Blog tag: Answering Ian’s questions
posted in 2007 season, Analysis |Ian at Bless You Boys put forth 10 questions for discussion. He didn’t give his opinions. I’ll give mine. If you want to chime in with some answers, head on over to Ian’s post and do so!
Do the Tigers still need to upgrade at first base, or is Sean Casey’s production acceptable, especially considering how many runs this team scores?
At this point, I don’t think the Tigers need to spend prospects to upgrade first base. Sure, you’d like it to be a slugging position, but the team is currently running at a 1,000 run pace. Most teams would be happy at 850 or 900. The Tigers are spoiled and Casey is producing well enough not to be a hindrance. If there’s a cheap answer out there, or internal, I guess you could explore it, but I’m not that concerned.
Will the Tigers make a splashy addition to the bullpen by the end of this month, or are they more likely to try and hang on until Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney come back (hopefully healthy)?
Will they? I doubt it. It seems Dave Dombrowski likes to make splashy additions in the offseason and incremental changes during the season. I think they’ll continue to hang on, maybe make another smaller trade. I don’t forsee any of the big names — Erc Gagne, etc — coming to Tigertown. Whether that makes me feel good or not, I’m not really sure. The bullpen is unsettling, but giving away too much for an addition that may not pan out isn’t good either.
Who scares you more: The Indians or Twins?
Indians, because they’re closer. The Twins should probably scare me. They’ve got a better rotation and bullpen than Cleveland, and the M&M boys are obviously good. But something tells me this isn’t Minnesota’s year and the Twins won’t press the issue terribly. Cleveland can’t help but be a good team.
Is there another team the Tigers should be worried about, as a wild card competitor (Mariners, Yankees)?
The Mariners just don’t look that good. They’re a team that’s going to fade. The Yankees, with that lineup, and getting some pitchers healthy, yeah, I can see them staying around. Don’t ever overlook the Yankees, right Boston?
Will Magglio Ordonez win the AL batting title? (Or would you prefer to see him hit for some more power?)
I don’t think Maggs wins the batting title. I think he’s benefiting from some good luck and it’s only been 3 months of baseball. It only takes a great month to have skewed numbers. It’s not that it’s impossible for Maggs to win the batting title, just unlikely. I’d much rather see him set the doubles record. More than anything, I’ll take whatever hitting helps the Tigers play all the way in October.
Speaking of Maggs, will he win the AL MVP? Or if Gary Sheffield continues to hit as he has, might he leapfrog Maggs in voters’ eyes?
I don’t really forsee Sheff bypassing Maggs. I don’t know if Maggs wins the MVP. If he continues his season, he probably should. I think that’s more, er, valuable, than Arod’s good hitting season during the Yanks’ drive towards missing the playoffs.
Can Curtis Granderson break the AL record for triples in a season (26)?
Can he? Yes. Will he? Who knows. 26 is what, 11 away? He seems to have a knack at taking the extra base. I don’t think he should push the issue but judging by tonight’s game against Seattle, in which he doubled but didn’t try for third, neither does he.
Will Nate Robertson still be in the Detroit starting rotation by the end of the season?
Well, Nate’s going to have to give better results, that’s for sure. But what alternatives to the Tigers have in a pennant race? I know the Tigers have good arms in the minors. I know Chad Durbin pitched well and could return to the rotation. But ultimately, if Robertson is stumbling and Andrew Miller is putting uncharted innings on his arm, the Tigers are in trouble. But I think Nate’s going to stick around.
Is there someone in the minors now - pitcher or batter - who will make a notable contribution to the Tigers this season?
I still like Eulogio De La Cruz and think he just needed to iron some things out. He went from being a AA starter to MLB reliever pretty quick. A little more time in AAA Toledo may be just what he needs. Of course, he still isn’t getting the strikeouts he needs.
But I don’t know if either is necessarily going to be a magic bullet. I don’t believe hitting is a problem enough that Chris Shelton or anyone else will get a chance to play much, so I don’t see any notable contributer there, either.
I can’t believe I forgot to pose a question about Craig “Mendoza” Monroe. Will he be the Tigers’ regular left fielder by the end of this season?
Hmm. That turns out to be another “I’m not sure what the Tigers will do, but…” I think Marcus Thames ought to be the regular left fielder. C-Mo, despite his heroics that make some of us feel pretty good about him, just doesn’t seem to be the everyday solution. Besides, you can feel pretty good for Marcus, too.
So, Ian, you posed the questions, I answered the questions. Tag. You’re it. Now you gotta answer your own questions 
