Oh Brandon, Do You Think Tigers Fans Are Stupid?

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

Oh Brandon, when will you learn? Tigers fans don't want to hate you, they really don't. These people still come to Tigers games sporting jerseys and shirts with "Inge" plastered across the shoulders. Believe me, they want to still like you, but you're making it difficult.

First you sound like a two-year-old when you get to Oakland when you say that it didn't matter that Detroit released you because you were going to ask to be released soon any way. Really? Because that's what a professional and grown-up sounds like. That was your first offense; now this.

Following his grand slam against the Tigers on Thursday, Inge's second in three games, he was asked by a member of the Oakland press corps what the difference was between the Tigers last year and Oakland this season in getting RBI. In response to that question Inge again made the fans in Detroit have to hate him.

"There weren't a lot of runners on base for me. (Alex) Avila had a great year and hit a lot of home runs in front of me so it is difficult to stay focused...," said Inge.

Really, Brandon? Really?

There weren't any runners on base and that's why you couldn't get hits last season? Well what about the 73 at-bat's where there were runners in scoring position? Yeah, Inge only got 10 hits in his 73 chances with runners in scoring position, which equates to a .137 batting average with runners in scoring position.

So, Inge, do you want to try that one again for us all here in Detroit? Why is it that your batting average was so low here, because we aren't stupid, and we for sure know it wasn't because there weren't runners in position.

Brandon Inge May Be In Oakland, But Still Taking Shots at Tigers

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

It took Brandon Inge until nearly the end of April to record his second hit of the season for the Detroit Tigers, but after being released from the team last week Inge signed with the Oakland Athletics and in his debut went 1-for-3.

While the A's lost to the Boston Red Sox 11-6, it was a good start for Inge who had struggled in his nine games in Detroit this season. During his time with the Tigers he only recorded two hits; a double and a two-run home run. Inge will turn 35 this season and now that he is playing with the A's he is with his first new ball club in 12 seasons.

When the Tigers released Inge they still were on the hook to pay him the remainder of his contract, $5,308,743, but when Oakland signed him to a contract they agreed to pay $412,000. A deal for a veteran third baseman that they desperately needed.

After finding out that he had been released Inge said all of the right things to the Detroit media, he hugged Manager Jim Leyland and thanked the club and the fans for all of the good times that he had in a Tigers uniform. That good will didn't seem to last though as his tune changed in a recent interview with the Detroit Free Press.

"It was frustrating, because I has 20 at-bat's. Twenty at-bat's is nothing. Twenty at-bats is not even enough time to really see what you're capable of. Some guys go 0-for-40 sometimes," Inge said. He has not seemed to learn any humility from the situation and continues to think that his performance was acceptable.

"I hit the ball well," Inge said. I had two hits, but it was a matter of being a foot right or left and I probably could've had 10 hits out of those 20."

While Detroit had had enough of Inge, the Oakland Athletics were the perfect fit for him. Prior to the start of the season the A's lost their every day third baseman, Scott Sizemore to a season ending injury. This left Oakland with a gap at the hot corner and Inge was a perfect fit.

It looks like Inge has gotten what he wants, he is starting every day, for now, at the position that he is the most comfortable with - and he was "close to asking for a release from the Tigers anyway." Well, here's to you Brandon.

Tigers Release Brandon Inge After 12-Year Career

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

It's official, the Brandon Inge era in Detroit has come to an unconditional end. Following their loss to the Seattle Mariners on Thursday afternoon the Tigers unconditionally released Brandon Inge and purchased the contract of 31-year-old Brad Eldred from their Triple-A affiliate the Toledo Mud Hens.

Fans had been booing Inge at Comerica Park and many were calling for his trade or release for months. On Thursday Inge's 12 year career came to an end and Inge said that he had no hard feelings towards the Tigers and it was "one of those things you can kind of see coming."

Inge went on to say that baseball was a business and he understood the move, he expressed hope that he could begin a new chapter with a new club but that his "heart will always be in Detroit, 100 percent."

In his 12 seasons in the with the Tigers, Inge compiled a career .234 batting average while hitting 140 home runs and racking up 589 RBI. He came into the Tigers organization as a catcher and served that role well until Detroit signed Ivan Rodriguez to be the backstop. With that move, Inge shifted to third base where he found a home, he gave the Tigers superb defensive plays at the hot corner and his strong arm cut down many runners on their way to first.

