As the 2018 season nears and the White Sox get ready to take on the rest of the American League, we're taking a team-by-team look at all 14 of their opponents.
What’s there to know about the Detroit Tigers?
Comin’ out around the world, are you ready for a brand-new beat? Well, whether Tigers fans are or aren’t ready, their getting a brand-new beat of baseball in the Motor City.
Dancing might not exactly the thing Tigers fans do in the street this summer, as their team, which was very, very bad last year, is expected to be very, very bad again.
Like many other teams around the game, the Tigers entered a somehow simultaneously abrupt and long-overdue baseball transition, moving from an era of high-priced veterans and contention to one of rebuilding. Justin Verlander ain’t walking through that door. J.D. Martinez ain’t walking through that door. Ian Kinsler ain’t walking through that door. Alex Avila ain’t walking through that door. Justin Upton ain’t walking through that door. All five of those guys were jettisoned in the last calendar year (four of the five traded during last season), leaving Miguel Cabrera with a skeleton crew and a new manager in former Minnesota Twins skipper Ron Gardenhire.
In an all-too-fitting example of how atrocious the Tigers were last season, things even went poorly for Cabrera, the shoo-in future Hall of Famer who is quite simply one of baseball’s all-time greatest hitters. But after seven consecutive All-Star seasons, even he caught whatever bug crippled the Tigers, slashing just .249/.329/.399, massive dropoffs from his usual eye-popping averages. He put up some of the worst statistics since he was a 20-year-old with the 2003 Cubs-slaying Florida Marlins.
But it’s no surprise to learn that Cabrera doesn’t know his teammates’ names. Cabrera, Victor Martinez and newcomer Leonys Martin are the Tigers’ only position players over 30. Jordan Zimmermann, Mike Fiers, Francisco Liriano and reliever Alex Wilson are the lone pitchers north of 30. And of the seven guys I just named, only four were on the team last year.
MLB
The newbies aren’t exactly the kind that vault a team into a pennant race. Martin was a backup outfielder for the Cubs last year. Now he’s leading off in Detroit. Liriano was in the Houston Astros’ bullpen. Now he’s the Tigers’ third starter. Fiers? Well, let’s just say he had a 5.22 ERA. Because he did.
Help should be on the way in the next few years, as the Tigers have four pitchers ranked in baseball’s top 77 prospects, per MLB Pipeline. But for now, expect a gloomy 2018 season in Detroit.
Don’t worry, there are other fun things to do in Detroit. Go sit on Belle Isle and listen to Marvin Gaye. That sounds like an excellent way to spend a summer day. Now, what to do for the other 161?
2017 record: 64-98, fifth place in AL Central
Offseason additions: Leonys Martin, Francisco Liriano, Mike Fiers
Offseason departures: Ian Kinsler, Anibal Sanchez
X-factor: Outside of a return to form from Cabrera, there isn't much to like about the Tigers' chances. But Nicholas Castellanos was quietly one of the league's best hitters down the stretch last season. He led the American League in triples and had 101 RBIs but more importantly slashed .272/.320/.490 on the season, including putting up a .353/.362/.626 line over his final 47 games. Not bad at all.
1. Leonys Martin, CF
2. Jeimer Candelario, 3B
3. Miguel Cabrera, 1B
4. Nicholas Castellanos, RF
5. Victor Martinez, DH
6. James McCann, C
7. Mikie Mahtook, LF
8. Jose Iglesias, SS
9. Dixon Machado, 2B
1. Jordan Zimmermann
2. Michael Fulmer
3. Francisco Liriano
4. Daniel Norris
5. Matthew Boyd
Mike Fiers might not be ready for Opening Day.
Prediction: Fifth place in AL Central
Catch up on the AL:
Oakland Athletics
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners
Los Angeles Angels
Houston Astros
Tampa Bay Rays
Toronto Blue Jays
Baltimore Orioles
Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals
Catch up on the NL:
San Diego Padres
Colorado Rockies
Arizona Diamondbacks
San Francisco Giants
Los Angeles Dodgers
Miami Marlins
Philadelphia Phillies
Atlanta Braves
New York Mets
Washington Nationals
Pittsburgh Pirates