you take any little bit of smoke you can get on the rumor mill. And in this case, there is something to the notion that the Tigers may feel like they truly need Scherzer.

To the first point in Paul’s report, yes, signing Scherzer would take care of the concern over Price’s long-term future with the Tigers. 

Price is due to become a free agent after 2015. Since he’s easily the best pitcher the Tigers have, that leaves the organization’s “Long-Term Ace” slot empty. The Tigers could change that by extending Price, but that’s where there are complications.

With free agency only a year away, Price isn’t going to be receptive to anything less than market value. Since his current market value is probably in the same neighborhood as Scherzer‘s, extending Price likely wouldn’t mean a discount.

And though he’s the older of the two pitchers, Scherzer may be a safer long-term investment. Both come with declining velocity concerns, but FanGraphs can show that Scherzer‘s arsenal of pitches is more diverse than Price’s. That gives him a better chance of adapting to a significant velocity loss.

So if it’s the long run the Tigers are worried about, there’s a lot of sense in re-signing Scherzer. A long-term contract for him is more readily attainable than one for Price, and would be a better investment to boot.

But of course, these are the Tigers we’re talking about.

Though they’re presumably not ignoring their long-term future completely, pretty much everything they’ve done in recent years has been done out of a clear win-now mindset. More so than whether they need Scherzer in their long-term plans, the real question is if the Tigers need Scherzer to win now.

Paul’s source indicates the Tigers think the answer is yes, in part because Justin Verlander and Anibal Sanchez are on thin ice. And while it bears repeating that this source may not actually be speaking for the organization, it’s notable that the rest of the league is thinking along these lines.

Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe reported this in late December:

The more you ask baseball executives about where Scherzer will end up, the more the answers come back Detroit. The Tigers know and like Scherzer, and the feeling is they need him after trading Rick Porcello to the Red Sox, and obtaining Alfredo Simon from the Reds and Shane Greene from the Yankees…

It’s weird to picture the Tigers without an elite starting rotation, as nobody has done starting pitching like them in recent years. Go back to 2012, and FanGraphs has their starters producing 17.3 more Wins Above Replacement than the next-best team. That’s some gap.

And yet, that’s the direction the Tigers are headed.

A rotation of Price, Verlander, Sanchez, Greene and Simon doesn’t sound all that great on paper, and FanGraphs doesn’t project it to be that great:

The good news is that projections aren’t gospel. They can be argued with.

For example, I’m not quite buying is that Greene will fall that flat. He debuted to a solid 3.78 ERA in 2014. And having watched a handful of his starts, I’ll wager Brandon McCarthy isn’t too far off base in thinking Greene has “stupid electric stuff.”

But Greene aside, it’s hard to disagree with these projections.

Barring a velocity resurgence, Verlander probably won’t be drastically improving his ERA from last season’s 4.54 mark. Given his injury history, that probably is about as many innings as you can count on from Sanchez. After revealing his true self down the stretch after his All-Star first half in 2014, the American League probably will kick Simon’s butt that hard.

Compacting matters is that the Tigers don’t have much…heck, any depth below those five. If the rotation they have now were to crash and burn in 2015, they’d need either a whole lot of relief pitching or a whole lot of offense to survive it.

And that’s where we find more question marks.

A bullpen that was among the worst in the league in 2014 hasn’t gotten any significant upgrades. Re-signing Victor Martinez and trading for Yoenis Cespedes should ensure more good offense in 2015, but the Tigers need to worry about whether J.D. Martinez can repeat his 2014 breakout (not likely) and whether Miguel Cabrera can stay healthy (not likely) and get back to being his old self (not likely).

Granted, you can still look at the big picture in Detroit and see a quality team. A series of question marks don’t equal a total disaster, so it’s not surprising that the Tigers aren’t projected to be one in 2015.

It is, however, equally unsurprising that they’re not projected by FanGraphs to be head and shoulders better than the rest of the AL Central:

Though the Tigers are projected as the best team in the division, it’s a close call between them and the Cleveland Indians. The Kansas City Royals should also be somewhere in the mix. And based on their offseason activities, these projections are probably underrating the Chicago White Sox.