However, despite being the teammate that most players want and moving from position to position Inge always seemed to struggle offensively. While his defensive ability kept him around at third, when the Tigers signed Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera once again displaced him Inge moved to second. At second his bat continued to be a non-factor and he did not show the same defensive ability.

Ultimately, despite being a "true soldier" as Manager Jim Leyland said, the Tigers were forced to part ways with their longest tenured Tiger on the roster.

Inge's replacement, Eldred, has been tearing through opponents pitching in the International League. In the 20 games in which Eldred has appeared he has compiled a .388 batting average while launching 13 home runs. Eldred will have his contract purchased by the Tigers tomorrow and will join the team in New York when Detroit takes on the Yankees.

The Curious Case of The Detroit Tigers Second Base

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

It was supposed to be a straight forward decision, it was made in spring training; Ryan Raburn was going to be be the second baseman for the Detroit Tigers and would be rested for Ramon Santiago. Then Brandon Inge decided that he needed to play second base and foul things up even further, of course despite proving to be just about as useful as a wet towel, Inge was awarded with the job.

Fine, whatever. As long as he can hit his weight and continue to field above-average Inge will be accepted at second. But that's not happening, and his self-serving choice to force his way into the second base position has done some damage to Raburn and Santiago. Raburn left Lakeland, Fla. hitting better than he ever had to start the season - but part of that was because he was allowed to settle in at second base and play every day.

With Inge filling his spot in the lineup in Detroit Raburn was forced to play the outfield and become the designated hitter, with this came uncertainty of playing each day and when playing DH, long periods of sitting on the bench before each at-bat. There is nothing that will quench a hot streak faster than moving a guy around the field, it's no wonder Raburn's bat appears to have been left in Florida. Coming hot out of spring training Raburn has seen his batting average drop all the way to .090, as of Apr. 25, 2012.

Santiago also had a decent spring, but has also struggled as of late, hitting just .153. He has been his usual self in the field posting a perfect fielding percentage. But Manager Jim Leyland usually opts to put Inge or Raburn in the lineup at second base and leave Santiago for a late-inning substitution. While this may hamper some players, Santiago has gotten used to this as most of his career has been spent in this fashion. If given more opportunities he could buoy his average, but nothing is certain.

Inge simply wants to stay in the lineup and who can blame him, his is getting paid to play his favorite sport and all he wants to do is play. It's hard to knock a guy for not wanting to call it quits, but the numbers are not great for Inge. Through Apr. 25, Inge had recorded just two hits in the season for a .100 average. While many may not have expected his bat to come with him to second base, many still believed that he could be an asset up the middle with his excellent glove work from third base. Unfortunately, that did not follow him.

It is a hard transition to move from a position you have played much of your professional career to the position you played in high school, but his defense has suffered mightily in his time at second base for the Tigers. In his time at 2B this season Inge has posted a .963, committing several errors, and several others that should have been charged to him. Because of this, Inge's Rtot/yr is a -15. Rtot is the measure of the number of runs above or below average a fielder is worth per year. And at -15, Inge is worth 15 runs less than the average second baseman. Meaning that he costs the Tigers 15 a year.

None of the three mentioned players are the solution at second base; Raburn was meant to be a temporary stop-gap at best, Santiago is not an every day player and Inge is costing the team runs. Then where do the Tigers turn to fix the problem? Danny Worth.

Worth only appeared in three games with the Tigers this season before he was sent down to Toledo to make room for Inge. But while he was with Detroit he had five plate appearances and was able to get a hit in that time. His .200 average is already higher than any of the three players currently playing the position and he is supposedly the answer the Tigers brass had for 2B when they traded away Scott Sizemore after his brief time in the Olde English D.

Since being sent down to play with the Mud Hens, Worth has had 48 at-bat's and recorded 14 hits during those appearances. He has also drawn six walks in Toledo which puts his on-base percentage at .370. While he still has problems striking out, he would give the Tigers someone different to put in at second and perhaps fix the problem.

