The Tigers' All-Time All-Stars
By: Will Burchfield
@burchie_kid
The 2016 MLB All-Star Game will be held on Tuesday night in San Diego, bringing together baseball's brightest stars on the same diamond. Miguel Cabrera will be the lone Tigers representative, which is just fine, mind you, but has left Tigers' fans feeling spurned. To ease the pain, let's put together an All-Star team made up of the best Tigers of all time.
First, a couple parameters:
- We're picking one player at each position, including a designated hitter, a starting pitcher and a reliever.
- We're assembling the team based on the best single-season performance of a player's career.
- Please keep that in mind before you start shouting about that one player who is so obviously better and got completely screwed.
Catcher: Ivan Rodriguez, 2004
Having joined the Tigers after their worst season ever, Rodriguez helped turn the franchise around. The recovery began in 2004, fueled primarily by Pudge, who batted .334 with 19 homeruns and 86 RBI. On top of his stout offensive production, the fiery catcher helped steady the pitching staff and provided terrific defense behind the plate, wininng the 11th Gold Glove of his career.
First Base: Miguel Cabrera, 2012
Between Hank Greenberg (1937) and Norm Cash (1961), this one was hard to whittle down. Ultimately, Cabrera's Triple Crown trumped the competition. By hitting .330 and racking up 44 bombs and 139 RBI in 2012, Miggy won the A.L. MVP award and became the first player to claim the Triple Crown since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. (And Cabrera's numbers were better.) He also led the league in slugging percentage (.606) and OPS (.999). He was on a different offensive planet.
Second Base: Charlie Gehringer, 1936
Although Gehringer won the MVP award in 1937, his finest season came in the year prior. In 1936, the Fowlerville, MI native raked to the tune of a .354 average, buoyed by a league-leading 60 doubles. He also collected 116 RBI, a number that grows all the more impressive when considering Gehringer only knocked 15 HR. "The Mechanical Man" lived up to his name more than ever in 1936, providing consistent, All-Star level production all season long.
Shortstop: Alan Trammell, 1987
The all-time Tigers' shortstop had his all-time season in 1987, when he finished a close second to George Bell in the A.L. MVP race. He hit .343 – a 66-point hike from the year before – smacked 28 homers and drove in 105 runs. All three numbers were career highs. It was also the only time Trammell collected more than 200 hits in a season and finished with an OPB higher than .400.
Third Base: George Kell, 1950
Always a contact hitter, Kell wreaked havoc on opposing pitchers in the 1950 season. In 157 games, he stroked 218 hits and 56 doubles, leading the league in all three categories. His high-contact approach yielded a .340 average, without detracting from his ability to drive in gobs of runs: the plucky third baseman tallied 101 RBI despite hitting just eight homeruns.
Left Field: Hank Greenberg, 1940
Though he flip-flopped between first base and left field throughout his career, Hammerin' Hank was roaming the outfield when he won the 1940 A.L. MVP award, the second one of his career. Greenberg hit .340 that season, and led the league with 41 homers, 50 doubles and 150 RBI. He carried that momentum into the World Series, when he posted a .357 average over a seven-game loss to Cincinnati.
Center Field: Ty Cobb, 1911
No easier choice than this. In his rookie season, the 24-year-old Cobb was named MVP, hitting an astonishing .420 and driving in 127 runs. He racked up 248 hits, scored 147 runs and stole a staggering 83 bases. "The Georgia Peach" had plenty of flaws off the field, but proved in his debut season he was just about perfect on it.
Right Field: Al Kaline, 1955
Though he never won an MVP award, Mr. Tiger came agonizingly close in 1955. At the tender age of 20, he led the league with an even 200 hits and a .340 average. In the power department, he tallied 27 bombs and 102 RBI, gaining more bases (321) than anyone in the MLB. And Kaline, always a two-way player, showed flashes of the defense that would earn him ten Gold Glove awards over a 22-year career.
Designated Hitter: Victor Martinez, 2014
One of the purest switch-hitters in the history of the game, Martinez put together his finest season to date in 2014. He clubbed 32 homeruns and drove in 103 RBI, all while hitting a robust .335. His .409 OBP led the league as did his .974 OPS. Along with Cabrera, Martinez helped form one of the most feared 3-4 hitting duos across the MLB.
Starting Pitcher: Denny McClain, 1968
His many off-the-field transgressions notwithstanding, the best season by a starting pitcher in Tigers' history was McClain's in 1968. With a record of 31-6 and a 1.96 ERA, McClain was named both Cy Young and MVP, one of only 11 pitchers ever to earn that dual honor. He threw an absurd 336 innings, working an even crazier 28 complete games. And he posted a WHIP of .905, the only time he finished with a sub-1.00 mark in his career.
Relief Pitcher: Willie Hernandez, 1984
One of only nine relief pitchers to win the Cy Young award, Hernandez outdid them all in 1984 by also claiming MVP honors. Hernandez appeared in 80 games for the Tigers that season, finishing 68 of them to collect 32 saves – he didn't blow a save, in fact, until the final game of the season. The southpaw surrendered just 96 hits in 140.1 innings, posting a WHIP of .941. Tack on his 9-3 record and 1.92 ERA, and Hernandez' 1984 season is one of the best ever for a Major League reliever.
Oh, and he recorded the last out of the Tigers' most recent World Championship.