The Tigers are sort of in the same boat as the St. Louis Cardinals. They’re projected to be the best team in the NL Central, but it’s close enough to a point where they should indeed be thinking about following through on their interest in Scherzer, Price or Cole Hamels. There is, after all, a huge difference between winning the division and merely securing a spot in a one-game wild-card playoff.

If the Tigers can get to Scherzer first, all they’d need to do to improve their contention chances in 2015 is insert him in their rotation. With a projection that calls for a 3.02 ERA and 3.8 WAR in 195 innings, he’d look awfully good next to Price.

It’s either that or the Tigers could use Scherzer‘s signing as an excuse to trade Price. Maybe they’d still have a thin starting rotation, but a stronger bullpen and/or lineup would help make up for that.

As Dombrowski seemed to indicate back in December, it could be that the Tigers aren’t desperate to bring back Scherzer. That would be a defensible position, as the projections say they have enough to contend in the AL Central. 

It is, however, believable that Tigers might feel like they have to have Scherzer. Beyond him being the long-term ace they need, he’s their ticket to cementing themselves as the team to beat in their division.

Of course, it’ll cost the Tigers. Scherzer is said to want $200 million, and presumably won’t be signing for less than Jon Lester’s $155 million. Because they already have their share of big long-term contracts, the guys in the Tigers front office can’t downplay those figures more than anyone else can.

Except, maybe, their boss. Tigers owner Mike Ilitch has deep pockets, and one source was quick to remind Barry Svrluga of The Washington Post that he doesn’t mind spending it.

“All it takes,” said the source, “is for the owner to say he’ll sign that check, and it gets done.”

If that goes for anything Ilitch wants, maybe it goes double for things he needs.

Note: Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted/linked.  

If you want to talk baseball, hit me up on Twitter.

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Joakim Soria had a forgettable time with the Detroit Tigers last season. After being shipped over in a trade from Texas he pitched poorly in the regular season (4.91 ERA), and even worse in the postseason (0-1, 45.00 ERA in two games).

Despite Soria’s travails in the old English D, the Tigers still picked up his one-year option in October. He projects to be the setup man for closer Joe Nathan in 2015.

With this pair in their bullpen, Detroit boasts the luxury of two relievers who both rank in the top 10 in saves among active players.

Owning two premium arms at the back end of their bullpen puts the Tigers in a very strong position. Elite stoppers are among the game’s hottest commodities, and needy teams are often willing to trade away their prized talent in order to secure their services. A prime example of this is the Los Angeles Angels coughing up four prospects to the Padres in exchange for Huston Street last year.

Despite the milk turning sour for Soria in Motown, his resume still places him among baseball’s best relief pitchers. Before shifting to Detroit, he was lights out in a Rangers’ uniform in 2014. Check out the righty’s numbers compared to his peers:

Soria compiled these stats while racking up 17 saves, which raised his career total to 178. This man is a lockdown closer when given the opportunity.

While the Tigers are content to use him in a setup role, other MLB teams would relish the opportunity to install him as their closer. So, which teams would be viable candidates?

The Toronto Blue Jays are one club that quickly spring to mind. The acquisitions of Josh Donaldson, Russell Martin and Michael Saunders this offseason prove that their switch to win-now mode is genuine.

Would Soria be an ideal fit north of the border? You betcha.

They are currently without a proven closer, and rumor has it that the Jays are now shopping the trade market for one.

What’s in it for Detroit?

The Tigers have dotted a lot of i’s and crossed plenty of t’s already this winter. The signing of Tom Gorzelanny earlier this week was just their latest piece of business.

But, while the 32-year-old veteran is a sound pick-up, he is not the deadly southpaw Detroit is searching for. It so happens that the Blue Jays possess just the right man.

Brett Cecil emerged as one of the best lefty relievers in the American League last season. According to Fangraphs, the 28-year-old ranked seventh in the AL in K/9 (12.83) and eighth in FIP (2.34) for qualified relievers.

