Team Spotlight: Detroit Tigers

Heltonfan · 12-02-2007, 03:44 AM

The Tigers are in an awfully tough spot. They’ve got a solid team, built to win now, but getting over the hump is going to be a real challenge.

Summary Statistics
Rotation: 0
Bullpen: -16
Lineup: +2
Bench: +5
Defense: +39
W-L record: 85-77

Rotation

Verlander 3.54
Bonderman 3.54
Robertson 4.28
Rogers 4.35
Miller 4.82

I’m not a big Andrew Miller fan. A 56/39 K/BB doesn’t exactly scream “ace in the making.”

Can’t argue with the decision to bring Kenny Rogers back. They definitely needed someone, and Rogers on a one-year deal is much better than Lohse/Silva on a three- or four-year deal.

Bullpen

Jones 3.51
Rodney 3.60
Grilli 3.89
Seay 4.07
Byrdak 4.16
Rapada 4.52
Capellan 4.63

The loss of Zumaya has transformed this from an average bullpen into a terrible one. They need to add a high-ceiling reliever or two.

Lineup

C: Rodriguez 1.53 (.234, 6)
1B: Guillen 4.32 (.292, 13)
2B: Polanco 2.74 (.262, 6)
SS: Renteria 1.83 (.263, -8)
3B: Inge 1.95 (.246, 9)
LF: Jones 0.75 (.244, 3)
CF: Granderson 4.89 (.293, 6)
RF: Ordonez 4.00 (.304, -2)
DH: Sheffield 2.02 (.282)

That +13 projection for Guillen at first base is a little wacky; I base my defensive projections on the player’s performance at all positions, so Guillen, by virtue of playing a competent SS, projects to be nothing short of brilliant at first base. I’m not sure how valid this method is; I’m quite sure that it’s better than evaluating players purely based on their performance at the position in question, but at the same time, the skills required to play SS and 1B are quite different, and +13 – making Guillen the best defensive 1B in the game, by a comfortable margin – feels like a stretch. In my system’s defense, though, Guillen did post a 1.000 ZR in his 179 innings at first base this year, so you never know.

The Tigers can gain one full win just by ensuring that Jacque Jones never plays against left-handed pitching. They’ve got a very capable platoon partner for him, in Marcus Thames.

Bench

Rabelo .218
Santiago .208
Raburn .273
Thames .276

Ryan Raburn is a criminally underappreciated player. I see no reason to doubt that projection; he had a .290 ABR this year, .260 last year. And he’s versatile, too; after getting called up to the bigs, he played all over the place (2B, 3B, LF, CF, RF), acquitting himself quite well.

If I Were in Charge, I Would: I think the Tigers are pretty well locked into the 85-win range, and they’ll need some help in order to catch the the Tribe. But they have to do what they can to make sure that they at least hit that 85-win level, which means:

Go after Gagne, or maybe try to swing a deal for Joe Nathan. I’d look at Julio and Dotel, as well.

See if there’s a market for Brandon Inge. Inge is signed to a very reasonable contract ($19 million through 2010), but Raburn makes him expendable. If they can get a quality reliever for him, they should do so.

12-02-2007, 03:44 AM	#1 (permalink)
Heltonfan Moderator Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Yerevan, Armenia Posts: 855	Team Spotlight: Detroit Tigers The Tigers are in an awfully tough spot. They’ve got a solid team, built to win now, but getting over the hump is going to be a real challenge. Summary Statistics Rotation: 0 Bullpen: -16 Lineup: +2 Bench: +5 Defense: +39 W-L record: 85-77 Rotation Verlander 3.54 Bonderman 3.54 Robertson 4.28 Rogers 4.35 Miller 4.82 I’m not a big Andrew Miller fan. A 56/39 K/BB doesn’t exactly scream “ace in the making.” Can’t argue with the decision to bring Kenny Rogers back. They definitely needed someone, and Rogers on a one-year deal is much better than Lohse/Silva on a three- or four-year deal. Bullpen Jones 3.51 Rodney 3.60 Grilli 3.89 Seay 4.07 Byrdak 4.16 Rapada 4.52 Capellan 4.63 The loss of Zumaya has transformed this from an average bullpen into a terrible one. They need to add a high-ceiling reliever or two. Lineup C: Rodriguez 1.53 (.234, 6) 1B: Guillen 4.32 (.292, 13) 2B: Polanco 2.74 (.262, 6) SS: Renteria 1.83 (.263, -8) 3B: Inge 1.95 (.246, 9) LF: Jones 0.75 (.244, 3) CF: Granderson 4.89 (.293, 6) RF: Ordonez 4.00 (.304, -2) DH: Sheffield 2.02 (.282) That +13 projection for Guillen at first base is a little wacky; I base my defensive projections on the player’s performance at all positions, so Guillen, by virtue of playing a competent SS, projects to be nothing short of brilliant at first base. I’m not sure how valid this method is; I’m quite sure that it’s better than evaluating players purely based on their performance at the position in question, but at the same time, the skills required to play SS and 1B are quite different, and +13 – making Guillen the best defensive 1B in the game, by a comfortable margin – feels like a stretch. In my system’s defense, though, Guillen did post a 1.000 ZR in his 179 innings at first base this year, so you never know. The Tigers can gain one full win just by ensuring that Jacque Jones never plays against left-handed pitching. They’ve got a very capable platoon partner for him, in Marcus Thames. Bench Rabelo .218 Santiago .208 Raburn .273 Thames .276 Ryan Raburn is a criminally underappreciated player. I see no reason to doubt that projection; he had a .290 ABR this year, .260 last year. And he’s versatile, too; after getting called up to the bigs, he played all over the place (2B, 3B, LF, CF, RF), acquitting himself quite well. If I Were in Charge, I Would: I think the Tigers are pretty well locked into the 85-win range, and they’ll need some help in order to catch the the Tribe. But they have to do what they can to make sure that they at least hit that 85-win level, which means: Go after Gagne, or maybe try to swing a deal for Joe Nathan. I’d look at Julio and Dotel, as well. See if there’s a market for Brandon Inge. Inge is signed to a very reasonable contract ($19 million through 2010), but Raburn makes him expendable. If they can get a quality reliever for him, they should do so.