The Tigers are ready to shop this winter, and owner Chris Ilitch is ready to spend. Entering a crucial offseason, GM Al Avila said Tuesday the club's top two priorities in free agency will be a shortstop and an established starting pitcher.
"Those two I look at as equally important," Avila said.
The shortstop market is loaded, headlined by Carlos Correa. And the pitching market isn't exactly lean, led by a couple guys named Scherzer and Verlander. The Tigers got robbed the last time they hit the luxury aisle -- Jordan Zimmermann, anyone? Justin Upton? -- but Avila said that won't deter them from shopping there again.
"No, you can’t have that fear factor at all when you make these decisions," he said. "If you do, then I’m in the wrong position. So no, absolutely not. The thing is, we have to be very measured. We have to calculate the pros and cons of everything. And at the end of the day, it comes down to the player. You have to believe in the player. But there is definitely no fear factor here."
Ilitch is ready to spend because his team might be ready to contend. And because he's spent almost nothing since the Tigers gave up on contention after the 2016 season. Detroit's $86 million payroll this season was the seventh lowest in the majors, according to Spotrac, and about $45 million below the league average. Robbie Grossman's $5.5 million salary was the club's biggest expenditure after Miguel Cabrera.
As far as targets go, Avila said the Tigers will "look at everything" in free agency. He said they'll "be in contact with everybody." You can bet Hinch will be in contact with Correa. You can bet he and Avila together will be in contact with Verlander. You can bet on a lot of things, but ensure very little. As much as the Tigers want to build on the growth they made this season, they aren't committing to making a splash this winter.
"A.J. and I have sat down with Chris on a couple occasions and discussed this offseason and the next couple years, and like he mentioned, the resources will be there," Avila said. "But I will caution you, this is not going to be spending like a drunken sailor. This is going to be a very measured process. We’re going to make sure that whatever decisions we make in free agency, it doesn’t sink this organization for years to come but it builds this organization for years to come."
So yes, the Tigers will be pursuing a shortstop. But maybe someone like Marcus Semien (.873 OPS) is a more realistic target than Correa. And yes, they'll be pursuing what Avila described as "a good, established starting pitcher" to complement the young trio of Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning; Avila even called it "a necessity." But maybe that leads them to someone like Kevin Gausman (2.81 ERA) or Steven Matz (3.82) instead of the big arms of their past.
Asked about the potential of a 'big splash,' Avila said he wants the Tigers' big splash to be more wins and hopefully a playoff berth next season.
"How that happens, there’s a lot of different ways," he said. "So I’m not going to sit here and say we’re going to make a big splash or I want to make a big splash. We’re going to go out there and try to make this team better for next season. Sometimes you don’t have to make a big splash. Sometimes a big splash turns out wrong for you."
Hinch was familiar to big splashes in Houston. For most of time with the Astros, the club dove headfirst into the trade market and free agency, especially the former. Hinch mentioned trades Tuesday as another way for the Tigers to upgrade the roster, while Avila said he's still reticent to part with prospects. That's something for the club to reconcile fairly soon. But Hinch already agrees with Avila on this: "It doesn’t take a big splash to win."
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"A big splash would help, but it’s a marriage that has to be created in so many different ways. And it’s not an end-all, be-all," said Hinch. "Is it possible? Sure, we’ve all talked like that and the hidden thing in the room is, 'Are we going to sign this big dude?' Maybe. But if we don’t, do you think Robbie Grossman was a big splash this season? I do. Do you think Akil Baddoo was a big splash? I do. Are our big prospects going to be a big splash? Yeah, maybe. We just have to find a way to gain a competitive advantage at more positions than we have right now."
The big prospects are key. Avila said the Tigers likely won't be shopping for a first baseman or an outfielder this winter because Spencer Torkelson and Riley Greene could be here as soon as next spring. And perhaps they opt for a shorter-term solution at shortstop depending on their level of faith in Ryan Kreidler. It's a crucial offseason for the Tigers, and not an easy one to predict. The big splash might seem small when they make it, because the reverse is just as true. But for the first time in a long time, the Tigers are ready to jump in the deep end.
Time will tell what they come up with.
"From my perspective, it’s an exciting time to be a Tiger," said Hinch. "Our goal on the field was to make this a desirable place to play and point the arrow in the right direction, but there’s a number of guys that can help. We need help, we do. We need to get better. Just the fact that it’s possible, I think we’re in a good place on this date in time. Where it leads to as you build a team that can contend, the options are really endless."