Over the past two decades, a litany of lefties has been trusted to do the business for Detroit. The likes of Phil Coke, Ian Krol (who may still emerge), Daniel Schlereth, Duane Below, Charlie Furbush, Bobby Seay, Tim Byrdak, Jamie Walker, Heath Murray, Bill Krueger and others have never quite cut the mustard in a Tigers’ uniform. Cecil would provide them with the southpaw that they have been coveting for many years.

Not since the days of Willie Hernandez in the 1980’s has Detroit boasted an imposing left-hander. A quarter of a century has been more than enough time to wait for the next one. Cecil would fulfil a different role to Detroit’s former Cy Young Award-winning closer, but he could be nearly as valuable.

There would be other benefits to acquiring the Blue Jays’ lefty. He is much cheaper than Soria, and as blessyouboys.com recently reported, Detroit is currently only a few Joel Hanrahan incentives away from passing the luxury-tax threshold. Additionally, Cecil has two years of team control left until he becomes a free agent—Soria has one.

While Cecil would be a significant loss for the Jays, they would still have the arms to absorb it. Aaron Loup and up-and-comer Rob Rasmussen give them two solid southpaws out of the pen to build a bridge to Soria as closer.

Detroit also has cover if they were to lose their eighth-inning man. Closer-in-waiting Bruce Rondon, Hanrahan (100 career saves) Al Alburquerque, as well as Cecil, would give Detroit plenty of late-inning options.

Tigers’ fans with long memories will recall that the acquisition of Hernandez occurred prior to the 1984 championship-winning season. It is probably drawing a long bow to suggest that a Soria-Cecil swap would lead Detroit to the Promised Land. But, it would cap a pretty darn good offseason in the Motor City.

Unless otherwise stated, all stats in this article are courtesy of baseballreference.com

Please note that the stats in the table were Soria‘s with Texas only

Hit me up on Twitter: @jdunc1979

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Detroit Tigers are one of the most star-studded teams in baseball, specifically on offense. From Miguel Cabrera to Victor Martinez to Ian Kinsler to Yoenis Cespedes, there are plenty of high-profile names in the Detroit clubhouse.

However, while all four players will be important factors to the Tigers achieving the ultimate success next season, young players will ultimately play the most important collective role—improving the bench and the bottom of the lineup.

Detroit has won four American League Central titles, made it to three straight American League Championship Series and went to the 2012 World Series mainly on star power.

Sure, their batting lineup was phenomenal, but the players at the back end of the team’s roster weren’t exactly world beaters.

The perfect example of this occurred during Game 3 of the Tigers’ ALDS matchup with the Orioles.

Down by two runs entering the bottom of the ninth and needing a rally to extend their postseason hopes, the Tigers sent Victor Martinez, J.D. Martinez and Bryan Holaday (who was subbing for an injured Alex Avila) to the plate.

Victor Martinez doubled to start the inning, while J.D. followed with a double of his own to bring the Tigers within one run.

The next batter, Holaday, promptly struck out. Nick Castellanos was intentionally walked, which brought the lineup around to the shortstop’s place in the batting order. The lighter-hitting Andrew Romine was removed for Hernan Perez. Perez grounded into a double play that ended the game and the Tigers’ season.

Perez is a player with solid potential who could be a consistent offensive contributor down the line but wasn’t the right player to hit in that spot. He’s played all of 44 games in the majors in the past three seasons.

Sadly, Perez was the best option. Eugenio Suarez was the only other player available off the bench at that moment, and he only managed a .570 OPS in the second half of the season.

Suarez was the last man on the bench due to the loss of Austin Jackson and some substitutions earlier in the game.

After losing Jackson in the David Price trade, the team was forced to play Rajai Davis, J.D. Martinez and Torii Hunter as the preferred outfield trio. This replaced the predicament of having four quality outfielders rotating between three spots.

Post-Price trade, the Tigers bench generally consisted of some combination of Don Kelly, Ezequiel Carrera, Holaday and Suarez or Romine (depending on who wasn’t starting).

With the exception of Kelly, who has a penchant for timely postseason hits and can play almost anywhere on the diamond as well as Romine—who brings defense and speed—there isn’t much there that will win Detroit a game.

Improving the Bench

Enter the Tigers young players, who should give the team more quality depth—depth that could push the team over the hump and allow them to claim the World Series trophy that has evaded them in years past.