The definition of stupid is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result; now isn't that what Detroit is doing with the three players they have playing second right now? Trying to fit square pegs into a round hole. It just won't work, why not bring Worth up, give him 100 at-bat's and see if he really is the fix that they desperately need.

Justin Verlander Goes Nine, Picks Up First Win

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

Justin Verlander took a Tigers lead into the ninth inning for the second consecutive start, only this time he would win the game. On Monday night the Detroit Tigers ace headed into the ninth with a 3-1 lead and a manageable pitch count. Although he made things interesting, allowing one run and leaving the bases loaded with two outs, Verlander came out of the inning with his first win and complete game of the season.

In his nine innings of work Verlander surrendered seven hits to the Kansas City Royals while walking just two. Almost as impressive as his complete game was the fact that Verlander struck out nine Royals on the day, including Alex Gordon to end the game.

The win was right out of the script of a Verlander start, he began the game throwing in the mid-90's and by the end of the game he was tossing 101 mph fastballs to the plate. On his last delivery to the plate, his 131st pitch, Verlander's fastball beat Gordon by blowing by him at 101 mph.

While it is hard to say no when the reigning American League MVP and Cy Young winner is chomping at the bit to get back out on the mound to close out his game, the question has come up whether Manager Jim Leyland should allow Verlander to extend his games into the final frame.

In his last start against the Tampa Bay Rays, Verlander headed into the ninth with a lead. It didn't stay that way, the Rays came all the way back and beat the Tigers that day. So when Verlander convinced Leyland to let him toss the ninth on Monday, visions of the previous game had to be flashing through his mind.

With two on and two out and the score at 3-2 Leyland meandered his way out to the mound to talk to his pitcher, and according to Verlander all he said was, "you're going to get me fired."

But in the dugout in the eighth inning when Verlander approached Leyland about going back out for the ninth, he said that Leyland told him, "it's your game. You're either going to win it or lose it. I'm not taking you out."

If that isn't confidence in your pitcher nothing is. So with the bases loaded, two-outs and a one run lead, Verlander channeled that confidence and blew the final strike past Gordon at 101 mph to secure his first win of the year.

Verlander was afforded his lead on a leadoff home run by Austin Jackson and a two-run homer by Brandon Inge, who was starting at 2B, in the fifth. Those three runs would be all Verlander would need.

He allowed a Gordon double in the first and after a sacrifice bunt and a Billy Butler single the Royals were able to erase the Tigers early lead. After the Inge home run the Royals could only muster one more run in the ninth when Butler lead off the frame with a single and his pinch runner, Jason Bourgeois, was able to come around and score.

At the beginning of the season Verlander said he wanted to emulate Roy Halladay and complete more games this season - so far it looks as though his body is up to it, but it is up to his skipper to get his mind ready to stay focused for the full nine frames. Once he gets the hang of throwing nine full innings, look out, he might be more dominating than last season.

The Bum Is Back. Tigers Recall Inge.

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

First off, I'm abandoning all of the journalistic morals in this article. This is something that infuriates me to the point that I can't do it justice by being impartial and staying out of the article. So here it goes.

The parade of mediocrity that is the Detroit Tigers front office, cough Dave Dombrowski, cough, continues. They called Brandon Inge up from Triple-A Toledo and plan to start him on Sunday. Why in the hell would those words ever come out of someones mouth? Why?

Inge is awful, there is no way around it. To say that he is anything but a waste of a lineup space is ludicrous. He hit under .200 last season, then he did it again in spring training, and got a job! If I could go to work and whine and complain while accomplishing basically nothing only to still be paid, you bet I would do that.

But then instead of cutting the cord and getting rid of the dead weight that has been around this Tigers team's neck for years, Dombrowski passed the buck and sent Inge to Toledo so he could avoid making a decision for two weeks.

Maybe he was hoping Inge would light up the International League and it would be a no-brainer to bring him up to the Tigers. Well, you forget sir, this is Brandon Inge. In his time with minor leaguers he got one hit. One. And you expect him to produce in the show? Good God, Dombrowski must have had a stroke. There's no other reasoning to why he would think this was a good idea.

Not to mention Danny Worth, a guy who hit near .400 in the spring and deserves a spot with the Tigers, gets shipped back to Toledo for a guy who can't even check his swing without striking out.

When Manager Jim Leyland was asked about Inge he said, "Made a couple plays. He had one hit. He's fine physically."

