The Post Leyland Era

BY: KEVIN MCCANN
SPECIAL CONTRIBUTOR

          Ahh springtime. For Tigers fans, it marks the beginning of cold days and even colder nights at Comerica for the next month or so; and of course the longing to hear the sweet southern drawl of Ernie Harwell once again welcoming us to spring time in Detroit, and Major League Baseball. If only, right?  But hey, we still have Rod Allen and the everlasting image of him chasing that small Japanese pitcher all the way to the centerfield wall to keep us smiling.  Broadcasters aside, let’s dive right into what you’ll actually see on the diamond in Detroit this year

Let’s first start by saying "find a corner" Shane Victorino. You pick the ALCS, down one run in the 7^th to come out of nowhere become a power hitter? Respectfully, go away and never come back.  Now, let’s get to who was left wearing an olde English D on their chest after that debacle, and more importantly who’s still wearing one now.

Brad Ausmus. Photo Credit: baseball162.com

Jim Leyland was one of the last of a dying breed.  We can all sit and mope about the departure of one of the best managers in franchise, and maybe even MLB history. Though, judging by my twitter feed and the influx of “OH MY GOD HAVE YOU SEEN BRAD AUSMUS?!?” tweets, most female Tigers fans got over the retirement pretty quickly.  However, the male side of the spectrum will all just have to light up a ceremonial cigarette on opening day in honor of Jimmy, and feel sorry for ourselves.

The questions surrounding the new staff are numerable. Brad Ausmus has never been a major league manager before, that’s a fact. But let’s be honest, could he have picked a better roster for his first gig?  Veteran leadership is abundant (i.e. Torii Hunter, Victor Martinez, Miguel Cabrera) and is mixed with some very promising young talent not only in the field, in guys like Nick Castellanos and Jose Iglesias, but in the rotation and bullpen as well, in Drew Smyly and Bruce Rondon.  Ausmus will have a big job to do. No doubt about that. Expectations are high in the Motor City right now, and it seems that anything less than a World Series is unacceptable. That’s a pretty tall order for any manager, let alone a guy who has never been one before.  But hey, Cabrera right?

Perhaps the biggest question of the year will be the bullpen, and after last October, who could blame anyone for asking?  The plan of using a set-up man as a closer in the postseason failed miserably. Joaqin Benoit gave it up more than a Kardashian at an NBA game (lookin at you Kanye, you’re marrying that). Anyway, the days of Benoit are gone and the arrival of Joe Nathan and Joba Chamberlian (yeah in case you forgot, we have Joba Chamberlain) should be enough -- I reiterate, SHOULD BE enough -- to more than solidify the back end of the bullpen.  They will absolutely still need the young guys like Rondon and Al Alburquerque to step up and contribute, as well as other guys who have been mainstays the past few seasons like Luke Putknonen and dare I say, Phil Coke.

All in all, with a 1, 2, 3 punch of Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and Anibal Sanchez, they don’t need to ask too much of the front end of the bullpen, other than serviceability. The questions around the rotation seemingly have already been answered. Verlander is back to full health, Scherzer is, …well Scherzer, and Sanzhez will look to continue the recent success he’s found in Detroit. Smyly is young and an unproven starter, but he definitely has great stuff, there’s no denying that. It will be up to Jeff Jones and partly Alex Avila to help bring him along.  I won’t touch on Porcello because frankly, if you follow me on twitter, you already know how I feel about him.  The Fister trade definitely hurts the rotation. Anytime you lose a great arm like that, there’s going to be an impact. However, the Tigers still have the best rotation in the AL Central, and arguably the best in the American League. 

If you didn’t tune in at all last year post Jhonny Peralta suspension, then the infield is going to look just a little different to you. Peralta and Omar Infante are gone. But Ian Kinsler and Iglesias are the here and now. We all know about his ability to field his position, but if Iglesias can recapture the way he hit in Boston before coming over to the Tigs, then look out.  Kinsler will look to do a little recapturing also this year.  Perhaps we will see the Kinsler of 2008 when he hit .319 and was MVP of the All-Star Game. Then again, maybe we won’t, who knows? One thing is for sure: the Tigers have the best back-up middle infielder/first base coach in the game in Omar Vizquel.

The corners of the infield, particularly the hot one (that’s baseball language for 3^rd if you’re new to the game) is shrouded with questions. Is Cabrera fully healthy and can he stay that way? How patient will they be with Nick Castellanos if he begins to struggle? Will it ultimately be a move back to the left side for Cabrera and a permanent spot at first for Victor Martinez? My guess is that Ausmus will be very, very and just for good measure one more, very patient with Castellanos.  His back-up option for an everyday third baseman at this point is Don Kelly, and though he may be the beloved favorite of so many Tigers fans, he’s hardly a viable alternative.

Nick Castellanos takes over at third base in Detroit. Photo Credit: prospectinsider.com

The biggest question in the infield is centered around the plate.  Thanks to a rule change in Major League Baseball, which I believe is a total and complete fallacy and should be reversed immediately, we know that Avila will not be taking on any big collisions this season.  That being said, that’s about the only thing we know for certain about Alex Avila this season.  Will we see the Avila of 2011, who hit .295 and drove in 82 runs? Or will we see the Avila of last year again, who totaled .227 for the year with a whopping 47 RBI’s in 102 games? Tigers fans will just have to wait and see, but here’s to hoping it’s the first one. 

The outfield will look more or less the same, except a slight change in left field with the addition of Rajai Davis, though it has not been announced who the everyday left fielder will be.  Davis brings the added ability to steal bases, something the Tigers have lacked the past few years.  Davis hit .260 last year, while Andy Dirks was fractions behind him at .256. Dirks may have an upper hand solely because of a lack of left handed bats in the line-up, however both will look to impress Ausmus while in Lakeland, in hopes of winning the job in left.

We know what to expect from Hunter, he’s been doing it for years. If he’s healthy, he’s good, plain and simple. What will we get from Jackson? He came on late in the season to bring his average to .272 for the year. His struggles from the lead-off spot down the stretch in the post season are well documented.  However, Leyland moving him to the bottom of the batting order seemed to work out well in the ALCS, where Jackson hit .318 in 22 at-bats, with an OPS of .741.  It will be interesting to see what Ausmus does with Jackson in the lineup. Tori Hunter clearly proved to be a more than adequate option in the lead-off spot, should Ausmus choose to take that route. 

Almost every expert, from every major media outlet that covers Major League Baseball, is picking the Tigers to run away with the AL Central.  To the casual fan, that’s just awesome.  But most people who really love the Tigers know that the AL Central minus the Tigers would be unquestionably the worst division in baseball.

The Tigers line-up boats 5 former All-Stars (Avila, Cabrera, Hunter, Kinsler, Martinez).  The starting rotation is home to  two of the last three AL Cy Young Awards and also the past two All-Star Game starters for the American league (Verlander & Scherzer, respectively).  The team’s closer Nathan ranks 10^th on the all-time saves list, and will more than likely get to at least 7^th on that list this year.

In a word, they’re stacked. In a division as weak as the AL central, with the lineup, the rotation, and the bullpen they have, they should have no problems cruising through to a pennant and making Ausmus's job a lot less stressful. Provided that, for the most part, they stay healthy.  Buckle up Tigers fans; 2014 should be one hell of season.