Detroit’s pinch hitters produced a measly .182 batting average and an awful .297 slugging percentage.

The Tigers have inadvertently made strides to improve this. Newly acquired center fielder Anthony Gose will at the very least push Davis into a platoon role in center field. This means that Davis will be on the bench for many games.

Should Gose improve on his .226 batting average in 2014 and continue to play stellar defense, he may win the job outright.

This would not be a bad thing.

While Davis didn’t exactly light it up as a substitute (.250 batting average when coming off the bench in 2014), he does possess qualities that teams look for in a bench player—pop (37 extra-base-hits) and speed (36 steals in 2014, meaning he won’t have to be removed for a pinch runner).

The former Pittsburgh Pirate also hit .356 against right-handed pitching, posted a .302 clip with runners in scoring position and had a collective .315 average in the seventh through ninth innings.  

Along with Davis, manager Brad Ausmus will have his pick of players. Highly regarded prospect Steven Moya plays like a more athletic Adam Dunn with the same, if not more, raw power and an ability to hit for average (.276 batting average at Double-A).

Fellow outfielder Tyler Collins provides a solid blend of speed and pop, while catching prospect James McCann shows the ability to succeed on both sides of the ball thanks to a .295 batting average in Triple-A and a strong, defense-first reputation.

All of these players should vastly improve Detroit’s bench in 2015.  

Solidifying the Bottom of the Lineup

Even if the young players aren’t reserve players, like Jose Iglesias (24) and Castellanos (22), they can still improve the team’s overall depth.

The Tigers’ depth was exposed by the Orioles not just on the bench, but also at the bottom of the lineup. Detroit has multiple batters hitting sixth hit a cumulative .226. A massive drop off from the .299 clip number five hole hitters posted. The seventh spot in the order produced a collective .249 batting average. The eighth spot turned in a .241 number, while the nine hole came in with a .248 batting average.

These trends should be helped by the arrival of Cespedes. He or J.D. Martinez will hit sixth for Ausmus, providing an immediate upgrade.

Similarly, if Iglesias hits anywhere near the .259 mark he posted in Detroit after coming over from Boston, he will also provide a definite upgrade at shortstop and at the bottom of the lineup. An improvement on that .259 number isn’t out of the question either. Should that occur, it would be icing on the cake.  

Castellanos is another young player who stands a strong chance to improve in 2015. Long touted as the best hitting prospect in the Tigers’ system, Castellanos produced 31 doubles and drove in 66 runs as a rookie. His .259 batting average (coincidentally identical to Iglesias’) should improve as well with more experience. Should that happen, his statistics should improve across the board.

Should Iglesias, Castellanos and Gose all improve on their 2014 numbers, the Tigers will no longer have a bottom-of-the-order that is perceived as a handful of easy outs. Should the bench improve, the team may finally have an offense equipped to succeed in the postseason and ultimately win a World Series.

All stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.

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Another unsuccessful bid for a World Series title in 2014 has again prompted an offseason of introspection for the Detroit Tigers. Tweaking their talented—albeit flawed—teams has kept them highly active on the hot stove in recent years. This winter has been no different.

Here’s a reminder of what’s happened so far:

• In: Yoenis Cespedes (OF), Shane Greene (SP), Alfredo Simon (SP), Alex Wilson (RP), Anthony Gose (OF), Josh Zeid (RP)
• Out: Torii Hunter (OF), Rick Porcello (SP), Eugenio Suarez (SS), Jim Johnson (RP), Jonathon Crawford (SP), Devon Travis (2B)
• Unsigned: Max Scherzer (SP), Phil Coke (RP)

What do these changes mean for Detroit?

With Porcello and probably Scherzer headed for new pastures, it appears that the team ethos of building around the game’s most dominant starting rotation has ended. The Tigers will now have to make do with Greene and Simon behind a strong top three of David Price, Anibal Sanchez and Justin Verlander.

The addition of Gose consolidates the theme of increased athleticism that began with the acquisitions of Ian Kinsler and Rajai Davis last year. The team has also cranked up defense with the capture of Cespedes.

