Kelly Gets the Call, 25-Man Roster Complete

The Detroit Tigers announced today that outfielder Clete Thomas has been optioned to AAA Toledo. In doing so, they finalized their Opening Day roster, barring some unforeseen circumstances between now and then.

Thomas will join fellow outfielders Brennan Boesch, Casper Wells, and Wilkin Ramirez with the MudHens, who will presumably try to also get outfield reps for Jeff Larish and Ryan Strieby, infielders by trade. Suffice to say, Hens manager Larry Parrish has his work cut out for him in divvying up those at bats.

In making this move, the Tigers chose the versatility of Don Kelly over the defensive prowess of Thomas. There is no question that Thomas is the superior glove man at all three outfield spots. But Kelly can also play three of the four infield positions reasonably well, something that took on greater importance for the team with the assumption that both third baseman Brandon Inge and second baseman Scott Sizemore would get a few extra days off early in the year.

Kelly gives the Tigers a left handed bat and good speed. He is a line drive hitter that showed a good amount of extra-base pop this spring. Thomas also had a fine camp, but a recent deep shoulder bruise kept him out of the lineup in recent days. From the sounds of things, it might not have mattered if he had been able to play, anyway.

So what do we think, Tigers fans? Is this roster (listed after the jump) capable of taking down the Twins and holding off the White Sox? Real life actual baseball is only a few short days away…

Starting Pitchers

RH Justin Verlander

RH Max Scherzer

LH Dontrelle Willis

RH Rick Porcello

RH Jeremy Bonderman

Bullpen

RH Eddie Bonine

RH Ryan Perry

LH Brad Thomas

LH Fu-Te Ni

RH Joel Zumaya

LH Phil Coke

RH Jose Valverde

Lineup (projected)

CF Austin Jackson

LF Johnny Damon

RF Magglio Ordonez

1B Miguel Cabrera

DH Carlos Guillen

3B Brandon Inge

C Gerald Laird

2B Scott Sizemore

SS Adam Everett

Reserves

IF/OF Ryan Raburn

IF/OF Don Kelly

C Alex Avila

INF Ramon Santiago

Tags: Clete Thomas, Don Kelly