Tigers Season Preview Part 5

In the fifth installment of my season preview series for the Tigers, I will look at the bullpen.  Like I did with the bench players, I'm not going to do a full on statistical prediction for these guys; only a relatively short preview on how I think they will do/help the Tigers in 2012.

Without further ado:

LR: Duane Below LHP

Duane Below is one of those feel good stories you can't help but smile about.  Hailing from Britton, MI (South-Central part of state), Below has never been on any "Top-10" prospect lists.  However, he has been successful at every minor league stop, finally earning his shot with the Tigers last season, and performing pretty well out of the bullpen.  Below was originally slotted to be sent to Toledo out of spring training this season, but an injury to Luis Marte had Below headed to Detroit before he could even unpack his bag.  3 games into the season, Below already has 2 wins (the first 2 of his career) and has proved to be a key contributor and the sole "long man" in Jim Leyland's bullpen.  While it wouldn't surprise me to see Below get a spot start this season at some point; I think his stuff translates better to the bullpen, where he can have some moderate success.

LR/MR: Colin Balester RHP

This is who we got in exchange for Ryan Perry from the Washington Nationals.  Considering Ryan Perry has been a grease fire of a pitcher in Detroit, the fact that we got anything more than a half-empty tin of dip and 4 week old spitter for him in a trade should be considered a steal by Dombrowski.  I don't know much about Balester other than he's the ultimate swingman; meaning that he has the ability to spot start, be a long relief guy, or come into a game to get one out.  Leyland has said that he will be the "jack of all trades" in the Tigers bullpen.  In the Max Scherzer aberration of a start on Sunday, Balester came on and pitched 2 2/3 innings of 1 run relief, which honestly, I'll take.  He also has an absolute beauty of a mustache:

We ain't talkin bout no peach fuzz; we talkin' bout handlebars

MR: Daniel Schlereth LHP

"Son of Stink", "Stink, Jr.", "Lefty", "THROW THE GODDAMNED BALL OVER THE GODDAMNED PLATE".  All of these nicknames come to mind when I think about Daniel Schlereth.  Similar to Perry in that he's a young reliever with oodles and oodles of potential that lacks the ability to consistently throw strikes.  Unlike Perry in that he's lefthanded and has had at least moderate success.  Originally tabbed as the "steal" of the Granderson/Edwin Jackson deal, he was billed as a Billy Wagner type future closer.  He's not that, but he has shown the ability, with command, to be a dominating strikeout machine against lefty hitters.  He is the designated "LOOGY" (Lefty One Out GuY) of the bullpen, meaning that in situations where a left-handed hitter is coming out and Leyland needs 1 out, Schlereth is probably the guy coming in.  He throws a fastball anywhere from 90-94, usually sitting 91-92, and a curveball that, WHEN COMMANDED, can absolutely dominate lefties.  I have my reservations about Schlereth, but as usual, I'm optimistic.

MR: Octavio Dotel RHP

The definition of "journeyman", Dotel begins his 12th season in the big leagues with Detroit, his 13th team.  Dotel was the "big" signing of the offseason prior to Prince, and should not be overlooked in terms of value.  In the ALCS against Texas, the one BIG issue that brought us down (there were several, I know) was our lack of bullpen depth.  We literally could not count on anyone except for Benoit and Valverde, and by game 4 of the ALCS, they were tapped out.  That's why Dombrowski went and signed Dotel: experience, depth, and yet still a very good pitcher.  He and Phil Coke will presumably split the 7th inning duties, as we all know how Leyland loves to play righty/lefty platoon matchups.  Dotel will be very underrated in terms of his value to the Tigers, and I would guess that he has a very good season in Detroit.  However, his true value will show up in the playoffs.

MR: Phil Coke LHP

First, follow @PhilCoke'sBrain on twitter.  You'd be doing yourself a favor, I promise.  Now, to actual baseball.  Phil Coke is one of my favorite Tigers.  From his sprinting into the game from the bullpen, to randomly pointing up every time a ball is remotely hit in the air, he brings a sort of goofiness that I believe every team needs.  He tried starting last year, didn't do so well, got moved back to the bullpen, and didn't do so well for awhile.  He picked it up down the stretch; however, providing the Tiger's with a valuable piece.  I believe he will be counted on mightily this season to be the primary lefty in Leyland's bullpen; being counted on to pitch the 7th inning and get big outs.  He can get up as high as 96 on the gun, and from the left side, that's very impressive.  He also has a good curveball that's effective on lefties, and an at least serviceable changeup.