If the Tigers are to get their hands on the Holy Grail, then they will need to make everything click. Fulfillment of these three New Year’s resolutions may help make this happen.

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Last offseason, the Detroit Tigers traded away Doug Fister. This time around, Rick Porcello could be the one to go.

According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, Porcello is drawing trade interest from around the league.

After all, we have heard that Porcello has been linked to the Marlins—per Jon Morosi of Fox Sports—while Jayson Stark of ESPN.com points out that Boston would be a fit.  

So, why deal a pitcher in Porcello who just won 15 games and posted a 3.43 ERA in what was widely regarded as a breakout season?

Answer: for salary purposes.

Even before re-signing Victor Martinez, Detroit had a lot—and I mean a lot—of salary tied up going forward.

MLBTradeRumors.com has a fantastic chart that shows future salary obligations. Even before Martinez’s new contract, Detroit had more long-term money tied up than the Yankees. Yes, the same Yankees that seemingly don’t understand the word “overpay.”

Silly, absurd, exorbitant (maybe even necessary)—any of these terms would be acceptable in describing the salary situation.  

But back to Porcello. The only way Detroit will deal him is to save cash.

The former first-round pick will hit free agency after the coming season, and should he continue to pitch like he did in 2014, he could command upward of $100 million on his next contract. Throw in an arbitration raise this season, and you’re talking about a supersized wad of cash.

Should the Tigers’ general manager Dave Dombrowski decide to trade Porcello before his price tag becomes too expensive, he’ll need to receive the maximum in return.

Dombrowski has played this game before—in 2009 he dealt Curtis Granderson and Edwin Jackson to New York and Arizona, respectively, to avoid giving either a massive payday.

Granderson and Jackson would later be paid in full, but Dombrowski was able to turn the pair into Max Scherzer, Austin Jackson and Phil Coke.

Dombrowski attempted the same feat last offseason by dealing Doug Fister to the Washington Nationals for Robbie Ray, Ian Krol and Steve Lombardozzi.

The team saved some cash on Fister, but it is left with only Krol after Ray and Lombardozzi were dealt in separate trades. Ray brought back starter Shane Greene, while Lombardozzi was traded for the since-departed Alex Gonzalez.

Ideally, trading Porcello would bring Detroit a return similar to the one received for Granderson and Jackson, but Dombrowski must be cautious and not repeat the Fister fiasco.

Fister has developed into one of the top 20 pitchers in the league, while the Tigers were left with scratch-off lottery tickets.

If Porcello continues on that trajectory (which is perfectly plausible given his performances last season), Dombrowski would need to receive the best possible return. Detroit is in win-now mode and can’t afford another setback similar to Fister.  

In would-be trade talks, Porcello should be marketed as a potential ace, or at the very least a high-end No. 2. The better the perceived value, the better the return. After all, Dombrowski did acquire a Cy Young winner for Edwin Jackson.

Detroit’s general manager should look to emulate his counterpart in Boston. At the 2014 trade deadline, Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington flipped John Lackey and a minor leaguer to the Cardinals for Allen Craig and Joe Kelly.

There are two things of note with the Lackey trade. The first is that Craig and Kelly were established big leaguers with successful track records. Craig made the All-Star team in 2013, while Kelly was an integral part of a deep St. Louis rotation. The second is that Lackey was 35 at the time of the trade.

Sure, Craig and Kelly were in the midst of down years, but Boston acquired a middle-of-the-order bat and a potential No. 2 or 3 starter for a 35-year-old.

Yes, you read that correctly: a 35-year-old.

Did I mention Craig can play right field as well as first base?

You may be thinking to yourself, why do I care how old Lackey is? Well, his age matters because he’s considerably older than Porcello.

Not only is the former Angel a decade older than Porcello, but the argument can be made that Porcello is the better pitcher at this point in time.

It poses this question: If a 35-year-old and declining John Lackey can net two players who were part of St. Louis’ nucleus and are now part of Boston’s, how much can Rick Porcello bring in return?

Miami Marlins

With Miami reportedly interested and Boston a trade fit, the Tigers brass should be asking this terribly long (and unlikely to be similarly worded) question.