He's fine physically? That's what is important? How about the whole one hit thing. That seems pretty damn important to me. But you know what, I think it's good to add a complete washout to the team. That makes sense. You know what? I've always felt Detroit belonged in the National League, and putting Inge in the lineup basically gives the Tigers a pitcher in the batting order.

This whole Inge saga has done nothing but infuriate me, Dombrowski makes a few good baseball moves then blows it all by bringing back a completely worthless player that will serve only to hurt this team.

I thought the point of this whole thing was to win a World Series.

It Happened - Inge Is A Starter At 2B

Toledo Blade

 By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

No, you didn't read the headline wrong. Manager Jim Leyland has named Brandon Inge a starter at second base. Now, just let that settle in for a little, grab your blood pressure meds and let's explore this a little bit.

Inge will start the season on the 15-day disabled list with a strained groin, the easy way out for Leyland and General Manager Dave Dombrowski. The Tigers chose not to make a real decision on Inge, they didn't cut him, like many April Fools jokesters would have you believe. They didn't send him to the minors, but they also didn't put him on the everyday roster - until now.

Against the wishes of most Tigers fans with a pulse Leyland announced that Inge will be the starting second baseman for the Tigers when they are up against left-handed starting pitchers. They also decided to take Ryan Raburn who had an excellent spring at the plate and in the field and move him to the designated hitter role.

So they took the guy in Raburn who hit .268 and boasted a .994 fielding percentage and told him to go sit on the bench and make sure you can get us a hit every third inning. Raburn is the one guy on the team that you don't make the DH. He has struggled at the plate in the first half of the last several seasons, and now that he is coming off a hot spring they're going to sit him down and get him out of his rhythm so they can appease a guy hitting .180?

Yes, that's right, Inge hit a whopping .180 against pitchers in the spring. The time when pitchers are working on new pitches and the majority of games are pitched by minor leaguers and this "major leaguer" couldn't get his average above the Mendoza Line? That's the guy that you want to trot out in the starting line up, really?

Nothing about the spring Inge had called out for him to make the spring. Nothing. He didn't screw up defensively, but he also didn't do anything out of the ordinary. Not to mention he still couldn't hit the broadside of a barn.

Detroit, at least, called Danny Worth up to begin the season with the team, but if he is sent to the minors when Inge is taken off the DL it will be a travesty. Worth had a heck of a spring, he hit .317 and can play multiple infield positions. Inge, remember, hit .180 and Leyland said he would not be using Inge as a defensive replacement for Miguel Cabrera at third late in games.

So, let's break this down. The Tigers need a second baseman, the guy that started the most games at 2B in the spring and hit .268 while doing that will not get that job. He will be riding the pine and will be the designated hitter. The guy who is hitting .317 and can play multiple infield positions in Worth, likely won't be on the team more than two weeks. But the guy who is hitting .180 and whines about everything will get to start games for the Tigers.

That makes sense.

Inge Hitting .174, Says He Doesn't Care

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

“I feel great at the plate,” Inge said. “I consider a quality at-bat squaring it up and hitting it on the screws. I’ve done that a lot. I don’t have much to show for average, which I really don’t care about. I’ve learned -- especially after last year (when he hit .197) -- I don’t care one bit. I’m having fun playing baseball, and I will continue to have fun.
"I will never let numbers bring me down again. I’ve hit a lot of balls right at people.”

Yes, that's right, Brandon Inge doesn't think there is anything wrong with needing a boat oar at the plate to get a hit. And while Tigers fans may disagree with him on that one as long as he's having fun everything's alright, right?

With Danny Worth hitting .313 with a .395 OBP and Inge bringing up the rear with a real nice .174, he better have fun down in Lakeland because he might be staying there when the team comes back to Detroit.

Ryan Raburn has made it clear that he is the Tigers starting second baseman, he is tearing pitching apart this spring, hitting .325 with a .365 OBP. Raburn has also jacked six home runs and racked up 18 RBI this spring.

If things stay the way they are right now Raburn will be the starting 2B with backup's Ramon Santiago and Danny Worth. Inge, well, he can hit a lot of balls on the seams to little leaguers in Ann Arbor because he won't be doing it in an Olde English "D."