SU: Joaquin Benoit RHP

Dombrowski really pissed some people off last offseason when he spent 16.5 million dollars over 3 years to sign an 8th inning guy.  But last year in the playoffs against the Yankees, Benoit earned every damned penny IMHO.  Benoit will again be counted on as the primary set up man to Valverde.  I also believe he is a better pitcher than Valverde, but that's just me.  Benoit throws a fastball in the mid 90's, the occasional slider, and his secret weapon is the "Vulcan" changeup, aptly named due to the "Vulcan salute" grip he throws it with.  Benoit can be dominating, but is also susceptible to strings of hits and runs.  Regardless, he's one of my Tigers, and his gutty performance in the ALDS ranks right up there for me in terms of best playoff performances.

CL: Jose Valverde RHP

I call him Papa Grande.  Phil calls him Fatty.  Either way, the engimatic Tiger's close was perfect last season, converting 49/49 regular season save opps and was 2/2 in the playoffs.  He already blew a save this season (GASP!  FIRE LEYLAND!  SHOULD HAVE LEFT JV IN!  AHHHHHH FIRE LEYLAND!), so the streak is caput.  That's fine with me, as they still won the game.  I really couldn't give any less of a shit about who "gets" the win, so long as the Tigers win the game.  As you all know, I believe Wins, Saves, and RBI are the softest, most useless stats in the world, but that's just me.  Regardless, Valverde is a good, not great, closer.  He was helped out a lot last year in terms of saves, and his non-save opp stats aren't very good.  Regardless, I'm glad he's the Tiger's closer.  We could have it worse.  It could be Todd Jones

In the Finale of the Tiger's season preview series, I will give you a preview of who you might see pop up in Detroit this season from within the Tigers farm system (this is NOT a "top prospect" list)

Adam Wilk to start for Fister; Inge to Toledo for rehab assignment

The title says it all.  Adam Wilk will be recalled from Toledo and start on Saturday in place of Doug Fister.  I'll be honest, I never really considered Wilk as a candidate to replace Fister; but seeing as both Andy Oliver and Casey Crosby underwhelmed in their respective starts, it's really not too much of a surprise.

The Tigers obviously prefer Duane Below's abilities coming out of the bullpen, and I have to agree with them.  Below is sort of a tweener type of pitcher.  He's got decent stuff and solid command, but I can't see him being successful more than one time through the batting order.  This is fine, as he fits perfectly into the role of lefty long reliever in the Tiger's pen.

The only problem is--I happen to believe that Wilk fills the same role: Long relief lefty.  Wilk has outstanding command but lacks pure stuff.  Watch Drew Smyly pitch on Tuesday: He's very similar to Wilk, just with better stuff and less command, but at least he's a decent comparison piece.

I would tend to think that Wilk will be given an incredibly short leash in terms of staying in Detroit.  If he shows the ability to get outs and keep the Tiger's in the game, he may get multiple starts as Fister heals.  But if he struggles like he did in spring training, Leyland isn't going to just throw him out there and take an automatic loss.


On a second note-one completely unrelated to the success of the Tiger's this season-Brandon Inge, the exalted one, will be sent to Toledo on a rehab assignment as he prepares to come off the DL. 

I'm not going to say anything negative here, only that it's not like we've been missing him.  We're 3-0.  Idk, it's simply this bloggers opinion that Danny Worth is more valuable to this team

Reminder: Tigers take on Tampa today at 1:05 in Detroit.  Porcello's first start of the season will be matched up with super-phenom prospect Matt Moore.  Being the prospect junkie that I am; I'm incredibly excited to see how Moore's stuff looks against a potent Detroit lineup (except Laird is playing).  It's cold as all hell in Detroit today, so Porcello could be particularly effective if his sinker is live with good movement.

Beer, Broads, and Tigers Baseball

Detroit Tigers Weekend Recap

The Bash Brothers


No One Team Should Have All That Power



Detroit Tigers (3-0)

As you may have heard, the Detoit Tigers opened their season on Thursday, by walking off on the Boston Red Sox, 3-2.  I did a game recap, which can be found here.  Saturday, the Tigers lost Doug Fister in the 4th inning to an apparent side injury that was later classified as a "left costochondral strain".  Fellow contributor Ryan is an exercise science major, and he had this to say: "his rib has an owie."  No matter, as the Tigers pounded out 5 HR's while riding the arm of Duane Below to squeak out a 10-0 win.  Cabby and Prince went yard two times a piece, and Avila added a paltry single home run to complete the quintuplet of long bombs.  Fister was placed on the DL following the game, and Bryan Villarreal was called up from Triple A to replace him.  Common logic dictated that the Villarreal move would mean moving Duane Below to the rotation, but, not so fast my friend(s).  Leyland has not named a replacement starter for Fister, as he sent the scouts to Toledo this evening to watch Andy Oliver pitch; and will head to Toledo on Monday night to watch Casey Crosby throw personally.  More on all that later.

