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Justin Verlander has picked up right where he left off in his MVP season last year, notching his first win of the season Monday night and pitching at least 8 innings in each of his three starts. There's no reason to believe JV can't win another Cy Young this season, and he has the potential to toss a no-hitter every time he takes the mound. Detroit fans shouldn't take for granted that they get to watch this guy pitch every 5th day; he truly is a once-in-a-generation talent.
Could this be the year Rick Porcello lives up to the promise he showed in his 2009 season, when he finished 3rd in AL Rookie of the Year voting? So far, that seems to be the case. "Kid Rick" has gone 7+ innings in both of his starts, giving up only 3 earned runs in the process. Though the season is still quite young, Porcello looks to be benefiting from mixing in 4-seam fastballs with his trademark sinker. It's a good thing too, because Doug Fister hit the DL after only throwing 3.2 innings, and Max Scherzer currently sports a 10.38 ERA. Also helping to cushion the blow are rookie left-handers Doug Smyly and Adam Wilk, who have been solid making their first ever MLB starts.
As far as the bullpen goes...well, if you're analyzing relief pitchers only 10 games into the season, you're looking at a very small sample size, so there aren't many insightful conclusions that can be gleaned...though Jose Valverde's shaky start is at least worth keeping an eye on.
The lineup, on the other hand, has pretty much lived up to its billing, as the Tigers are 3rd in the AL with 51 runs scored. Prince Fielder is batting .324, Alex Avila has a .996 OPS, and Miguel Cabrera, despite a current 0-19 slide, is tied for 4th in the AL with 9 RBIs. Yet it's Austin Jackson, coming off a season in which he struck out 181 times, who has been the best offensive performer for the Tigers so far. A-Jax already has 2 homeruns on the season to go with a .405 average, and most importantly in my eyes, has walked 8 times versus 11 strikeouts. Jackson clearly is benefiting from eliminating his leg kick in the offseason, and if he can continue to get on base and work pitch counts, this Tigers offense is going to wreak a lot of havoc on opposing pitching staffs.
Tonight, the Tigers send Smyly to the mound against Kansas City Royals left-hander Bruce Chen. After finishing the series Wednesday night, the team will have a tough 4-game homestand against the Texas Rangers. Here's to the Tigers maintaining (or improving upon!) their 112-win pace!
Yes, I think the Tigers will win the Central, everyone else except KC has taken a step back and Detroit has taken a step forward (and KC is better but still no way near contending). But 112 wins? I just don't see it. Maybe... MAYBE 100, but I think more like between 95-99. If Leyland continues to insist that Verlander gets complete games, and keeping him out there for 130+ pitches, he will be worn out by July.
ReplyDeleteAnd they MUST GET RID OF INGE! It is a joke and insult to fans to keep him on this team. And Raburn has until June to become the player everyone says he will be, or its time to go. He is next Eric Munson.
Tigers blew a golden opportunity this weekend by dropping 3 of 4 to the Rangers. Very disappointing to see their starting pitching (outside of Verlander) pitch as poorly as they did. Smyly got burned today after a very nice outing but there is no excuse for how Rick Porcello and Max Scherzer are pitching. The Tigers acquired Zach Miner earlier in the week. I think Doug Fister's injury is worse than they thought and Miner is going to have to step up for them in the 5th spot.
ReplyDeletedo you play fantasy baseball, or simulation games like Strat-o-matic?
ReplyDeleteJeff - yea, that 112-win pace doesn't seem so optimistic anymore haha, though 10-6 is not a bad place to be right now.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what else to say about Inge that hasn't already been said. He's batting .056 on the season, yet has already made an appearance as a designated hitter and a pinch hitter. I understand he's been a Tiger his whole career, is active in the community, and is generally regarded as a "good guy," but barring some magical turnaround, I think it's time to go. Danny Worth is playing well at Toledo and deserves a shot. Inge is delusional about his hitting abilities that were never all that impressive to begin with.
Raburn at least has a track record of swinging the bat well in the 2nd half the past couple seasons. I'm willing to be more patient with him.
Also, I'm in a keeper fantasy league but haven't paid as much attention to it this year as I'd like to. How about you?
Andy - I agree, it was disappointing to lose 3 out of 4, although Texas looks practically unbeatable right now. Porcello now has two very good starts on the season and one absolutely atrocious one - not sure how to explain that one. I sure hope Fister's injury is nothing too serious...if we have to rely on Zach Miner to be anything more than a mop-up guy, that could get ugly...
I was the commissioner of a football league for 16 years, but that disbanded a few years ago. I have been the commissioner of a few hockey and baseball leagues, but they just don't have the same excitement as football. In football, everything pretty much happens on Sunday, with the other sports its spread out all week and is harder to pay attention to. And i've developed a big pet peeve about fantasy scoring... in the real game, a solo HR puts 1 run up on the board, but in fantasy it gets 4 points for the HR, 1 point for the rbi and another point for the run, so it gets 6 points for something that is only really worth 1 run. that really bothers me. So I have been trying to find something more realistic to the real game. I found simulation games like Strat-o-matic, but I havent found anyone to play it with yet.
ReplyDeleteHmm, the fantasy baseball I've always played is roto-style. Never tried the Strat-o-matic before, but it sounds interesting!
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