Sorry Inge, It's Worth's Time Now

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

When the Detroit Tigers signed Prince Fielder in the off season it kind of screwed up Brandon Inge's plans, he had planned on not "being a nice guy any more" while playing third base in 2012. But with the new signing he was, once again, ousted from a position on the field. Many thought that at that point it was the end of the relationship between Inge and the Tigers, but he sought to stay with the team and make a run at the second base job this season.

Early in spring training things looked to be going well for Inge, sure he was the last player to show up to camp, but he took to second base well, even making a number of highlight reel quality grabs. But even early in March Manager Jim Leyland qualified his answers about how Inge was doing at second by saying that he needed to bring his bat. And if this season was anything like 2011, Inge would need a boat oar for a bat to have a decent batting average.

The spring started well for Inge, but soon enough he returned to 2011 form. In his 14 games this spring Inge has done little at the plate to justify earning a call up to the Tigers in April. In his 38 at-bats, Inge has only recorded seven hits - a .184 average. Well, on base percentage can save him right? Wrong, Inge has an OBP of .225 to go with his seven strikeouts.

As Leyland said, if his bat isn't there it will be hard to bring him up to Detroit. As good as a Ryan Raburn is doing this spring, he looks to have secured the starting job at second base but the debate is over the last roster spot. With the Tigers also carrying Ramon Santiago there is a need for another infielder that can prove to be versatile.

That player is Dannny Worth. Worth has played in 15 games, but has just 24 at-bats and has seven hits for a .295 average. His OBP is an impressive .357 with three walks and four strikeouts. With Worth, the Tigers also get a player that can play second, third and shortstop. His versatility is something that will come in handy for the Tigers this season.

The only problem with leaving Inge in the minors, or cutting him entirely, is that he is due $5.5 million this season and an additional $500,000 next season. That is a substantial amount of money to have in the minors or sitting on a couch somewhere.

While money should not be considered, the overall success and health of the team may come second to those greenbacks when camp breaks. General Manager Dave Dombrowski and Leyland may decide to give Inge 'one last shot' to turn it around in the majors and ship the deserving Worth back to Toledo.

If those men truly care about making a trip to the World Series this season they will break camp without Inge. He serves no purpose on this team and as such can only cost Detroit runs and wins in their attempt to win their first title since 1984.

Like It Or Not - Brandon Inge Likely to Start at 2B

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

Brandon Inge didn't have a good 2011, but according to him was going to "stop being nice" in the future years and improve his hitting while manning his position at third base. That was before Mike Illich spend nearly a quarter of a billion dollars on a new first baseman. The addition of Prince Fielder posed a problem for the Tigers, who now had to find a place for American League batting champion, Miguel Cabrera.

That problem was fixed when Manager Jim Leyland and General Manager Dave Dombrowski agreed that moving Cabrera to third was the best choice for the team - that move may have been good for the Tigers but not so good for Inge. During the press conference to announce Fielder, the question came up about Inge and Leyland told the media crowd that Inge "was not a happy camper" in regards to being displaced from third.

As Spring Training approached Inge was trying to find a way that he could still contribute to the club and play every day - third base was occupied, as was short stop and catcher, first base was also out of the question which left one place, second base. Second base has been a problem for the Tigers for some time now, with Leyland being content to head into the season with a platoon of Ryan Raburn and Ramon Santiago.

When it became known that Inge was intending on competing for the second base job a good portion of Tiger-nation let out a groan. He was the last to arrive in Lakeland, Fla. for Spring Training but has been given his shot at the second base position and if you believe Dombrowski, Inge has been All-Star quality. MLB Radio talked to Dombrowski about Inge playing second base earlier this week.

During Spring Training, Inge has made one start at second in a game against the Atlanta Braves in which he made a couple solid defensive plays. But his defensive ability was never what made Tigers fans boo him during the season or groan when they heard his name announced to come to the plate during a rally - to say Inge struggle with the bat last season is an understatement.

Dombrowski has said that Inge has been very good offensively and he has been using the whole field when he hits. But he preferenced that statement by saying that they didn't want to get carried away but went on to say that if Inge keeps up his performance he could get "a lot" of playing time this season.

