OT Tigers Rotation?

Submitted by Blue boy johnson on

Games start tomorrow. Looking at Leyland's options for 4th and 5th starters is startling. I have little faith in any of these guys. I think Bonderman and Galarraga have the best chance to win out, but I have little confidence in either.

Here is what Leyland had to say; “I know three of them, knock on wood, and there’s (Armando) Galarraga, (Dontrelle) Willis, (Nate) Robertson and (Jeremy) Bonderman with possibly (Phil) Coke…and (Eddie) Bonine.”
http://www.mlive.com/tigers/index.ssf/2010/02/figuring_out_final_two_ro…

Assuming Porcello, Verlander and Scherzer are healthy, If only one of these 6 guys work out, the Tigers are going to be good.

I'm excited about the season, Dombrowski certainly changed the look and feel of this team and I like it.

cadmus2166

March 1st, 2010 at 6:15 PM ^

The pitching should be better, at least. I don't imagine the offense could get much worse than last year...no hitters got hot at the same time. As long as there aren't too many significant injuries, I think the division is within reach.

Paly33

March 1st, 2010 at 6:20 PM ^

I'm really hoping the things I've been hearing about Bonderman are true. Sounds like he's been throwing well and doesn't have any pain in his shoulder. He can be the X factor for this rotation. If he steps up, and the rest of the rotation does its part we should have a pretty good starting rotation this year.

I'm done with Nasty Nate and Dontrelle. Their dead to me.

jsquigg

March 1st, 2010 at 6:24 PM ^

Galarraga had a great season in 08 and was down in the middle of last year. Robertson can eat innings but I have my doubts about him winning 10 or more. Bonderman tried to come back to soon, which is on the coaches, but he can be good if his arm strength is ever back to normal. Willis has been a complete train wreck. I would like to see more of Bonine and I can't see taking Coke out of the pen.
Baseball's a funny sport. I am more concerned with the Tigers offense. They need a new hitting coach, because watching them in comparison to almost any other team is painful because they show little to no plate patience. I'm not saying they have to go to a "Moneyball" approach, but I'm sick of seeing an approach reminiscent of Little League. If they can produce runs I think they'll have a good year.

A_Maize_Zing

March 1st, 2010 at 6:45 PM ^

Galarraga can't reproduce his 08 numbers unless he is the luckiest pitcher in baseball again. His flyball rate is really high and unless people hit them at people he is going to struggle. Don't get me wrong he can be that #5 starter for you just don't get your hopes up that he can be a 2 or 3 pitcher in the Majors. Willis and Bondo have the most upside but also seem to be the biggest question marks. If Bonderman bounces back to his 07 form (thats a big bounce) Detroit will win the Central. If not they may still win the Central but will get shit hammered by NY,Bos,Tampa, or whoever shakes out from the west.

Also it seems more exciting to be a Tiger's fan this year since you guys have the young kids competeing for time...like Jackson and Sizemore. As a Yankees fan I am really glad we arn't depending on rookies to produce but it would be nice to see some more young talent getting a chance this year like Detroit has.
One more thing I would like to say

All Your Granderson Are Belong To Us

A_Maize_Zing

March 1st, 2010 at 9:55 PM ^

To the people who neg me. Don't hate ladies, it is beneath a Michigan man to hate. I'm sure Detroit will have a fine baseball team this season...hell I even hope they finish 2nd in the AL so I can see my beloved Yankees clinch another World Series birth right down the road at Comerica park.

Go Grandy
Go Yanks
Go Michigan
Go America

GVBlue86

March 1st, 2010 at 6:53 PM ^

I see Willis as the worst of the group. Bondo and Galarraga should be back to at least middle rotation good. If pitchers play to their potential this year, we could actually be a phenominal staff. Hitting is another story but a rebound from last year could be very likely. I see Central division def. within reach.

