Pitchers and Cathchers report in 9 days, right Will? We have officially hit the slowest sports time of the year.
On the 18th, I believe. I cant wait. Going to be a different looking team. Wont be long. Im such a geek that even Spring Training games are fun to me.
I'm excited. I really think the pitching will surprise some people this year. I like how they completely re-tooled the bullpen and I believe that JV heading into the offseason will do absolute wonders, not just for him, but the entire rotaion.
Hey Will, what's your projected lineup and rotation for opening day? I'm pretty intrigued to see where Upton (Justin...not Kate) will hit.
Goes a little like this... 1 Kinsler 2b 2 Upton of 3 Cabrera 1b 4 JD Martinez of 5 V Mart dh 6 Castellanos 3b 7 McCann c 8 Iglasies ss 9 Maybin of ____________________________________ 1 Zimmermann 2 Verlander 3 Sanchez 4 Norris 5 Pelfrey ____________________________________ Fransisco Rodriguez... closer
I like it. I would personally swap Iglesias and Maybin, but that's just nit picking as they have similar offensive skill sets. You think Zimmerman is the opening day starter over JV though? Any reason in particular or just because of the contract he signed this offseason?
You know... that is a good question. I think now that you mention it... JV should probably open. Tigers open with 2 on the road, i think. Maybe saving JV for the home opener would be better. Overall i just leaned towards Zimmermann without much thought, lol. The projection people at rotoworld or rotochamp have Zimmermann at #1 also. That was on my mind also. I hope Sanchez is good to go and gets his old groove back... that would be huge. As for the lineup... a lot depends on VMart too. Cant wait to get this thing started.
Detroit Tigers Manager: Brad Ausmus (third season). 2015: 74-87, fifth place. Training Town: Lakeland, Florida. Park: Joker Marchant Stadium. First Workout: Feb. 19/23. He's Here: LF Justin Upton, RHP Jordan Zimmermann, RHP Francisco Rodriguez, RHP Mike Pelfrey, RHP Mark Lowe, LHP Justin Wilson, CF Cameron Maybin, C Jarrod Saltalamacchia, SS Mike Aviles. He's Outta Here: OF Rajai Davis, C Alex Avila, RHP Alfredo Simon, RHP Joe Nathan, RHP Al Alburquerque. Going campin': After their streak of four straight AL Central titles ended with a thud last year, the Tigers were facing a somewhat bleak future unless they were willing to keep spending. They were, as evidenced by the signings of Upton and Zimmermann in the offseason. Detroit hopes those two acquisitions and an overhauled bullpen will be enough to put the Tigers back in the postseason. The team's health will be crucial. Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez and Justin Verlander all missed time last year, and that expensive trio remains a big part of Detroit's core. The back end of the rotation was a problem last season, but LHP Daniel Norris ? obtained when the Tigers traded David Price to Toronto ? looks promising.
LAKELAND, Fla. -- Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus sees three openings on the pitching staff as his team prepares to start official spring training workouts later this week. The Tigers will have five young pitchers competing for the final spot in the rotation and several pitchers fighting to fill out the final two spots in the bullpen. "Nobody's locked into the fifth spot (in the rotation)," Ausmus said Tuesday. "Nobody's locked into the end of the bullpen, probably two spots realistically." Left-hander Daniel Norris appears to be the frontrunner for the final spot in the rotation, but right-handers Shane Greene, Buck Farmer and Michael Fulmer and left-hander Matt Boyd will also be in the mix. Tigers fans will be eager to see what Fulmer has to offer in his first big-league camp. The Tigers obtained Fulmer, their top prospect by all accounts, last season in the trade that sent Yoenis Cespedes to the New York Mets. Fulmer has never pitched above the Double-A level, so it would be a bit of a surprise if he won a spot in the rotation right away. "Looking at it realistically, if he were to make the club, he would probably be a reliever," Ausmus said. "If he were not to make the club, he would be a starter." It appears that Francisco Rodriguez, Mark Lowe, Justin Wilson, Alex Wilson and Blaine Hardy are all but locked into the bullpen. Ausmus said right-hander Drew VerHagen is a frontrunner to earn one of the final two spots. (MLIVE)
Machado is willing to switch to second base if the Tigers need him there, but there is no indication that is being considered, reports the Detroit News. "I just want to be in the big leagues," Machado said. "If I have to start playing second base, I am fine with it ... You have to be ready for whatever." There have long been murmurs the Tigers will move Machado, 24, to second base from shortstop as Ian Kinsler starts to slow down. He hasn't taken any reps at second, so don't start dreaming of his value there just yet. This is just an early warning shot.
Saltalamacchia, a switch hitter, was signed primarily as a left-handed bat off the bench, but he isn't about to abandon his right-handed swing, reports the Detroit News. In the last couple years, Salty has taken just 142 swings right-handed, compared to 520 left-handed. Over his career, he's hit .251 with 77 home runs and a .772 OPS left-handed and just .212 with 21 homers and a .621 OPS right-handed. Neither side of the plate inspires, but Saltalamacchia will be used judiciously, so he won't hurt the lineup either way.