So like it or not, it appears as though Inge will work his magic once again and find his way back into the every day lineup - which could either be a very good thing defensively for the Tigers or very bad for the Tigers offensively. Only time will tell whether or not Inge will be the every day second baseman out of Spring Training.

Brandon Inge to 2B, Say What?

 

 

Before the Tigers rocked the baseball world by signing Prince Fielder, Brandon Inge was hoping to rebound from a forgettable 2011 season with considerable playing time at 3B. But once Detroit pulled the trigger on their newest slugger it shifted Miguel Cabrera back to his original position at the hot corner and left Inge without a home.

At the press conference to announce Fielder's signing Tigers Manager Jim Leyland said that Inge was "not a happy camper" about being forced out of third base once again. To add insult to injury a few days later Denny McLain called Inge out for "whining" and told him to "suck it up."

At the press conference Leyland ran down several configurations for his team in the field, and none of them featured Inge. Even the designated hitter position, not that Inge could ever be considered a hitter, featured a collaboration of about four names, none of which were Inge.

But as the team prepares to head down to Lakeland, Fla. for spring training Inge talked to general manager Dave Dombrowski and indicated that he wants to compete for a spot at second base. Perhaps Inge has studied the team and seen that 2B is the weakest spot in the field for the Tigers, or maybe he just wants back into the game.

Currently, Leyland is looking at going into the 2012 season with a platoon of Ryan Raburn and Ramon Santiago at 2B, but neither of those players are good enough to have anything locked up before Opening Day rolls around. But they each possess something that Inge may not - the ability to turn a double play.

Inge has shown incredible athleticism at third during his career, but 3B is the moon compared to 2B. At third a player makes a stab at the ball and fires it to first or second for the out. While at 2B, a player has to read the runners and his partner at SS and make the out before getting the ball across the diamond to the waiting glove of Fielder at 1B. Even Leyland expressed uncertainty about Inge's proposed move.

"I don't know if he can do it," Leyland said. 

Leyland made one thing certain, if Inge wants to compete for a starting spot at 2B, he will not only have to be able to field the position and turn a double play, he will have to be able to hit. If he can't hit then he won't be in the lineup.

While this is all well and good, one has to wonder the impact on Raburn and Santiago heading into spring training. Raburn has frequently had abysmal starts to the season and if Inge is breathing down his neck on the bench it could force Raburn to push and struggle once again. As for Santiago, he just signed an extension with the Tigers only to face the possibility of losing his spot to the journeyman Inge.

Spring training is long and who knows, maybe Inge can make himself into a decent second baseman, but unless he can consistently hit without the need of a boat oar and can restrain himself from lashing out at the fans again his stay with the Tigers will be on the bench.

Weekend hits on the Tigers

On Monday, the Detroit Tigers offered arbitration to all of their eligible players, except for one, Will Rhymes. Rhymes had bounced between the AAA Toledo Mudhens and the Tigers over the last several seasons as Detroit was attempting to find a solution at 2B. Technically, Rhymes was not close to being arbitration eligible because he has less than one year of major league experience, but the Tigers chose to non-tender him a contract.

Over the 2010 and 2011 seasons Rhymes had established a .283 BA with a .341 OBP but only 21 RBI, 19 coming in the 2010 campaign. After Detroit signed Ramon Santiago to a two-year deal earlier in the off season it was assumed that things would stay status quo at 2B for the Tigers - with Ryan Raburn, Santiago and Rhymes battling each other all year to become the next mediocre starter at the fourth position on the field.

Detroit's 3B search continues

Wherever Brandon Inge is sitting must always be hot, because the Tigers are again rumored to be checking into another third baseman to replace Inge in 2012. The latest to be connected to the Tigers is the 3B for the San Diego Padres, Chase Headley. 

Headley is due for arbitration this season and should be awarded $3MM by the arbitrator. The 27-year-old has a career .269 BA and a .343 OBP in his four seasons with the Fathers. Reports have the asking price in San Diego for Headley being pretty steep - in this case, the market has justified the increased price of Headley as the 3B market has all but dried up.

Detroit has inquired as to the cost of Headley and reports have them coming away thinking the price is too high - that's not to say that they have closed the door forever on the 3B from San Diego, but they will be looking elsewhere right now.

