Welcome to the off-season!
It’s time now to dig in by starting the discussions about the preparations for the 2022 season.
The personnel changes that will (hopefully) continue to be made…
The personnel changes that won’t be made…
The statements from A. J. Hinch and Al Avila…
The players offered contracts…
And the players who will be non-tendered….
Then, of course, the trades….
And the promises to get involved in the free agent market.
There will be lots going on pre- and post- Hot Stove.
And it will all be covered here.
But before we can jump into the off-season, we need to reflect upon the 2021 year. What went right? What went wrong? How far away are the Tigers now from becoming competitive?
Let’s kick of the first day of no baseball (at least for our team) by looking back at the good stuff.
Like most fans (with the exception of those who feel they are the unpaid assistants of the Tigers’ PR department), we expected this to be another year of struggle. Significant loss totals, non-existent offense and struggling pitchers. Heck, the only thing we really knew we could look forward to was no longer seeing Jordan Zimmermann on the mound.
And then the Tigers hired A. J. Hinch.
Baseball started to become interesting again.
But we had no idea just how much.
Granted, the Tigers still have a long ways to go. Hitting is inconsistent and there aren’t enough bona fide batters in the lineup. Pitching remains spotty and defense is still sub-par.
The top draft picks are starting to arrive but they need seasoning before they can start truly making a difference.
But all in all, this team is inching forward. They just need to inch forward faster.
A. J. Hinch is roundly credited with maximizing the talent on this roster. This team has over-performed despite having essentially the same major cast of characters as last year. And as a result, we’ve seen pitching, offensive and defensive stats overall move from the bottom of the barrel to the middlin’ ranks (or at least close to them).
Considering where the Tigers have been sitting for the past 3+ years, this all looks better. In fact, it would be hard to find issues from this year that have gotten worse. If I had to point to anything, it would be the injuries that have depleted so much of this team and made it challenging for an organization with little to no depth to adequately find solutions, not to mention warm bodies.
But let’s turn to the surprises. The good stuff that happened this year.
What didn’t we see coming?
Here’s my list of the top surprises that I never imagined would happen this year.
A. J. HINCH
While I expected the Tigers to hire him because of his close ties to Scott Bream, I never expected he’d get the results that he did. Not just fewer losses, but an entire change in team culture, a cohesiveness in the players we haven’t seen before and a spreading influence throughout the organization.
THE COACHES
They are the unsung heroes – always in the background and never speaking to the press about what they are implementing. But it shows in the stats and in the players’ comments when they credit them. All it takes is one look at the Tigers’ offensive stats under Lloyd McClendon and then what Scott Coolbaugh has done in less than 1 year. Or the running game implemented by George Lombard. And you know about Chris Fetter.
FRONT OFFICE CHANGES
I expected changes to be made to personnel but not before the season was over. And I didn’t expect that Avila’s top 2 lieutenants would be demoted. I believed that the Montreal/Florida/Pittsburgh/Detroit mafia to be an unbreakable ride-or-die band of men who would stay together until retirement or a new owner took over.
AKIL BADDOO
To think that Baddoo could have this kind of year after missing the last 2 due to surgery and Covid, combined with not having played beyond A-level, is the inspirational story of the year. We kept expecting him to fail, yet he kept picking himself back up after slumps and kept pushing himself to be better. He’s not going to be a 1-year wonder because, as Hinch has stated, he’s got the fortitude and desire to learn and improve. Hinch admitted he’d seen nothing like it.
THE FIGHT
Remember when, over the past 3 years, the Tigers would lose the lead and we all assumed (rightly so) that the game was already lost? Fast forward to this year and they are fighting to the end – often winning. Best of all, these games started to actually get exciting again.
THE RECORD
For quite a few years now, the Tigers started off on a promising note and then as the season went on, their record became increasingly abysmal with more losses each month and huge losing streaks. But after a horrible April, the Tigers have played more consistently – .500 or better baseball. Imagine their record if so many players weren’t on the IL.
SMALL BALL
No more do-or-die by the HR. The Tigers are finally playing more in line with Comerica Park’s dimensions. They are leading or near the top in multiple extra base hit categories. And they are ranked #10 out of 30 in stolen bases. And bunts? They got them, too.
