Tigers In Playoffs? Don't Bet On It
As the Detroit Tigers begin their season Monday in Kansas City Royals it is time to bring out the crystal baseball and try to figure out how on earth is the 2010 edition any better than last years team which blew a seven game lead in the last month of the season.The one-two punch of Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello is one of the best young combinations in the sport, but after that the staff has more question marks than the Riddler from Batman. Max Scherzer,Jeremy Bonderman,and Dontrelle Willis are not exactly a trio you can count on. If they get 35 wins from these three,consider it a miracle. Despite the injuries to Zach Miner and Bobby Seay, the bullpen appears stable, especially with Jose Valverde as the closer.
The lineup will test the fans patience and blood pressure. There will be plenty of highs. I expect Johnny Damon to be real good and Miguel Cabrera should have a stellar season if we believe he is off the sauce and stays sober. Magglio Ordonez seems to have his act together both physically and mentally. After that who really knows.
Austin Jackson is a rookie. He will be up and down. Carlos Guillen can be effective if he stays healthy, which is like saying Tiger Woods can be faithful if he gets castrated. So with the top five in the order being Jackson,Damon,Cabrera,Ordonez,and Guillen, I think its fair to say they should be in decent shape there.
But then comes the 6-9. Brandon Inge, Gerald Laird, Scott Sizemore, and Adam Everett. Wow, talk about putting fear into the opposition.
Combine an iffy pitching staff with a horrific bottom of the order and what do you have? Oh yes lets not forget the defense they lost with the departures of Curtis Granderson and Placido Polanco. Add it all up and they finish at 79-83, good enough for a third place tie with Cleveland,behind Chicago and the division winning Minnesota Twins.