WMUgoblue

March 1st, 2010 at 7:08 PM ^

I think if Bondo is actually healthy he can produce numbers his contract says he should. Dontrelle unfortunatley can't find the plate with a GPS so scrap him as an option, I personally would like to see if Eddie Bonine could be a decent 5th starter. Boy oy boy how dumb are we for trading jurrjens for renteria now?

maizenblue92

March 1st, 2010 at 7:08 PM ^

I think the Rotation will go Verlander, Porcello, Guy not named Verlander, Guy not named Porcello, and not Verlander or Porcello. The Tigers have a good staff but no one was consistent other than those two.

tricks574

March 1st, 2010 at 7:49 PM ^

Scherzer is already a strikeout machine, with almost 200 last year pitching in one of the most hitter friendly parks in the league. He also has surprising control for someone with his stuff.

Porcello's ceiling is impossible to call right now, as he had ridiculous success already at 20 years old. A sub-4 ERA with 171 IP in the bigs, and he showed minimal signs of fatigue or any degree of confidence issues. He certainly has the stuff to be a big time strikeout guy too, he just needs to control it better, I mean, he'll be 21 this season.

It will be fun to watch both of them either way, and I'm certainly glad they will all be wearing the old english D for the next 4-5 years.

CaliFan

March 1st, 2010 at 7:47 PM ^

I was really hoping that this was going to be a full-scale discussion on the rotation of Tiger Woods' harem...

Alas, I am mistaken....

Carry On.

Steve Lorenz

March 1st, 2010 at 8:33 PM ^

It'd be nice to see Phil Coke step up. He was a great starter in the minors and was never given the chance in New York. If he can find his changeup, I'd rather be giving him a shot than our shit options like Robertson, Willis and Galarraga. Willis is a good guy off the field, but the stories of him turning it around mentally are getting as annoying as the OMG Zumaya threw 100 in warmups stories. I hope he has, but until I see it on the field I'll never buy it.

From everything I've heard and read, the fourth slot is Bonderman's to lose. I wouldn't be surprised if he bounced back and had a decent year this year. He's still only 27 and the arm injuries he sustained were non-throwing related. The only reason he was put on the shelf last year was because he tried to come back too fast. He's regained most of the velocity on his fastball and is pretty much playing for a job this year. That being said, so are Robertson and Willis I guess. I just don't trust either one of them.

I also disagree with anyone who says Scherzer has more upside than Porcello. The kid is only 21, threw almost 80% fastballs last year and was basically 1b to Verlander in September last year. He has the secondary stuff to bring his K rate up....they were just easing him along last year. I think he takes a big step forward this year.

I know it's sort of intangible, but how many 20 year old kids would be ballsy enough to throw down an established veteran like Youkilis last year? I really think Porcello has that "it" factor, and I say this as objectively as possible and not as a rah-rah Tigers fan.

Tshimanga Cowabunga

March 1st, 2010 at 9:08 PM ^

Verlander, Porcello, Scherzer and Bondo are all right handed pitchers. Need a lefty to balance them out a bit meaning robertson, coke and willis have the inside track. That being said I don't have real faith in any of our potential fifth starters but at least there are a lot of them to throw in there. Strange we have so few starting lefties but so many reliever lefties

As for Porcello and Scherzer, both have about the same ceiling. They are potential number 1 starters. Scherzer is a little farther along now but Porcello could turn into a Webb type with his sinker. He needs to better develop his secondary pitchers tho.

Steve Lorenz

March 1st, 2010 at 9:31 PM ^

It's not that they aren't developed, it's that they didn't want him relying on them or even really using them last year. His curveball was sick in high school (I know that sounds stupid but before last year that's the only real place he pitched) and it's what got him so much attention in the first place. If he can use it successfully in the majors he has almost unlimited potential because of his ability to induce grounders.

A_Maize_Zing

March 1st, 2010 at 10:17 PM ^

It's not a matter of who. He is a lefty specialist. I watched him pitch a ton last year and he really doesn't have the stuff to go through a rotation more then once. Also he makes a lot of mistakes with pitches that end up being home runs and don't think that will change because of comerica park. He was pitching to righties and giving up homers to a very deep left field.

Steve Lorenz

March 1st, 2010 at 10:33 PM ^

The fact that they are even looking at Coke should show you how much confidence Leyland and co. have in the fifth starter slot. It's basically going to be a battle to survive every fifth day this season. For that reason, I honestly wouldn't be surprised to see Coke end up with the job. The other options are really that bad.