Both teams certainly have enviable assets that would tempt Detroit.

Miami is in win-now mode. The Fish gave Giancarlo Stanton enough money to fix a small country’s economy and shipped two prospects to Kansas City for former All-Star reliever Aaron Crow. Ergo, they may be willing to part with some of their talented youngsters if it means winning sooner and avoiding the wait game.

One appealing trade target for Detroit would be center fielder Marcell Ozuna.

Ozuna swatted 23 home runs in 2014 and drove in 85 runs—both exceptional numbers for a center fielder. The Marlins would be without a center field, but given their seemingly aggressive nature on the market, they could find a replacement elsewhere.

Detroit could use Ozuna in a three-man rotation with Anthony Gose and Rajai Davis to cover center and right field. The Marlins center fielder mashed right-handed hitters last season with a .275 batting average. In addition, 45 of his 54 extra-base hits came against righties.

Given Crow’s acquisition and Detroit’s chronic bullpen woes, one of Miami’s many excellent relievers could be part of the return. However, a starting pitcher would be the likely target. Nathan Eovaldi or Jarred Cosart could thrive with the Tigers.

Both are young, relatively affordable for the foreseeable future and happen to possess power fastballs—something that’s more often than not part of the job requirement in Detroit.

Anibal Sanchez flourished in Detroit after coming over from Miami in 2012. Maybe one of these two is the next Marlin to flourish in Motown.

Acquiring Ozuna and Eovaldi/Cosart certainly would be a worthy trade for Detroit, helping the squad win now and later. Losing two of those players would be tough for Miami, but the other side of the coin is that the Fish would be able to pair Porcello with Jose Fernandez and form one of the top one-two combinations in the league.

Boston Red Sox

While Miami has assets across the board, so to speak, Boston’s best trade chips all play the same position—the outfield.

One of the Internet’s finest writers published a wonderful slideshow looking at which Red Sox outfielder is the best trade fit for the Tigers. (It’s not me…really, I swear it’s not my writing…OK fine, it’s me.)

While Yoenis Cespedes has been widely tabbed as a player who’ll be traded this offseason, he wouldn’t be the best fit in Detroit.

Cespedes is essentially a two-trick pony. He has a cannon of an arm and can hit a baseball 500 feet. Other than those two strengths, his game is lacking. Cannon arm or not, he isn’t spectacular defensively. In addition, his on-base percentage during the last two years is below .300 (.298), which is concerning at best.

Instead of Cespedes, Detroit would be better off with Rusney Castillo or Mookie Betts. Both possess better all-around games than Cespedes and are considerably younger—Castillo is 27 and Betts is 22.

Corner outfielder, righty-masher and platoon expert extraordinaire Daniel Nava wouldn’t be a bad throw-in, either.

In addition to a bevy of talented young hitters, Miami has the young pitchers to match with hurlers like Cosart and Eovaldi. Boston is a different story. The Red Sox’s young and talented starting pitchers (Anthony Ranaudo and Allen Webster) have a combined 25 major league starts.

At 26, Kelly (whom you’ll remember from a certain John Lackey trade) may be the best option for the Tigers in any Porcello trade. Kelly played a key role in St. Louis, posting a sparkling 3.08 ERA in 61 appearances and 231 innings.  

In Conclusion

It’s no surprise that Porcello is a coveted player on the trade market. The former first-round pick finally seems to be cashing in on his potential.

Porcello is cashing in on his potential metaphorically, but he could literally cash in on it when he hits free agency next offseason. This likely occurrence will be expensive for Porcello’s employers. Very expensive.

Detroit could cut bait on Porcello, similar to how it offloaded Fister. If this happens, the team’s brass must ask for everything in return, so to speak.

Porcello is a legitimate front-line starter and must be valued as such. “Fister Fiasco 2.0” can’t happen, not for a Tigers team in win-now mode. Miami and Boston are two destinations. While both have exciting players, Miami may be the better option thanks to the Fish’s superior pitching.

The bottom line is that if Porcello is dealt, Dombrowski and the Tigers can’t accept anything less than a king’s ransom.

All stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.

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