By Roy J. Akers- www.skyviewsports.net
The Skinny- and Four Up and three down
Additionally, The Detroit Tigers are 28-29 heading into June; frankly, they are what we think they are. Detroit can pitch. They are tenth in MLB in team ERA with a 3.81. They trail AL teams Baltimore, New York, Boston and AL Central foes Cleveland and Kansas City. Outside of Boston who are (29-29), all the other teams are on track to make the American League playoffs if the season ended today.
Good pitching, bad pitching
The biggest divide the team must face is they have two pitchers pitching great (Tarik Skubal and Reese Olson), one mediocre (Jack Flaherty) and two not making the cut in (Casey Mize and Kenta Maeda). So, let’s find out more on who the Tigers can count on and players that are not helping themselves in 2024.
One Offensive Player Carrying his team- One Up
The Detroit Tigers are focused on several homegrown players to watch this offseason. The problem is Spencer Torkelson and Riley Green have not been very good. In Torkelson’s case, read on below.
Matt Vierling is a revelation. As a 27-year-old prospect who has washed out of both San Francisco and Philadelphia, nothing he has done in baseball has lead to playing the best baseball of his career in Detroit. His stats over the last 30 games have been very good and he is hitting a sizzling .393 over the last week including hitting a homerun in both games of a Tigers doubleheader. He can play four offensive positions and the Tigers will need him to remain relatively hot until a few players can join and lead to Tiger wins.
Tarik Skubal will be an All-Star – Two Up
This is not up for debate. Listed by several media outlets from Yahoo, MLB.com and any fans prying eyeballs, Skubal has been lights out. Skubal is the frontrunner to win American League Cy Young, but he also leads MLB with a 74.2% first-pitch strike rate. The 27-year-old has a 2.01 ERA with 11 walks and 80 strikeouts across 67 innings in 11 starts in the 2024 season. Skubal, like the other Tigers homegrown talent, has had to deal with long stretches on the DL. This year, he has been unhittable. They key for Skubal is throwing first pitch strikes. “It helps a ton,” said Skubal, whose 2.05 FIP ranks first among MLB pitchers. “You’re going to have some bad days, and there are going to be some balls put in play, and you might give up some hard contact early in at-bats, but more often than not, you can play the percentages. When you’re getting ahead, batting averages are way down.”
Bottom Line on Skubal
More stats to boggle your mind with are Opponents hit .196 with a .576 OPS against Skubal after he gets ahead 0-1 in the count, spanning his entire five-year MLB career. Opponents also hit .234 with a .732 OPS after he falls behind 1-0 in the count.
Another Surprise Offensive Player- Three Up
Kerry Carpenter recently went on the 10 Day DL but before that, Carpenter was raking. Carpenter leads the Tigers with and 29 RBI’s and is second in HR’s with eight (Greene has 10). His .283 leads regulars not named Matt Vierling. His .342 OBP and .914 OPS are ahead of the curve. Carpenter’s .914 is 155 points above the league average. What does it all mean? Carpenter has arguably been Detroit’s best player in 2024.
Olson is Ready to Win- Four Up
Reese Olson has pitched well all season. The problem is if you haven’t watched him pitch, you would say he has one win on the season and you would be right. Olson is 1-5 on the season with a 1.92 ERA with no games being blown out by hitters. Olson has been let down by a leaky bullpen and little support from the Tigers offense. Olson was acquired in the trade deadline deal that dealt Daniel Norris to the Brewers. Olson battles. He beat out former Tigers first round draft pick Matt Manning among others. With any run support or improved bullpen help, Olson will grind out some wins in June.
Spencer Torkelson- One Down
Spencer Torkelson is sliding not just down the Tigers batting order, but a little closer to manager A.J. Hinch. He hit four home runs in May with just seven RBI’s. His defense is considered suspect after the Tigers said he would be elite. Torkelson was promoted too early in 2021 along with Riley Green and shows NO ability to hit above .230. His batting average sits at .205 and he is painful to watch as baseball is a game of confidence and Torkelson is pressing to make up for a season that may find him not in the team’s future plans.
Kenta Maeda- Two Down
Maeda just got blown out by Boston 7-3 and Maeda hit the showers long before the game was over. For the season, Maeda has shown next to nothing. Maeda cannot get anyone out and when he pitches, the Tigers anemic offense is too far behind to make a comeback. He is owed 24 million through 2025. His WAR, ERA and WHIP are all poor.
Casey Mize Needs to Improve Quickly- Three Down
Casey Mize seems to always be injured. Multiple injuries have derailed his career and between Skubal, Matt Manning, Alex Faedo, Detroit cannot get a break with their drafted players. For Mize, it needs to come together quickly. Mize is now 27-years-old and for a power pitcher, he has 34 strikeouts in 49 innings. His ERA is 4.71 in 2024. He has one win and a WHIP of 1.43. This is not where Detroit thought he would be after drafting him in the first round in 2018. Detroit has options on Mize through 2025. Then they have to pay the guy or cut him loose.
The Schedule
Detroit starts out on the road against Boston and Texas. The Rangers are still floundering after winning the franchises first World Series in 2023. The Tigers travel to Atlanta against an outstanding Braves team. Detroit has three at home against the dreadful White Sox.
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Roy J. Akers contributes from www.skyviewsports.net