Today, the Tigers played one of the most exhilarating, up and down games in recent memory.  They jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first on the heels of a Jackson leadoff double, Cabrera RBI single, and, several batter later, a Jhonny Peralta 3-run double.  Scherzer had some of the best STUFF I've seen him with.  His fastball was excellent, sitting 94-95 with great arm side life with tilt, his slider had good bite, and his changeup had the same movement as his fastball, with perhaps more armside fade, but at 10 MPH slower.  There was one issue.  When I threw a golf ball at my roommate's head the other day from 3 stories down and across the parking lot, I had better command than Max did today.  After the first inning, he couldn't buy a well-placed pitch, and the Red Sox spent the majority of innings 2 and 3 either walking to first, running to first, or limping to first after being drilled.  Safe to say it wasn't Max's best day.

As for the offense.  Austin Jackson continues to impress with his sizzling start.  I'll caution you all to be aware that we are 3 games in, and, plainly said, shit happens in baseball.  But for right now, by all means, enjoy the ride.  Jackson picked up another 4 hits today, and scored 3 runs along with them.  Boesch collected his first two hits today; finally being rewarded after two days of hitting the ball well with nothing to show for it.  If Jackson and Boesch can get on base all season with at least similar consistency to the way they did today, this team is going to score at least 2.5, maybe a full 3 metricfuckton's of runs. 

Miguel Cabrera is, simply put, the single greatest hitter I have ever seen in my life.  Yes, I'm only 22, but I remember Mark McGwire.  I watched Barry Bonds.  I've watched Pujols and Braun and Votto and all of them.  Guess what?  I'll take Cabby in a runaway.  Today, trailing 3 runs in the bottom of the 9th, Cabrera stepped to the plate with Jackson and Boesch on base (SEE!  GET ON BASE!!)  Boston closer Alfredo Aceves threw Cabrera a 2 seam fastball that tailed right out over the plate.  Cabby did not miss it, sending into the LF seats and tying the game.

A couple innings later, down again, this time 12-10, Cabrera started things off again.  With one out and the bases empty, he lined a single into RF.  Prince Fielder followed that by singling down the LF line against an overshifted Boston IF.  After a wild pitch advanced Cabrera to 3rd, Delmon Young Sac Flied him in.  12-11.  Avila stepped to the plate, and proceeded to send Detroit into a frenzy by unleashing a drive to RF to win the game, sweep the Red Sox, and walk off the Tigers for the 2nd time in 3 games.

The bullpen today was somewhat shaky, but got the job done.  With Scherzer lasting only 2 2/3, Leyland had to lean on everyone (except Papa Grande, who was sick).  The combination of Balester, Schlereth, Dotel, Villareal, Coke, Benoit, and Below managed to keep the Tigers in the game until Avila's walk off winner.

Duane Below faced just one batter, striking out Adrian Gonzalez in the top of the 11th and escaping a Benoit-induced jam.  Below also picked up the win, his second of the season and second of his career, moving him to 2-0 on the season and putting him on pace to win 108 games (no really, that was a tweet today, sent by none other than Ab(r)andon Inge author Phil.

Let's move onto some other tidbits:

-Fister is obviously out for at least 2 weeks, meaning he will miss 2-3 starts depending on how Leyland juggles things.  The Tigers called up Villarreal, presumably to take the long man role in the bullpen, thusly bumping Duane Below to the rotation.

-Leyland said that there had been no decision made regarding the rotation spot now vacant.  Tonight, Andy Oliver pitched for Toledo in front of Tiger's scouts.  He didn't do well, only going 3 2/3 while surrendering 5 R (2 ER) on 3 H and 5 BB.  The 5 BB is incredibly troubling, though he did also accumulate 5 K's.  Safe to say that Oliver is not being considered right now.

-Casey Crosby (a personal favorite of mine) takes the mound Monday night for Toledo.  Crosby, IMO, has the most upside of any pitcher in the Tigers system, with the obvious exception of Jacob Turner.  He has an incredibly live fastball from the left side, showing very good armside movement and varying velocity from 93-97, occasionally touching 98 or so.  Very nasty spike curve, which he has trouble commanding.  He's more adept at burying it below the zone to get swings and misses than he is at throwing it for strikes (a la Verlander), but if he can figure it out he could be devastating.  Also has a changeup that I see more as a "show me" pitch, but could develop to at least major league average.  Crosby has been derailed by injury, but was fully healthy last season and despite an elevated ERA and WHIP, his numbers were promising.  Should he be successful at commanding his pitches and limiting walks Monday night, he may get the call up.

-Adam Wilk was Toledo's opening day starter, and he impressed.  However, I see Wilk as more of a swingman, long relief type guy.  He has incredible command but lacks stuff, which doesn't translate well to the majors unless you're Greg Maddux. 

We will seemingly know more by this time tomorrow, as Crosby will have finished his start in Toledo.  As of right now, I would give Below a start and see what happens.  If he gets shelled, it's one game and you can always dip into the minor league well following that.

As always, Beer, Broads, and Tigers Baseball to you all

Also, Happy Easter from all of us here at Ab(r)andon Inge