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The American League Central is going to be one of the tightest divisions in baseball. Four of the five teams have a very good chance of coming away victors.
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With the Detroit Tigers only making a few changes over the offseason so far, they expect Joakim Soria to step up and be a quality setup man in front of Joe Nathan, and a possible replacement if Nathan continues his 2014 struggles.
Soria made 13 appearances for the Tigers after being acquired by the Texas Rangers. During mid-August, he had an oblique injury that wiped him out for about a month. The right-handed pitcher held a 3.25 ERA over 26 appearances between the Rangers and Tigers in 2014. He dominated with a 0.992 WHIP, while gibing up just 0.4 home runs per nine innings. However, with just the Tigers he put up a 4.91 ERA, with a 1.364 WHIP. Soria, a Mexico native, struggled during the back-end of this season, but he needs to step up big if the Tigers even what a chance to make the playoffs. Soria needs to carry the bullpen and give help when needed. He has the talent, but Detroit is just waiting for him to show it to the world. -Evan Petzold Victor Martinez underwent surgery on Tuesday to repair his torn left meniscus and the report is that the surgery was successful. The Detroit Tigers are also optimistic that the designated hitter can come back to start the regular season. "We are happy the surgery went well and that Victor will be ready to compete for the start of the 2015 season," Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski said in a statement. Dr. James Andrews preformed the procedure in Florida. He told the team that he can resume activites to their fullness in four-to-six weeks. "I would say based on Dr. Andrews' assessment that this is about as good of news that we could have hoped for," said Tigers manager Brad Ausmus. He will stay on crutches until the swelling goes down and he gets motion in his knee, according to Jason Beck of MLB.com. "Vic was in great shape prior to the surgery," Tigers athletic trainer Kevin Rand told reporters. "That should really bode well for his rehab."
The 36-year-old had his best season of his long career during the 2014 season. He launced a career-high 32 long balls and tallied 103 RBI's. He also led the majors with a .409 OBP. The 12-year veteran played in 151 games and took 561 at-bats. -Evan Petzold Just a few months after resigning with the Detroit Tigers on four-year, $68 million extension, designated hitter Victor Martinez will undergo another surgical process on his knee. The team announced that he tore his left medial meniscus. MLB's one and only Dr. James Andrews will perform the surgery on Tuesday for Martinez. The surgery will take place in Florida. According to rumors, Martinez will miss spring training, but there is not an exact timetable set in place for the 35-year-old. After the surgery, Detroit will provide a further update.
The switch hitter slashed .335/.409/.565 while blasting 32 homers and 103 RBI's. He participated 151 games and took 561 at-bats. The five-time All-Star had the best offensive season of his career. -Evan Petzold Last year, Detroit Tigers' starting pitcher Justin Verlander was just getting on his feet when spring training rolled around. However, this year is different. According to Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press, Verlander has added 20 pounds of muscle and has been throwing for awhile.
Verlander underwent core-muscle sugery last offseason. It was an operation that "had to affect a lot." "I don't want to make excuses," he said to Fenech. "I definitely didn't talk about it last year, but after talking with the therapist this year, it definitely did have an effect, and I'm sure it had a pretty big one." Fenech was able to talk to Verlander about the way he feels heading into the 2015 season. Physically, Verlander said, he feels fine. "Really good," he said. "I feel great." And the difference, he said, is huge. "I feel much stronger," he said. Verlander struggled in 2014 with a 4.54 ERA, but he was able to achieve 15 wins because of a MLB-high 5.19 runs of support. He struggled in the strikeout category with 159, the second lowest in his career. "Justin Verlander is as prime a pitcher as there is in the game of baseball," president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said during the caravan's stop at DTE Energy headquarters in Detroit. "Last year, he was not the traditional Justin. But when you look at what he came back from with the surgery, I think he's going to go out and have a real big season for us." Only time will tell with former American League Most Valuble Player. It all depends on how he feels going into the regular season, but right now, things seem right on track. -Evan Petzold DETROIT (AP) — Former Detroit Tigers first baseman Dave Bergman has died at age 61.
