The assumption, with merit, is the Tigers will be much better in 2022.
They won 77 games in ’21, a 30-game improvement over the previous full-season in ’19. Perception is A.J. Hinch is more faith-healer than manager, like he put his hand on the foreheads of Akil Baddoo and Eric Haase and they started performing like the second comings of Tim Raines and Mike Piazza. Hinch has even made the smile return to Miggy’s face.
It was as if pitching coach Chris Fetter had Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and Gregory Soto stare into a special orb to magically begin navigating the pitch tunnel.
Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson appear as the most dynamic duo of Tigers position player prospects since Tram and Lou.
Throw in the decidedly strong analytical additions of Javier Baez, Eduardo Rodriguez and Tucker Barnhart and, voilà, the Tigers should be genuine playoff contenders.
But a development occurred on the road to redemption for owner Chris Ilitch and general manager Al Avila. The Twins, presumed to be rebuilding prior to the lockout, suddenly became aggressive.
Who would have thought Minnesota would be the landing spot for the dreamboat of every Tigers fan, shortstop Carlos Correa? Or pitcher Sonny Gray? Or power-hitting catcher Gary Sanchez?
And then Greene, who hit . 429 this spring with an OPS above 1.500, fouled a ball off his foot and will miss two months because of a fracture.
USA Today predicted the Tigers will win just 80 games and finish behind the Twins and the prohibitive favorite White Sox even before Greene’s injury. Vegas dropped the over-and-under Tigers’ victories to 77.5.
So the Tigers must be underrated, right?
The acquisition of left-handed hitting outfielder Austin Meadows from Tampa Bay should definitely help. He won’t turn 27 until next month, hit 27 home runs and delivered 106 RBI last season. He had an OPS over .900 and 33 home runs as recently as 2019. Giving up prospect Isaac Paredes and a 71st overall MLB overall draft pick should not inhibit the Tigers in any manner.
But Baddoo is a much better left fielder than center fielder, and Meadows a below-average left fielder.
The best thing the Tigers did this offseason was correct a major defensive deficiency up the middle by acquiring Barnhart and Baez, and tied it to the MLB debut of Greene, a plus defender, in center. With Greene out, it will put more pressure on the lineup to produce runs and the pitching staff to miss bats.
Torkelson is a significantly important component. If he is able to handle MLB pitching reasonably well initially, the bow to the Tigers’ lineup will be intact. It means Miguel Cabrera can mostly DH and Jonathon Schoop can remain at second.
If Torkelson struggles to adjust, it will open another significant crack in the Tigers’ armor and Hinch will be forced to mix and match on a daily basis.
There is little question Torkelson is gifted, but the gap between MLB and Triple-A velocity has never been wider or deeper, and he has never played in the type of cold weather the Tigers will endure early in the campaign.
Bullpen depth is a concern, especially with starting pitchers less than fully stretched out because of the lockout. That veteran lefty reliever Andrew Chafin, a smart free agent addition from Oakland, is hurt doesn’t help the situation.
But regardless, the Tigers should at least be .500 this season, and are capable of being in the wild card race deep into the season.
Progress, the genuine kind, is a reasonable expectation.