Numbers wise, the Detroit Tigers have had a good start to the Major League season. They sit in first place in the AL Central with a record of 20-10 so far. While many teams would be pleased with such a start, I feel that the Tigers can do even more going forward. I strongly believe that this team can be even better, and that by the end of the 2014 season they will have the best record in baseball.
Anyone who watches baseball knows about the Tigers bullpen woes by now. Relievers Ian Krol, Phil Coke, and closer Joe Nathan have been the main topics of those conversations with their poor pitching performances early in the season. However, Krol and Nathan could be turning things around as they have both had great outings in their last few appearances. The bullpen has been further strengthened with the signing of Joel Hanrahan on a one-year deal. Even though he is coming off surgery Hanrahan should be an upgrade on Coke. On the whole, if the Tigers are able to get consistent innings out of their bullpen, the team’s overall record will improve, that’s pretty much the bottom line here.
Meanwhile, the Tigers are currently winning without a big contribution from the two-time defending AL MVP, and 2012 Triple Crown winner, Miguel Cabrera. While Cabrera is considered one of the best hitters in baseball, this year he is batting only .270/.319/.414 with just two home runs and 19 RBI, while putting up a 0.6 WAR. Those look like great numbers for the average player, but this is Miguel Cabrera we are talking about. It is simply not good enough with his contract, and his talent. That said, one shouldn’t expect Cabrera’s slow start to continue. At some point Cabrera will get hot and the average will rise, he will hit bunch of home runs, and he will get his RBIs. He’s proven that we shouldn’t read too much into a rough first 5 or 6 weeks.
Meanwhile if the rest of the Tigers offence keeps humming, such as Victor Martinez and his .381 On Base Percentage then Cabrera will become even more dangerous to all pitchers in the Majors as they will not be able to pitch around him. This could set up the Detroit Tigers for a deep playoff run.
The third reason the Tigers will have the best record at the end of the year will be the development of third baseman, Nick Castellanos. The 22-year-old rookie is currently batting .233/.266/.419 with four home runs and 18 RBI. The more pitches he sees, the more experience he gets, and Castellanos can only get better.
He is a young power hitter which is exactly what the Tigers need! After adding the legs of Andrew Romine and Rajai Davis this offseaon, and the veteran all-around play of Ian Kinsler, all they needed was a young power hitter. Nick Castellanos fits that role, and as he continues to learn at the major league level the Tigers team only gets better.
The Detroit Tigers are also getting a surprisingly strong start from Rick Porcello. He has been great this season putting up a 4-1 record, with a 3.66 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 6.2 K/9, and 5.5 K/bb. He has been good against hitters from both sides of the plate with lefties hitting just .246 and righties hitting .241 against him. Add this great start to a rotation that already includes two Cy Young winners, and you have what is arguably the best rotation in the Major Leagues.
For the Tigers to obtain the best record in baseball other teams have to come back down to earth, teams including the Braves, Brewers and Giants. The Braves have started to come back down to earth with a recent seven-game losing skid. The pitching has failed and so has the bullpen. The Brewers currently hold a record of 22-13; and while they have a great bullpen, and a very strong lineup; I do not think their starting pitching staff is deep enough to put them in contention for the best record in the majors. They will run into speed bumps when they face superb hitting teams. The San Francisco Giants who are 21-13 this season have just placed star pitcher Matt Cain on the disabled list (sports injury alert profile). Without Cain they could struggle, and keeping up this pace in tough NL West will be difficult over 162 games.
New Tigers manager Brad Ausmus may have been seen as a weakness by some, but he has continued to surprise us with multiple bright ideas including: infield shifts,pinch hitters, pinch runners, defensive alignments, roster changes, and the most important challenges. He has successfully challenged multiple calls made by umpires. He loves to take a risk, that’s something the Tigers struggled with last year.
The Tigers have all the pieces in place to finish with baseball’s best record this season, and if everything falls into place come October, they could even be World Series Champions.
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