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The Tigers on Monday revealed their hype video: “Built For the Future. Built Different.” As the team this week embarks on its 90th Spring Training in Lakeland, Fla., continuing the longest-running relationship between a Major League team and its Spring Training host city, that construction will be on full display. The Major League talent is young and improving, led by AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal. The farm system is one of the best in the game. The optimism might be its highest since the Tigers entered 2013 as reigning American League champions. As we wait for camp to officially begin, here are three storylines to watch this spring: 1) ‘I Don’t Know’ is on 3rd
It’s a line from the famous Abbott and Costello routine, “Who’s on First?” but it has also been a Tigers theme in recent years, though maybe not for much longer. For the second consecutive season, the Tigers could open Spring Training with the possibility that their Opening Day third baseman isn’t on the roster. Last year it was Gio Urshela, who signed a one-year deal about a week into camp. This year, the Tigers have been connected to free agent Alex Bregman in an offseason-long dance, but he remains on the market. If Detroit doesn’t sign Bregman, the expected plan at third is to mix and match rookie left-handed hitter Jace Jung with right-handed hitter Matt Vierling, who would bounce between outfield and third. Jung, a Top 100 prospect last year on MLB Pipeline’s rankings, got a taste of the big leagues but didn’t have quite the offensive impact as hoped while battling a right wrist injury that required surgery at season’s end. If the Tigers sign Bregman, third base is set, Vierling becomes a full-time outfielder, and Jung could spend more time at Triple-A Toledo.2) How does shortstop shake out?Javier Báez has held down this spot for three years since signing the Tigers’ last high-profile free-agent contract, but after a season of struggling ended in hip surgery, he enters Spring Training at a crossroads. He’s expected to be healthy, but prospect Trey Sweeney filled in admirably down the stretch with solid defense and some clutch hitting that helped contribute to the Tigers’ incredible late-season run. It was notable last week that president of baseball operations Scott Harris referred to getting Sweeney in the Jack Flaherty trade last summer as “the opportunity to get what we believe is an everyday shortstop.” While Sweeney rated at 0.7 bWAR and 0.4 fWAR in just 36 games, Báez had a minus-1.1 bWAR and minus-0.7 fWAR in 80 games. Moreover, the ZiPS projection system forecasts Sweeney to be worth 2.3 fWAR this coming season, mainly on the strength of his defense, compared to 1.0 fWAR for Báez. Assuming both are healthy, a lefty-righty platoon could be the best setup. But it could be a tough ask for a former All-Star and Gold Glove winner in Báez.3) Will Jackson Jobe open the season in the big leagues?The Tigers’ top prospect (No. 5 overall) seemed to have an inside track on a rotation spot for most of the offseason, but Flaherty’s return to Detroit created a crowded competition for the fifth spot. Casey Mize will be fighting for his starting future in his second season back from Tommy John surgery. Keider Montero threw the Tigers’ only complete-game shutout last year as part of an eye-opening rookie campaign. Kenta Maeda has embraced a tougher offseason workout routine as he tries to win back the rotation spot he lost last summer. Matt Manning, Ty Madden and Brant Hurter are also in the mix. The Tigers have a vested interest in Jobe winning an Opening Day role thanks to MLB’s Prospect Promotion Incentive, which rewards teams with a supplemental Draft pick at the end of the first round if a rookie spends a full season (or close to it) in the Majors and wins a Rookie of the Year Award or finishes in the top three for MVP or Cy Young. But they also want to see Jobe earn the spot, just as Skubal and Mize had to do a few years ago. “Jackson is going to have a long, successful career as a Tiger, and we’re really excited to see it,” Harris said, “but at every turn we’ve got to do what’s best for him and what’s best for our team.” MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