Tigers ship Perry to DC

On Friday the Tigers completed a straight-up player-for-player trade with the Washington Nationals that sent former first-round pick Ryan Perry to D.C. for a former fourth-round pick Collin Balester. Both players are right-handed relief-pitchers that haven't proved much with their time in the big leagues.

In his four seasons with the Washington Nationals, Balester has complied a 5-16 record with a 5.17 ERA and a 1.473 WHIP. While he started his career on the Nationals as a starter, in 2008, he has remained in the bullpen for the last three seasons and has shown that he is anything but consistent.

Balester's numbers have bounced around from season to season -  in 2009 he posted a 6.82 ERA and then in 2010 that number drops to 2.57 before ballooning to 4.54 in 2011. While much of this may be able to be attributed to the nature of being a relief pitcher, it doesn't exactly instill much confidence in him. He will still have to battle David Pauley for the final bullpen spot on the Tigers during Spring Training.

Ryan Perry seemed to have worn out his welcome in Detroit - General Manager Dave Dombrowski showed a lack of patience in dealing with former 2B prospect Scott Sizemore, but showed much more leniency with Perry, allowing him to struggle through three seasons at the major league level.

In his time with Detroit since 2009 Perry has amassed a 5-6 record and a 4.07 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. His numbers essentially mirror those of Balester, making this trade all but meaningless. Regardless of if it was Perry or Balester they would have to be able to prove their worth in Lakeland, FL in February in order to beat out Pauley for the final bullpen spot.

Off Season Moves the Tigers Need to Make

First off, it's been a while since the last post, I hope many of you return and start reading this again on a regular basis because I plan on updating it regularly once again. Thanks to everyone for reading.

Detroit nearly hobbled its way into the World Series in 2011 and despite coming up short of the ultimate goal, the team still finished as one of the last four playing and came within one game of representing the American League for the second time in five seasons.

2011 was a year that provided many insights into this team; Alex Avila became cemented as the No. 1 catcher for the foreseeable future, Doug Fister will push Justin Verlander to be even better than he currently is, and Delmon Young, while expendable, is a power outfielder who comes up huge in the clutch.

Last season also showed the many weaknesses the Tigers have, and other teams exploited those weaknesses to get by them in the playoffs. Once Victor Martinez came up lame in a game he was never able to back up Avila, which led to Avila catching all but two games down the stretch. That over use wore down the young backstop to the point where he resembled Kirk Gibson limping around the bases. The Tigers needed to find a back up catcher for Avila, and they found that in ex-Tiger Gerald Laird.

While not a fan favorite, Laird has proven that he is one of the most efficient defensive catchers in the game. His bat may be the equal to that of Brandon Inge but as long as he stays healthy enough to catch every fifth game and can help to mentor Avila, that's all the Tigers are looking for. This pick up was a good one by the Tigers.

The two remaining glaring holes for Detroit are at third and second base. While Inge is under contract for another season, it won't take long for the Tigers to grow tired of his inability to hit anything resembling a baseball. And after his tirade against the fans last season, his popularity in Detroit is wavering and won't withstand another season from hell like 2011. 

The 2012 free agent class for third basemen isn't exactly chock-full of star athletes; while Wilson Betemit served the Tigers well down the stretch he is not an everyday player and the Tigers brass seems to see things that way as well. Betemit has not been offered a contract for next season, which is the best thing for the team.

Notable free agents that would fit well with the Tigers would be either Jorge Cantu or Kevin Kouzmanoff. Through eight seasons Cantu has a career batting average of .271 and an on-base percentage of .316. Cantu is a good fit with Detroit because he is a utility player who specializes at third base, but has the ability to play either second or first as well. He has struggled to remain healthy and his numbers have slipped recently, but because of that his asking price could be driven down quite a bit from his hay-day in Miami.

Kevin Kouzmanoff is available for arbitration for the next two seasons so if the Rockies see what others see in him then the Tigers won't be able to snag him until he's a free agent until 2014. Kouzmanoff has a career batting average of .255 and a .300 on-base percentage. And he boasted a .713 OPS while playing over 100 games in the expanses of Coors Field.

The Tigers should pursue either of these third basemen diligently as either would bring a solid defensive front to the hot-corner as well as a powerful bat to the line-up.

