Panic in Tiger Town

We are now a quarter of the way through this season and the Tigers are 20-21, three games out of the division lead in the AL Central.  I didn't expect a below .500 record 40 games into this season that is filled with World Series promise.  The offense, defense and pitching have all come under fire in the first quarter and all three have contributed to this sub-par record.  Some are ready to write the Tigers off. I won't go that far because I still believe they win the division but take a look at these stats and you tell me if it's surprising that the Tigers have struggled.

1. The Tigers rank 11^th in the MLB in team batting average hitting .257
2. They are 23^rd in the MLB in Team ERA with a 4.17
3. They are 21^st in the MLB in Fielding with a .981

Now by no means should this be surprising and here’s why. 

1.  This is a softball team; plain and simple.  Against pitchers that came from Liberty Park, the Tigers will put up monster power numbers.  If they face a pitcher with talent, they’ll suck.  Dirks has been a nice surprise and Cabrera and Prince are back above .300 and getting hot.  If Avila and Peralta can be 80% of what they were last year and we get the Austin Jackson of his rookie year, this team will be just fine.  I’ve got no worries for this offense as it’ll come around sooner or later.  Unfortunately I can’t say the same for their defense. Let me repeat myself, this is a SOFTBALL TEAM.  At the corners, Miggy and Prince are not known for their defensive skills.  Peralta is a traffic barrel and Rugburn shouldn’t be on the team.  The worst thing this team can do is hit.  No one expects them to be a gold glove caliber team but we should expect much more out of them offensively.  Just score runs.  I don’t care if they give up 10, as long as they score 11. 

2.      As Max Scherzer goes, so do the Tigers.  He is the X-factor this season no question.  If he pitches like he did on Sunday (7 IP, 4 H, 15 K, 1 BB) this team will run away with the division.  If not, then it’ll be a long 5 months of consistently inconsistent baseball.  Their bullpen also needs to right itself.  I don’t want to see Luke Putkonen or Colin Balester anymore.  I don’t want to see Papa Potato doing his dance moves after every out and I don’t want to see games lost because our relievers can’t hold a lead.  Verlander was two outs away from a third no-hitter and he’s looking more and more like the Cy Young winner from last year.  Fister and Porcello need to stay the course and if the Tigers can get 8-9 wins out of Smyly, they should be happy.  

40 games in and there plenty of season remaining.  The Tigers have a big series with Cleveland starting tonight.  Valverde and Jackson should be back and I expect them to take two of three from the Tribe.  This team in the long run will be fine; it’s just frustrating how they've played through the first quarter of the season.  

Let me know how you think the Tigers have done by leaving me a comment, checking me out on Facebook or tweeting @sportsinthe313

All Smiles for Drew Smyly

Let's meet Drew Smyly                                                                                          

6-3, 190 lbs. Throws: Left

Drafted in 2010 in the 2^nd round out of University of Arkansas

2011 Tigers Minor League Pitcher of the Year

In 2012, third best prospect in the Tigers organization behind Jacob Turner (P) and Nick Castellanos  (IF)

Pitched for the Lakeland Tigers (A) and Erie Seawolves (AA) last year

Throws four pitches (four seam fastball, slider, cut fastball and changeup)

The Tigers have a very right-hand dominated rotation.  With World Series hopes on the line this year, I didn’t like that the Tigers had an all right handed rotation and was lacking a lefty presence.  It also didn’t help that Doug Fister had been on the DL since April 7^th because that posed the Tigers with an early challenge.  But things are starting to turn around for the Tigers, and I attribute that to Drew Smyly and his ability to string together some solid starts to close the back end of that rotation.

In Smyly’s last three starts, he’s pitched 18 innings, giving up a total of 14 hits and has only given up a mere four earned runs.  Over those 18 innings, he’s amassed 21 strike outs and has walked four.  Now he may only be 1-0 on the season but he’s got a solid 1.61 ERA which is tied with Jared Weaver for best in the AL and a WHIP of 1.18 which is top 20 in the AL.

I want Smyly to mature and develop with  the Tigers. He's young and can learn the game from his teammates which will help his development throughout the season..  I’m sure there are going to be growing pains along the way and that’s expected.   Since Fister’s return from the DL, all of the sudden, the Tigers rotation looks a lot more complete heading into the summer.  Now we can wait for their offense to come around and this division will be ours.  Smyly’s next start is tonight against the Mariners.  I don’t expect to see this guy slow down at all because he's got the resources not many other young arms have.  Its unknown how he will look in September but for what we've seen of him so far, I'd say he's put smiles all over the faces of Tiger fans.  If you don't believe me, check out these game highlights against the Yankees.

As always, follow me on twitter @sportinthe313, “Like” me on Facebook and come back next time for a “State of the Pistons” recap as they head towards another draft.