Motor City Message: 2020 Tigers Roster Preview

Just a side note on these messages, I am going to try to keep the news fun and exciting for what should be a rebuilding season for our Motor City Kitties. To do that, each message will have a different theme. For instance, I may compare a stretch of play to movies. A player with a hot bat will be compared to the movie title ‘Lethal Weapon’ as I and the rest of the MLB would have been a weapon at the plate during his hot stretch at the plate. Another example would be swiping right and left on players production over a certain span much like the Tinder Styled MLB Preview. Also included in these messages will be Tiger of the week, and Detroit’s top three highlights of the week. Good chance that our Tigers may struggle, but just because they struggle does not mean I will struggle to get us Tiger fans entertaining recaps of their play!

Now to totally contradict what I just said, I am going to keep the 2020 Detroit Tigers roster preview plain and simple. The Tigers had some moving parts this offseason, as well as some young guns vying for their cup of coffee in the bigs, so an in-depth look at their roster is done here.

The Lineup

Catcher: Austin Romine

Many Tiger fans remember Romine’s brother, Andrew Romine, the long-time utility-man for Detroit. But, Austin was one of Detroit’s free-agent signings this past offseason. The long-time Yankee will be getting the bulk of the starts behind the dish. Young catching prospects such as Grayson Greiner and Jake Rogers will be vying for innings and playing time. But for now, it is Romine’s job to lose.

First Base: C.J. Cron, Miguel Cabrera

You can pen in Cron and Cabrera around the middle of the order for Detroit. Cron was added to the Tigers this offseason to bring in a power bat in to the middle alongside of Miggy. However, it still remains a mystery on which player will be primarily the designated hitter, but if I had to guess Cabrera will be close to a full time D.H.

Second Base: Jonathan Schoop

The Tigers went out and added another 2019 Minnesota Twin to bolster their 2020 roster. Schoop will take over the primary duties at second and will complement Niko Goodrum up the middle nicely.

Shortstop: Niko Goodrum

Since debuting in the MLB, Goodrum has been primarily the utility man for the Detroit Tigers. But now the time has come for Goodrum to center his focus to one position, shortstop. The young switch-hitting shortstop is my pick to benefit the most from the additions of Cron and Schoop. The past two years, Goodrum has failed to reach an OBP of higher than .320. Now with a revamped lineup, Goodrum can focus his offensive attention on getting on base rather than trying to drive in runs.

Third Base Options: Jeimer Candelario or Dawel Lugo

The bulk of the innings at third is still up in the air between Candelario and Lugo. For Candelario, he has yet to take the next step for Detroit. In fact he has regressed since his trade to the Motor City in 2017. In 27 games with the Tigers after the trade, Candelario hit a scorching .330 with seven doubles. But 2018 we saw a bit of a sophomore slump, and in 2019 Candelario battled injury.

In 77 games last year, Dawel Lugo hit .245 with eleven doubles, but only had a OBP of .271. Neither Lugo or Candelario are formidable options over on the hot corner. Both are still young with room to improve, but third base is a weakness for the 2020 Detroit Tigers.

Outfield Options: Cameron Maybin, JaCoby Jones, Victor Reyes, Christin Stewart, Travis Demeritte, Jorge Bonifacio

There are a lot of options for the Detroit Tigers outfield. Now how many are proven talents? That is a different story. The outfield platoon consists of a journeyman and fan-favorite Cameron Maybin, who signed with the Detroit Tigers this offseason and shored up one spot in the lineup. Another option is Victor Reyes, who proved his worth in last year’s 69-game stint with the Tigers last year. Reyes hit .304 with an OBP of just over .330. Maybin and Reyes will take the bulk of the innings of centerfield and a corner outfield position.

For the other corner outfield position, Christin Stewart has a chance to burst into the lineup with the Tigers’ needs for a left-handed hitter in the lineup.

Two more young prospects that Tiger fans should keep an eye out for are Daz Cameron and Riley Greene. With an influx of young outfield prospects, the Tigers lineup should be ready to compete in the mid-to-late 2020’s.

Utility: Harold Castro

Although Castro may have troubles striking out at the plate, defensively he can play each infield position and the outfield. His value is with his glove and versatility defensively. But swinging from the left side may help his case to get playing time due to the lack of left-handed bats in the Tigers’ lineup.

Pitching Staff

Starting staff: Matthew Boyd, Jordan Zimmerman, Spencer Turnbull, Daniel Norris, Ivan Nova

Now this is on the complete opposite side of the spectrum, compared to the 2014 Detroit Tigers pitching rotation of Price, Verlander, Scherzer, Porcello, and Sanchez. To be quite honest, it may be one of the worst rotations in the MLB. But what is weak in the MLB is strong in the farm. Young guns like Casey Mize, Matt Manning, and Tarik Skubal should all be primed and ready to go for the 2021 MLB season. The young trio may not rival the aforementioned trio of Price, Verlander, and Scherzer, but Mize, Manning, and Skubal will be a staple in early 2020’s Tiger pitching.

Bullpen Options

The bullpen is the most wide-open competition heading into the season. For now, the only two set bullpen arms are Buck Farmer (be careful how you pronounce that one…) and Joe Jimenez. Outside of Farmer and Jimenez, the Tigers have a mix of young arms and veterans that are competing for jobs. Alex Wilson will be a name that receives a lot of bullpen opportunities. Another name that may see opportunity early is Jose Cisnero. Cisnero struggled with command last year, but the Tigers liked what they saw out of the 32 year old journeyman.

With so few left-handed relievers, southpaws Gregory Soto and Nick Ramirez will both be options out of the pen as well.

Tiger of the Week

Now here is one bullpen name I am looking out for, Nolan Blackwood. As a sidearmer myself, I am always pulling for the funky relievers, and Blackwood fits the bill. Manager Ron Gardenhire is pretty high on the young reliever, “He’s got some funk. The ball comes out of a funny place. He’s got great movement, is long and tall, and got long arms. He’s got the whole package.”

I mentioned the trio of Mize, Manning, and Skubal, but the reliever backing them in the bullpen is Blackwood. With his unique combination of his arm angle and sinking fastball, he had a very successful 2019 with a 1.76 ERA and 49 hits allowed over 66-1/3 innings with the SeaWolves. Blackwood may not be cracking the roster immediately, but he should be in the bullpen mix as the season progresses.

Top Three Tiger Highlights of the Week

#3: Derek Hill lays out

#2: Catch of the Scrimmage Season?

#1: Riley Greene Does his Best Mike Trout Impression

That concludes the first edition of the Motor City Message. For all the Detroit Tigers fans out there, be on the look out for fun recaps of rebuilding baseball. With the upcoming 2020 season, the Tigers are on the prowl, new additions with some young faces should make watching the rebuilidng baseball a little more bearable, and if that does not do it for you, check in the Motor City Message every other week!

STAY SAFE FOLKS and GO TIGERS!

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