The team extended condolences Monday to Bergman's family, calling him "as spirited a person as he was a player." No cause of death was available, but The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press report that Bergman had bile-duct cancer. Bergman spent 17 years in the major leagues, including nine in Detroit where he arrived via trade in 1984. He was a member of the Tigers' 1984 World Series winning team. Bergman had a career .258 batting average, 54 home runs and 289 RBIs. He also played for the Yankees, Astros and Giants. The Evanston, Illinois, native was involved in Detroit-area youth baseball and founded the Grosse Pointe Redbirds. He is survived by his wife and three children. -Associated Press A few years back, Victor Martinez sidelined himself after tearing a anterior cruciate ligament. He was out for the entire 2012 season. Since then, the veteran has only caught five games for the Detroit Tigers.
However, manger Brad Ausmus mentioned that Martinez could strap on the pads during the first month of the 2015 season when his club goes to play the Pittsburgh Pirates for a three-game interleague series. Ausmus knows a ton about catching, judging by his three Gold Golve awards as a man behind the plate. If Miguel Cabrera is healthy enough to play first against the Pirates, Martinez will be catching behind home plate. "If Miggy's available, then Victor would be an option at catcher," Ausmus told Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. Putting Martinez at his old position would allow Ausmus to keep his top hitter in the lineup even without the value of the designated hitter. If Cabrera can not play, however, Martinez would start at first base. "So early on, it's going to depend where Miggy is," Ausmus said. Cabrera is working to return from a right ankle surgery in October that removed bone spurs and repaired a stress fracture. He recently was cleared to remove his walking boot and will be evaluated by doctors on February 15. "We're hopeful, at that point, he gets turned loose," general manager Dave Dombrowski said at TigerFest on January 24. "If he's not ready for Opening Day, it's going to be very, very close." -Evan Petzold According to Jon Morosi of FOX Sports, the Detroit Tigers have been in contact with James Shields' agent. General Manager Dave Dombrowski claimed that the team is not pursuing former team ace Max Scherzer, but signs are beginning to point to Shields. However, it is still unclear how extensive the talks have been between the two parties.
The Tigers would save a lot of money by letting go of Scherzer to free agency. Even after inking David Price for $19.75 million over one-year they would still have enough to make a move for Shields because he would cost reasonably less than Scherzer. Dombrowski is not afraid to spend big on pitching to win a championship. Two years ago, he signed Justin Verlander to a seven-year, $180 million extension. Losing Rick Porcello to the Boston Red Sox via trade and possibly Scherzer would hurt the Tigers in many ways, but acquiring Shields would help fill the void in Detroit's rotation. Verlander has also struggled in the past two seasons. Bringing Price back was a huge asset for potentially getting Shields. Both will be free agents after the 2015 season. However, a bigger role is their friendship status: best friends. - Evan Petzold The Detroit Tigers have improved their bullpen, as the club signed veteran lefty Tom Gorzelanny. The deal for Gorzelanny is a one-year deal. The Tigers designated right-hander Luke Putkonen for assignment as a corresponding move. This was to make room for Gorzelanny on the 40-man roster. “Tom is an established reliever who can help solidify the bullpen on the left side,” general manager Dave Dombrowski said in a statement to Brian Beck, “and will be a nice addition to our roster.”
The 32-year-old pitched in 23 games during the 2014 season. He owned a 0.86 ERA while finishing seven of those games, but the left-hander did not earn a save. During his 10-year career, Gorzelanny has a 4.27 ERA, along with a 1.426 WHIP. He has averaged exactly nine hits per nine innings over his career with multiple teams. The veteran has played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, Washington Nations and Milwaukee Brewers, but now he is a part of the Tigers organization. |