THE STANDINGS
I fully expected another year in the cellar. So did every analyst, predicting anywhere from the high 80’s up to 105 losses. Detroit was expected to once again be one of the bottom 3 teams in terms of losses. But they’ve flirted with second place a couple times and you can’t help but think how they would have fared if April and all those injuries didn’t happen. They’ll finish the year ranked as MLB’s 18th best team in the win-loss column.
A year full of surprises. Can you add to this list?
What did you miss on our Twitter feed yesterday?
- How many starting pitchers do the Tigers need for 2022?
- How many starting pitchers, on average, do the rest of MLB’s teams need?
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I was surprised and would add to Holly’s list how well the young starters pitched and in particular Casey Mize. After his performance last year, I thought we could see the possible failure of a 1st round draft choice this year. Instead he along with Skubal and Manning pitched well under the tutelage of Fetter. I would also add to the list the apparent demise of Jim Leyland’s influence a welcome change from the past.
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Another big and important surprise to me was Miggy. Once he emerged from his slow start, he was a respectable presence in the lineup, was happy and engaged with his mates, and remained healthy all year despite all our concerns about venturing onto the diamond on defense. Nothing had frustrated me more than Miggy’s at bats the last few years, but his turnaround brought some roar back to the Tigers, and was one of the year’s most pleasant surprises for me.
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Holly, your list is very comprehensive and defines the heartbeat of a team that doesn’t give at bats away whether it’s the first or the 27th. As a fan, what has excited me the most is the focus on the last nine outs. Whether it’s a bullpen used in leverage situations in positions to succeed or batters full of confident never die fight ringing clutch hits in comeback fashion this team excites. For that never die fight and effort, they deserve our support and thanks.
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I’ve started watching baseball again instead of just checking the standings.
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Some cheerleaders want to dismiss the horrendous April start when sizing up the Tigers’ season, but it had some salutary that have contributed to our present optimism. The biggest surprise for me was when some members of the local press itemized Avila’s horrible player transaction record and openly questioned the state of the “rebuild.” Tiger management usually get the friendliest press imaginable and I think some of this heat helped to accelerate the welcome front office changes.
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The resurgence of this team is due to numerous reasons, none more responsible than A.J.’s arrival. Now we must continue to improve by replacing non contributors like Niko Goodrum, Wily Castro, Joe Jiminez and SS Short who have had numerous chances to prove themselves with plenty of playing time, but have failed repeatedly.
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RE: Small ball. This is a return to traditional baseball and hopefully eliminates the over-focus of analytics during the game. The return of bunting, hit and run, taking the extra base, and stealing–all of which go against data nerds–are the exciting heart of baseball. Comerica is built for it.
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I would the Bullpen. Several good performances from unexpected places. Funkhouser, Fulmer, Lange seemed to come out of nowhere, Soto and Cisnero were very solid overall and didn’t take the steps backward that we so often have seen in the Tigers pen in recent years.
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Hinch was the biggest difference. He has a handle on what the roster is going to look like in the 2022 season. The coaches from the MLB level down to Single A are all onboard. He understands the game and more importantly seems to know how to get the most out of his players. I see improvement coming around for years ahead. Front office needs to cut ties from the past and not offer foolish contracts to free agents which would hinder both future spending and growth.
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10 playoff teams plus 2 that were eliminated on the final day. The Tigers played 9 of them with a .500 or better against 8. That, to me shows real progress. Now if they can play .500 against any team in the Central…..
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I read all the “blue skies” projections and I must say they are impressive. However, although I am not from Missouri, I do believe in the adage “don’t tell me, show me”. I also believe that the proof of the pudding is in the eating, so, forgive me if I don’t buy into all of the fantastic things that are “gonna” be. The winter is the season for wishes and hopes but until there is something meaty to sink my teeth into, I’ll pass.
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John, I’m not sure just good things will happen, but this is first time in years we fans can honestly say there is hope. If I’m looking toward the future I always hope, plan and expect good things to happen. Life is too depressing if we focus only on the bad. One other point I hope Holly covers soon is the new player agreement. That is one item that could change some of every team’s planning.
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Hi, Tony – You read my mind. Yes, I will be covering the new CBA. Today, I posted to Twitter about 1 of the changes players want that will help get rid of teams purposely tanking. – Holly
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