Detroit Tigers Playoff Pitching Staff Could be Better Than You Think
By Matt Snyder
Pitching has been a weak point for the Detroit Tigers this season but it could become a strength if things come together down the stretch.
The Detroit Tigers have struggled with the back end of their starting pitching rotation and their bullpen at times this year but things could begin to solidify for them in the coming weeks as then begin to get players back from injury.
The makings of a great postseason pitching staff probably doesn’t exist on the present roster, but they could put together a group solid enough to make a run in October (should they get there).
Please consider the following.
Possible Postseason Rotation
SP – Justin Verlander
SP – Jordan Zimmermann
SP – Michael Fulmer
SP – Daniel Norris/Matt Boyd
A couple of unknowns here. First, Fulmer will probably bump into innings limits down the stretch. The injuries to Norris and Zimmermann has meant that the Tigers haven’t been able to give him the extra rest like they had planned. Hopefully those two can return to the squad soon and skipping Fulmer won’t be an issue. It’s possible, however, that he doesn’t have a lot left in the tank come playoff time.
Secondly, neither Norris nor Boyd have yet proven that they can be effective as a major league starters. But the Tigers don’t really need either to repeat Fulmer’s success, they just need to find someone better than Pelfrey.
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Possible Postseason Bullpen
CL – Francisco Rodriguez
SU – Justin Wilson
SU – Shane Greene
MR – Bruce Rondon
MR – Matt Boyd/Daniel Norris
MR – Alex Wilson
MR – Anibal Sanchez
This bullpen isn’t devoid of problems but there’s a solid skeleton in place. This would become even more true in playoff series with more off-days than are found in the regular season. Brad Ausmus would be able to lean more heavily on Rodriguez, J. Wilson, and Greene than he can in the regular season.
The Tigers currently rank seventh in all of baseball in WAR for relievers according to FanGraphs, so, while the bullpen has let the team down at times this year, it really been worse than what other clubs (even contenders) have to deal with as well.
Trade Deadline Implications
What I take from this is that the Tigers don’t really need to find help for the bullpen at the deadline. They’d be better served to find a possible No. 3 or 4 starting pitcher to help solidify the rotation down the stretch and give them another reasonable option for the postseason.
The Tigers probably can’t (and probably don’t want to) put together a prospect package to land a top-tier starter (like, say, Chris Archer), but they can give themselves another reasonable choice and hope someone shakes out.
A potential target would be Andrew Cashner of the San Diego Padres who could either step up and claim the fourth spot in the rotation or provide solid relief help in the late or middle innings if Norris or Boyd ultimately step up and claim a rotation spot.
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And it might be that the pitching staff is actually (more or less) fine and what the team really needs to secure at the trade deadline is help for the bench. The current reserves are (basically) James McCann, Andrew Romine, Mike Aviles, and Tyler Collins. Of that group, only Romine (at .632) has an OPS above .600. The rest are .560 or below.