By George B. Eichorn
The Detroit Tigers are back in town! The season opener is Thursday, April 1 at 1:05 p.m. versus the Cleveland Indians at Comerica Park. An estimated 8,200 fans are expected (due to state restrictions) yet thousands more will watch on Bally Sports Detroit (BSD) and WJBK-TV Channel 2 and WXYT-FM 97.1.
Downtown will be hopping as Detroit’s unofficial holiday is always Opening Day. Eateries and bars are sure to be packed on April Fool’s Day as Detroiters celebrate the return of our national pastime.
General manager Al Avila went out and signed one of the most dynamic managers in A.J. Hinch, a former big-league catcher who led the Houston Astros to the 2019 world championship. The only problem was AJ’s Astros were caught in a sign-stealing scandal and Hinch was ordered to sit out the entire 2020 season as punishment. This didn’t stop Avila from going after AJ on the first day he was available following the conclusion of the ’20 World Series.
The club is looking beyond the scandal in hopes of resurrecting a once-proud franchise from the dredges of the American League. Tigers DH/1B Miguel Cabrera told ESPN recently he isn’t consumed by the Astros’ scandal and is happy the Tigers were able to look past it when they decided to hire AJ Hinch as their manager.
Hinch has brought back Ramon Santiago as his first base coach yet the rest of his staff is new: University of Michigan pitching coach Chris Fetter is Tigers’ pitching coach, George Lombard bench coach, Chip Hale third base coach, Scott Coolbaugh hitting coach, major league coach Jose Cruz Jr., Josh Paul quality control coach and Juan Nieves, assistant pitching coach.
Aging star Cabrera is 13 home runs shy of 500 for his career and 134 hits short of 3,000. He hopes to reach both milestones this new season. “We can do both,” he said in Lakeland, Florida, where the club trained in February and March.
The starting rotation may include Matthew Boyd, Spencer Turnbull (sidelined for COVID protocol), Tarik Skubal, Jose Urena, Julio Teheran, Casey Mize or Michael Fulmer although Mize and Fulmer struggled much of camp. Relief pitching includes this group: closer Bryan Garcia, Joe Jimenez, Buck Farmer, Tyler Alexander, Gregory Soto, Jose Cisnero, Daniel Norris or Derek Holland.
The infield features Cabrera part-time at first base with Renato Nunez or Jeimer Candelario (who also plays 3B), second baseman Jonathan Schoop, shortstop Willi Castro and 3B Candelario or Isaac Paredes if he makes the team. Niko Goodrum and Harold Castro were fighting for roles. Newcomer Wilson Ramos is starting catcher with Grayson Greiner probably in the backup role.
The outfield is crowded with Robbie Grossman, JaCoby Jones, Victor Reyes, Nomar Mazara and Akil Baddoo. It was one hot spring for Rule 5 pickup Baddoo as he led the team in home runs, RBI and hits yet it’s unlikely the Tigers will carry five outfielders so he or Reyes will go.
Hinch certainly has his work cut out here. The club is trying to ease in young talent such as Skubal, Mize, Soto, Jones, Paredes and Jake Rogers while at the same time fielding a quality lineup that includes veterans like Cabera, Boyd, Ramos, Schoop, Grossman and Mazara. Top Detroit draft picks infielder Spencer Torkelson and outfielder Riley Green were sent to the alternate training site as they struggled for consistency in camp.
The AL Central is packed with talent as Cleveland, Minnesota, Chicago White Sox and Kansas City are ahead of the Tigers. On the broadcast side, Matt Shepard, Kirk Gibson, Jack Morris and Dan Petry work 161 of 162 Tigers games on Bally Sports Detroit (formerly Fox Sports Detroit) while Dan Dickerson and Jim Price call the games on flagship WXYT-FM 97.1. Price missed all of spring training due to health issues. As of today, only the Tigers’ June 1 game at the Los Angeles Angels will be televised nationally, on Fox Sports 1.
My prediction: Fourth place and missing the playoffs.
Reach George Eichorn at @DSBA2 on Twitter or email [email protected].
