Tigers Getting the Not-So-Royal Treatment

As the Orioles wade into the AL Central waters this week, I think it’s time to take a look at what is happening in that division – specifically, at the top. The Royals and Tigers have provided baseball’s biggest drama of late, but for very different reasons. The Royals have been on a tear recently, including a 12-2 stretch since the trade deadline. The Tigers are sliding, just 7-8 since the deadline and 8-13 in their last 21. Why is the deadline so crucial? That’s when the Tigers, a first-place team at the time, acquired David Price, making them the proverbial lock in the AL Central. Now, just 16 days later, the Tigers sit 1.5 games back in the division and if the season ended today, they wouldn’t even make the playoffs. So what went wrong?

The continued struggles of Justin Verlander and the loss of Anibal Sanchez and Joakim Soria to the disabled list certainly have not helped. But the biggest reason the Tigers are struggling is – brace yourselves – the acquisition of Price.

Price himself is not the problem, as he definitely improves the team, but it’s how they acquired him that really did the damage. The Tigers gave up pitcher Drew Smyly, centerfielder Austin Jackson and minor league shortstop Willy Adames.  So what’s so bad about that? I’m glad you asked.

Any rotation that replaces Drew Smyly with David Price is going to be better, there’s no question about that. The problem is, the rotation was the Tigers’ biggest strength. Smyly and Verlander were having mediocre years, but collectively this season, Max Scherzer, Sanchez and Rick Porcello are one of the better 1-2-3 punches in baseball. Their offense and defense were solid as well. The black hole for the Tigers was their bullpen, which continues to struggle. Their 4.38 ERA bests only Houston, Colorado, and the White Sox. The Tigers acquired Soria in a pre-deadline deal, but it wasn’t enough. Someone like Andrew Miller – who ended up in Baltimore – should have been their deadline priority, but instead they opted for Price.

Did Dave Dombrowski take the
wrong approach at the deadline?

Let’s delve into the flaw in Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski’s deadline philosophy. Whenever draft time rolls around in any sport, you always hear the debate over taking the best player on the board vs. addressing the biggest need. Both strategies have merit, as drafting a superstar player at a position of strength can open up trade possibilities or provide much-needed depth. When it comes to free agency, however, pursuing the best overall player without regard to addressing your biggest needs is always a recipe for disaster. For the Tigers, addressing their rotation did nothing to solve the problem of their weak bullpen, unless they planned for their starters to complete every game for the rest of the season.

Case in point, the Tigers disastrous visit to Toronto last weekend. Max Scherzer pitched 8 dominant innings against the Jays before Joe Nathan blew the save in the 9^th. The Tigers lost in extras. The next day, Price pitched well early on before giving up a few runs late. Nevertheless, the Tigers took a lead into the 9^th again, which Joba Chamberlain promptly blew. The Tigers would eventually lose that game in 19 innings. Talk about a letdown.

In Max Scherzer’s next start against Pittsburgh, he pitched 8 outstanding innings of shutout ball and left with a 2-0 lead. Luckily the Tigers scored a couple insurance runs in the bottom of the 8^th, because the bullpen allowed 2 runs in the ninth before nailing it down. A good rotation means nothing if you can never count on your bullpen to protect the leads your starters give you.

Austin Jackson could be more of a factor
in the postseason race than people thought

As if that wasn’t bad enough, now comes the Austin Jackson dilemma. The Tigers committed what I believe to be a cardinal sin in professional sports – they filled one hole by creating another. And part of the problem they’ve encountered is that the hole they created is bigger than the one they filled. Ezequiel Carrera has held his own since being given the centerfield job, but Jackson’s contributions to the team go beyond his numbers. He’s a dependable and rangy outfielder in a cavernous ballpark, and he has the potential to be a disruptive sparkplug in the batting order.

The Seattle Mariners were reeling as the deadline approached. They were 9-14 in their previous 23 games and had completely surrendered their hold on the second wild card spot, falling 3 games behind both Toronto and Kansas City. Since acquiring Jackson to sit atop their lineup and man centerfield at Safeco Field, the Mariners are 10-2, having passed both Toronto and Detroit to once again sit in the final playoff position in the American League.

Comparing Seattle to Detroit clearly illustrates the flaw in going after a top free agent without any regard for the composition of the rest of your roster. No one in their right mind would argue that Austin Jackson is better than David Price. Price is an ace and a difference maker and 30 teams would love to have him. But Detroit acquired him by dealing a key offensive and defensive player, and without any regard for the issues that still existed at the back of their bullpen. The Mariners, on the other hand, filled a huge need at the top of their lineup, got a good defensive player for a big ballpark, and only surrendered a backup infielder to make it happen.

Detroit still has the talent to turn things around and make the playoffs, but an argument can be made they may have been better off keeping what they had and adding someone like Miller, than going after David Price in what could potentially be viewed as overkill in the rotation. But now, the Tigers must overcome two hungry, confident teams with a ton of momentum (one of which they directly aided in the improvement effort) in order to avert total disaster in a season in which many thought they were a lock to represent the American League in the World Series.

These toothless Tigers need to find their bite quickly, or it will be a long and painful offseason in Detroit.

--Christopher Mills, @cjmills82