Detroit Tigers Notes And Quotes 10-20-11
--RHP Justin Verlander gets a nice pay bump in 2012. His contract calls for a raise from $12.75 million to $20 million, which he will get for each of the final three seasons on his contract. Verlander's playoff results weren't up to his regular-season standards, but weather tampered with two of his starts. He is the leading Cy Young Award candidate, and many expect him to be a unanimous selection. He led the league in the pitching Triple Crown stats: wins (24), ERA (2.40) and strikeouts (250).
--1B Miguel Cabrera injured his right shoulder in a home plate collision during Game 4 of the American League Championship series. It was termed minor, but Cabrera was going to get it checked out just to make sure. The American League batting champion (.344) hit .357 against the Texas Rangers with three home runs and seven RBI.
--INF Ramon Santiago, eligible for free agency this winter, would like to return to Detroit, but only if he's given the opportunity to play more. Santiago started 10 of Detroit's 11 postseason games at second base and hit .289 with two RBI and two extra-base hits in 38 at-bats. "I really want to come back," he said. "Who wouldn't want to come back to the Tigers? I love Detroit. I love the fans. I have a lot of friends and I want to come back." Santiago, 32, just finished a two-year deal with Detroit. He played 11 fewer games with 62 less at-bats than a year ago, but that was because he didn't play much the first half of the season. "Every player wants to get an opportunity to play every day," Santiago said. "I would be really happy if they gave me an opportunity to play."
--3B Brandon Inge tied the club record for most postseason games with the 23rd of his career. Inge appeared in the postseason in 2006 and again this year. He is tied with 1B/OF Hank Greenberg for most postseason games as a Tiger. Inge went 1-for-4 in the final game and collected his 19th postseason hit, third on the club's all-time list behind Charlie Gehringer (27) and Greenberg (27).
--CF Austin Jackson has 351 strikeouts in his two seasons in the majors, a figure sure to be the subject of the center fielder's offseason work and during spring training. Jackson fanned 19 more times in the playoffs this year, and his 181 whiffs during the regular season are a club record. 3B Brandon Inge struck out 15 times during the 2006 playoffs, but that included the World Series.
--OF Brennan Boesch was informed during the late stages of the American League Championship Series that his goal of playing in a possible Detroit World Series appearance was out of the question. Boesch, 26, underwent surgery Sept. 6 to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb. He suffered the injury Aug. 9, and it was initially diagnosed as a third-degree sprain. "(Dr. Thomas Graham) said time wasn't on my side when it came to playing this year and that I was going to need to be safe and let it heal," Boesch said. He was hitting .289 with a .346 on-base percentage and .475 slugging percentage before the injury. He did not try swinging a bat while Detroit was in the postseason but said he expects to be ready for spring training. "It's just time that needs to take place," he said. "It's no set thing that you do to recover from this injury other than just motion exercises."
--C Alex Avila played with tendinitis in both knees late this season, a condition he will have examined to make sure it's nothing an offseason of rest won't cure. Avila didn't hit well in the post-season (three hits in two series including a solo home run) and much of that was due to the condition of his knees, which limited his swing. "To be honest with you, this is probably some of the wear and tear from me playing him a little bit too much during the season," manager Jim Leyland said. "We really beat him up a little more than I would have liked to. But there's nobody tougher on this team."
BY THE NUMBERS
23 -- Millions of dollars in salary Detroit has coming off the books with the expiring contracts of RF Magglio Ordonez ($10 million) and 2B Carlos Guillen ($13). Neither is expected to be re-signed.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"We'll do some fine-tuning, I'm sure, to try to get a little bit better. You're not satisfied, by any means. But we're in a position where you don't have to go out and make a bunch of huge moves, because your foundation is there." -- GM Dave Dombrowski on the state of his Tigers after Detroit was eliminated from the American League Championship Series.
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