JV Gets His Ninth Opening Day Nod

He deserves it. Every year, Opening Day should feature Justin Verlander on the mound. The year David Price got it... I was not very happy. One newspaper article said that only Felix Hernandez had more OD starts with nine currently. I'm assuming that stat is only among current players. JV's 9 OD starts are second only to Jack Morris in franchise history. Morris had 11 starts.

27 DAYS TILL OPENING DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pudge Rodriguez is in the HALL OF FAME!!!!!

I knew Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez was a great player. I did not know until this year just HOW great he was. It seems fitting then that he enters the Hall of Fame in his first eligible year. It's the cap on a career filled with history making.

Look at some of these stats:

.296 average, .798 OPS, 311 HRs, and 127 SBs in 21 seasons. That's pretty amazing for a catcher.
He caught more games than any player in MLB history; an astonishing 2,427 games.
He had more hits & extra-base hits than any catcher - 2,749 & 906, respectively.
Won the Gold Glove 13 times.
Led the league in caught-stealing percentage NINE times! No other catcher has done it more than six.
His WAR is 68.9. Only Johnny Bench (75) & Gary Carter (69.9) have a higher WAR. They're both in Cooperstown too.

Pretty impressive. So it's not really surprising that he is the only catcher besides Bench to have been elected on his first ballot appearance. He's also the HOF's youngest enshrined player. But what else would you expect from a guy who had a career like Pudge Rodriguez?

I am very excited that he was chosen. I think he deserved it so I'm glad the voters were able to see it too. 

(Photo: Steve Perez, Detroit News)

I Am So Sick Of Hearing This

"The Detroit Tigers are an aging team."

That is the national narrative. Frequently, it's the local narrative as well. And I am SO. COMPLETELY. SICK OF IT!!!! Let's take a look at the Tigers roster shall we? (Note: this is not the entire roster. I only included the players who were a significant part of the team and are returning next season.) The code is as follows: Starting Pitcher, Infielders, likely starting the year at Toledo, Relief Pitchers, Outfielders, Designated Hitter.
 
Daniel Norris -23
Michael Fulmer - 23
Nick Castellanos - 24
JaCoby Jones - 24
Dixon Machado - 24
Matt Boyd - 25
Kyle Ryan - 25
Buck Farmer - 25
Steven Moya- 25
Jose Iglesias - 26
James McCann - 26
Bruce Rondon - 26
Tyler Collins/Anthony Gose - 26
Shane Greene - 28
Alex Avila - 29
Blaine Hardy - 29
Justin Wilson - 29
J.D. Martinez - 29
Justin Upton - 29
Jordan Zimmermann - 30
Alex Wilson - 30
Andrew Romine - 31
Anibal Sanchez - 32
Mike Pelfrey -32Justin Verlander - 33
Mark Lowe - 33
Miguel Cabrera - 33
Ian Kinsler - 34Francisco Rodriguez - 34
Victor Martinez - 38

Our average age is 29.2 for the players on the above list. ESPN's roster lists our average age at 28.5, but also includes a 22 year-old who is no where near the Majors. Broken down another way, you get:

• Bullpen 28.8
• Outfield 27.5
• Infield 29
• Starting Pitching 28.3

You know what I see here? An experienced team with a good mixture of youth and experience. You have a 26 year-old basically rookie catcher and a 29 year-old experienced catcher. The starting rotation next year is likely to be two 23 year-olds, a 25 year-old, a 30 year-old, and a 33 year-old. I'm not seeing aging, are you? These averages are basically the age of a player in his prime!

Apparently, according to the national voices, you want your team to be full of really young guys. But you know what generally goes hand in hand with youth? Inexperience. Our closer is 34. You are starting to get on the older end at that age. But I'd rather have a 34 year-old who knows the game, has the experience, and knows what he's doing, than have a youngster who can throw harder and has no presence on the mound; no clue how to do his job. 

It's all about balance. Everything in life is about a balance. I don't know if this a human affliction or an American one, but we tend to swing to one extreme or another. It's not all or nothing. You can have a mix and I don't know why I'm the only one who thinks a mix is good. 

It is a good thing to have a young catcher for your future, but he needs someone to learn from. It's great to have young pitching but they need guidance. You have to have those older, more experienced players to mentor your young players. And they don't have to be that much older, they just need to have the experience. 

I think the Tigers are in great shape, age wise. We have a good balance of the really young, the guys in their prime, and the veterans. Of the thirty-one players on that list, only eleven are 30 years-old or older. That's 20 guys who are under thirty.

I don't want to beat a dead horse here, but do you see what I'm saying? We are NOT an aging team. We are a team with older, experienced veterans and young, inexperienced rookies. I feel like we have a great team that is in a good position. I'm not saying don't make moves IF THAT IS WHAT MAKES SENSE FOR THE TEAM. Don't trade guys away just for the sake of "getting younger". Maybe this team can't win. But don't say they don't have a chance just because we have guys people say are "too old". Time is the only teacher. The best players are the ones who have had experience. Talent can only take you so far. Raw talent does not win championships, nor does experience alone. It's a balance.

I'm going to stop there, otherwise I risk sounding like a broken record. If you're still here, thank you for reading this far! I can say this a million different ways. I hope you understand where I'm coming from and can take another look at this team Detroit calls its own. We love our Tigers and I'm tired of people counting us out. Never underestimate the Tigers, or any Michigan team for that matter. We just may surprise you.