The Tigers began this season 2-9, playing the same stomach-turning brand of zombie-like baseball as last summer.
They are 15-8 since, and the American League Central is, to be kind, mediocre. So it's as if the ominous cloud suggesting that everything that can go wrong does for the Tigers has drifted away.
The money the Tigers invested in Javier Baez and Eduardo Rodriguez is finally paying major dividends. A.J. Hinch is living up to his reputation as a stellar manager.
His benching of Baez, and the sincere manner it was accepted by the mercurial shortstop, was an obvious turning point, which was accurately noted by first-year general manager Scott Harris. The difference is like night and day since regarding Baez. Rodriguez had plenty to prove after missing much of '22 because of personal issues, and is proving it.
Baez, Rodriguez and Hinch have championship pedigrees. After much initial angst, it's rubbing off.
It's encouraging how well Jason Foley and Alex Lange have performed at the back end of the bullpen. Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson are slowly, but surely, starting to contribute.
It's refreshing, a pleasant surprise. It's also a long season, and will be quickly forgotten if the Tigers don't sustain such progress.
Entering this weekend's series vs. Seattle at Comerica Park, the Tigers have a 17-19 record. It's the same mark at the 36-game point as 2019 when they lost 114 games. They were also 17-19 during pandemic-shortened 2020, and won just six more times.
The Tigers haven't had a winning record at 36 games since 2015. They were 22-14, but won just 74 games.
The belief Rodriguez is this glowing trade piece and should be unloaded as soon as possible is risible. Clubs don't make trades in May because they still haven't figured out what they will ultimately need.
Rent a players, which Rodriguez essentially is because of the opt out clause in his contract, command, at best, mid-level prospects.
Clubs are smart enough to understand Rodriguez is on a roll, but there is hardly a guarantee he still will be during late summer and early fall.
And the Tigers signed Rodriguez to help them win games. Now that he is doing so, and contention seems possible, why trade him?
It's confusing how on one hand, there is a constant drumbeat how the Tigers don't spend enough. Yet, when a pitcher they are paying handsomely comes through, the cry is "deal him."
If the Tigers fall from the race, that's a different story.
If they are still in playoff contention come late July, it would be insulting to Detroit fans to deal Rodriguez, assuming he's a major reason the Tigers are there.
The same goes for Michael Lorenzen and Matthew Boyd.
Third baseman Justyn-Henry Malloy has five home runs and a .450 on-base percentage for Toledo. His plate discipline and live bat will land him in Detroit soon.
The biggest keys are Greene and Torkelson. In 517 MLB at bats, Riley Greene has eight home runs, 52 RBI, a .686 OPS and a 2.0 WAR. That is the definition of a borderline MLB regular. The Tigers need him to be much more.
Torkelson has a minus 1.4 WAR. That means metrically he belongs in Toledo.
Yet, while Torkelson struggles to develop a level of consistency, he has found ways to contribute lately with a few clutch RBIs and by digging throws out of the dirt. But the expectation when drafted was that Torkelson would rake rather than be raked over.
If the Tigers do, indeed, manage to stay in contention, it would be wonderful.
At least they have been entertaining and caught our attention.
For the Tigers, it's progress. Can we just enjoy it without incessantly debating whether to trade their best pitcher.
