The question that plagues Tigers fans: what to do with Sanchez, Pelfrey, & Lowe.
All three performed badly last year, and for Sanchez, that poor performance goes back a couple of years. Going into spring, all eyes were on them to see how they would perform and what the Tigers would do with them and all the money owed.
Then the monkey wrench got thrown into the gears. Sanchez has actually been doing well in the latter part of the spring. The Tigers worked with him to change his mechanics a bit and it seems to have succeeded in making him a better pitcher. So now what?
Boyd seems like he should be the fifth starter. Are you going to put Sanchez and his paycheck in the bullpen as a long-reliever who (hopefully) won't get much work? What about Pelfrey and Lowe who have shown some resurgence this spring as well?
What I don't understand is why NO ONE is talking about trades. Not the sports writers, not the radio announcers, not the management (at least not publicly). We have been in this situation before with a player that we didn't have room for but was performing well. Bryan Holiday was that player last year. He played really well in the spring, we didn't have a spot for him, so he got traded. You don't get top prospects in a trade like that, but you get something.
It seems to me that, assuming Sanchez continues for the rest of spring to pitch well, some team might be willing to take a chance on him. Again, you're not going to get a top prospect in return, but some team gets a pitcher who just might be good again, and the Tigers don't have to figure out what to do with six starters. Plus, they lose his salary.
If a team is interested, I don't see a better option, yet there must be something I'm missing if all the people who know baseball better aren't talking about this. Spring Training is almost over, so we'll get answers soon.
Spring Training so far has been disappointing, I'll freely admit. I don't like the fact that we're losing so much, but there are still lots of positives.
- Nick Castellanos. I've been a fan of him from the beginning. However, he has steadily improved each year that he's played. This spring, he has shown some marked improvements in hitting, baserunning, and defense. He's a big part of our team.
- Pitching. Our starting pitching has been really good. Verlander, Boyd, Norris, Fulmer, and Zimmermann. Sure, there has been some rough patches, but it is Spring Training after all. The bullpen has had a few bright spots too. You may moan and complain that it's a big part of the reason we've lost so many games, but, there are a lot of guys pitching who aren't going to be on the team.
Most of all, keep in mind that it's Spring Training. We haven't even played all that many games. Is it disconcerting? Yes. Disappoint? Absolutely. But not predictive.
Team USA
We're on to the second round!!!! Team USA has played some good games so far in the World Baseball Classic. We have a lot of amazing players and our pitching - while not the best of America - is nothing to sneeze at. We have the talent to win, but so do some of the other teams. We'll have to wait and see. If USA gets out, then I want Venezuela to win. They have the most Tiger players :)
These are quotes from the book "Tales from the Tigers Dugout". The
third edition is out now, meaning you get more recent tales! I read the
second edition which went through the 2012 season. Really great book
for Tigers fans.
"Alan
Tramell didn't really have a chance his last year. I've said it all
along, if Guillen and Pudge and Ordonez are out of our lineup on a
consistent basis, we wouldn't be worth anything, either. That's the way
it is. But people don't want to hear that." ~ Jim Leyland
If tomorrow you could not play, how hard would you play today?
What's
really scary with Cabrera is that he is getting better with plate
discipline each year, making it harder for pitchers to let him retire
himself, as Verlander suggested. (2012)
Who
else would crouch down and manicure the mound each inning? Who else
would talk to the ball or himself or anyone who would listen? And who
else would throw balls back to the umpire with bizarre requests? "That
ball has a hit in it," Fidrych said. "I want it to get back in the ball
bag and goof around with the other balls in there. Maybe it'll learn
some sense and come out as a pop-up next time."
A basic baseball truth: Players decide games. Managers dissect them. ~ Sparky Anderson