Second base has become a glaring hole for Detroit, with the position being a platoon for the entire 2011 season, with six players taking the position in the field. Ramon Santiago, Ryan Raburn, Will Rhymes, Scott Sizemore, Danny Worth and Carlos Guillen all played second last year.

With a revolving door at second, Detroit has no true prospects or options at second base. Once again, the free agent class of second base is quite barren. After the Diamondbacks snapped up Aaron Hill to a new contract the only appealing player on the market is Kelly Johnson, but a contract with him would require the Tigers to send a first-round draft pick to Toronto in return.

Recent rumors have the Tigers trading Delmon Young to Atlanta in return for Martin Prado. This deal would incredibly bolster Detroit and add a powerful, consistent lead-off hitter to the line-up. Prado is a career .293 hitter in his six seasons in the majors with a .341 OBP. He has had experience and success being a lead-off hitter for the Braves and would be able to relieve some pressure from Austin Jackson in that role.

Should the Tigers complete this trade they would need to fill the vacancy left in left field by Young, and the solution is sitting in the free agent pool waiting to be snatched up. Coco Crisp, traditionally a center fielder, is available and would thrive in the vast left field of Comerica Park.

Detroit has long needed to build a team to fit Comerica Park and the addition of Crisp would do just that. Having two center fielders would save the Tigers multiple runs that they would have lost if Young would have continued to play. Crisp has a .271 career batting average and a .330 OBP, not to mention he can bring speed to the basepaths in Detroit. In 2011 he swiped 49 bases for the Athletics and with that speed and clear skill he can teach Jackson how to improve on the paths. 

The off-season is still young and there are still plenty of moves to be made, but the Tigers must address the weaknesses that showed through at the end of the 2011 season. If they do that successfully, they will be back in the playoffs and will be representing the American League in the World Series in 2012.

Tigers Roster Moves Put Team In Risky Position

Following Tuesday night's game against the Oakland Athletics the Detroit Tigers made several roster moves, sending down Andy Wilk and Casper Wells to Toledo and recalling Charlie Furbush and Duane Below.

Below will be making his major league debut on Wednesday, in the place of Justin Verlander. He has a 9-4 record with a 3.13 ERA this season in Toledo. With the Tigers looking to find a fifth starter, if Below impresses enough people he could be that man.

Optioning Wilk to the MudHens for Below isn't the problem; Wilk needed to be able to pitch, he hadn't pitched in nine games with the Tigers and Detroit needed to explore more young pitching talent. The problem lies with the demotion of Casper Wells to AAA.

Charlie Furbush is a good pitcher, no one is knocking him, in fact the Tigers are a better team with him on the ball club. But with Wells being sent down, Detroit is now put in a position late in games that could cost them games.

Instead of sending down Ryan Raburn, who according to reports still has an option left on his contract, the Tigers cut short a rising outfielder. Detroit has plenty of infield help; with Carlos Guillen being handed the starting second base role and Ramon Santiago being more than able to handle the utility role.

Late in games several defensive changes frequently take place; Don Kelly comes into the game to play third base, Andy Dirks replaces Magglio Ordonez in right field and Wells replaces Brennan Boesch in left field. These replacements boost the Tigers defensive abilities and ultimately help the Tigers save runs and games.

Now that Wells has been sent to Toledo, Detroit finds itself in a position late in games that isn't the best. Finding themselves down an outfielder the Tigers will now have to place Kelly in left field late in games to replace Boesch, keeping Brandon Inge at third base. While Kelly isn't a terrible outfielder, he has proved this season that he is a good infielder and should be utilized as such.

With the trade for Wilson Betemit from the Kansas City Royals, the Tigers may have found a solution to this problem. Detroit traded two Class-A prospects for Betemit, neither of which were ranked in Baseball America's Top 30 Prospects for the Tigers at the beginning of the season.

Adding Betemit should buoy Detroit defensively, allowing them to jettison Bradon Inge from the team. In an interview with Bob Wojnowski, Dombrowski was asked, "Will Inge be on the roster?" 

Dombrowski replied, "I am not talking about the roster."

The Betemit trade is a set in the right direction, but unless Below stuns the A's tonight the Tigers next roster move should be to recall Wells from Toledo and keep him on the roster for good. He deserves it.