MONDAY MUSINGS

by Holly Horning

Throughout the week, there are so many smaller stories hitting the media.  They may be bite-size, but often they are just as important as the headline-grabbing news.  Sometimes, even more.

And that’s what brings me to today.  A way to discuss some of these stories. A way to bring them out in the open for discussion.

And that’s the plan for Mondays.  Keeping track of these mighty little bits that hit my radar throughout the week and sharing them with you today because I know one or more will also resonate with you.

So, let’s kick off this week’s musings…

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The 2 daily Detroit papers have avoided reporting on the subject but the national media hasn’t.  What one writer reported has happened.  The team has been losing minor league prospects because of poor coaching.  That some players are falling through the cracks because their talent was not properly being developed.

The Tigers cut 19 prospects last week, including Christin Stewart, who was the compensatory pick (first round at #34) for the loss of Max Scherzer.  Stewart had been toiling in the minors for almost 7 years and was once touted as a promising player. 

Months earlier, JaCoby Jones quietly left the organization after clearing waivers.  The non-local media had been reporting that Lloyd McClendon was coaching him on outdated hitting techniques.  Jones had flashes of promise immediately after working with Miggy and with an independent coach in the off-season.  But the good habits were short-lived once he no longer had access to outside coaching.

Even an exec in the Front Office approached Jones and suggested he hire his own hitting coach. That’s how bad it was.

And then there’s Daniel Norris who was traded during the summer.  Once promising, you can see his performance stats take a deep dive during all 3 of the Gardenhire/Rick Anderson years.  And that’s what happens when an unemployed manager hires his good, also unemployed former pitching coach to re-join him in Detroit.

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If you really want an accurate measure of how close the Tigers are to competing again, you need to look at much more than the young pitching and offense.  Defensively, the team is mired near the very bottom of MLB.  Every position on the field earned negative DRS (Defensive Runs Saved).  The Tigers were one of the few teams without a single Gold Glove nomination this year.

On the other hand, the St. Louis Cardinals were MLB’s first team to walk away with 5 Gold Glove winners in 2021.  They had 6 nominations in total.  The winners were essentially almost the entire infield and left field.  The Cards saved 81 runs defensively which put them in 2^nd place.  The Tigers, on the other hand, ranked #26 in DRS, costing the team an additional 35 runs.

And that’s how you build a solid team that gets you to October.  Especially if your team plays half its games in Comerica.  There is still a lot of work to do.

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The CBA expires in 16 days and it is chock full of major financial issues.  One of the biggest is the Players Union’s attempt to eliminate the benefits and bonuses team receive for tanking.  One of their biggest – and loudest – advocates is Scott Boras who says this tactic is the single biggest element that can potentially kill the game of baseball.  Purposely putting non-competitive teams on the field.

Tanking is becoming more common with each passing year.  Four teams lost 100+ this year, tying the previous full year.  Boras is correct in stating that this method is a “cancer” and baseball has turned into a “race for the bottom.”

He points to only 17 teams making a real effort to win and that the rest have learned that losing gets rewarded.  The worst part is the fans who end up being cheated.  That and the organizations who knowingly and willingly sacrifice seasons in order to make money while rebuilding on the cheap via higher draft picks and receiving financial rewards.

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Which one of these stories resonated the most with you?

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What did you miss on our Twitter feed yesterday? (And why aren’t you following TT yet?)

• The Tigers are now looking to add an outfielder. What’s that all about?

• What happens when you take a star pitcher, a dunk tank and smack-talking carnival barker? TT has the priceless video.

• The Tigers are predicted to sign 1 top 20 player. But it’s not for the positions you may think….

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