Trades Can’t Fix Tigers’ Ails

I reject the idea that Leyland's managerial abilities lost the division for the Tigers last year. Here's the scores of the final three loses (of the regular season): 8-3, 8-0, 5-1. Managers don't lose those types of games, players do.

Who would you suggest should replace him, and what evidence do you have that the replacement would be more successful?

That's very good news. The last thing the Tigers need is an over the hill third baseman with one foot in his baseball grave.

It may be that Dombrowski has no intention of acquiring Dunn, but would like to feign interest so the Nats set a price tag too high for the White Sox.

I see what you're doing there Chris, and I like it. I think you're dead-on with the idea of getting the likes of Drew and Reynolds, but I'd guess you're going to have to toss in another arm to make it happen. I'm not sure Galarraga would be good enough to swing that deal with those you mentioned, but maybe. Arizona seems to be ripe for these kinds of deals considering what they got for Haren and it's those type of guys the Tigers should be targeting. If they could get both, they could DH Reynolds if they decided to bring back Inge next year.

Chris, your approach is what I have advocated all along. Any move they might make this year has to make the team better for the next 3-4 years as well. I'm not generally one for debating specific theoretical deals but I have to wonder how Tigers fans, even the Inge haters, would react to watching Mark Reynolds bat over the course of a season. His power is undeniable but I'm not sure Detroiters have the patience for his strike outs and low AVG.

Inge has been sporting a low average and high strikeouts for years and Tiger fans love him. In fact if you add Inge's pop-ups to his strikeouts the numbers would be similar to Reynolds I'd bet. Reynolds will launch a few dingers into the seats behind the bullpens and it won't take long to embrace him at all.

Look at it from a worst-case standpoint. Say you get Dunn and offer him arb, say he accepts. Now you have Dunn or Boesch that must play the OF, neither is good defensively, but Dunn is terrible so he DH's. Not only do you have a $12-15 million DH, but your RF is not great either. Not only that but if they get Dunn this year you have to play Damon everyday in LF with Boesch in RF, so you have two below average Outfielders along side AJax. Yes, Dunn's bat would help, but the Tigers already have two healthy DHs, at some point the defense has to be accounted for as well. And when Maggs comes back, you have to either sit Boesch or sit a guy making anywhere from $8-18 million on the pine. I don't see the upside at all.

I wish there was a place for Dunn but I agree that there doesn't appear to be. There is no way he should ever again be put in the OF and Cabrera has a lock on 1B. The only way it would make sense is if he accepts a full time DH role.

Brennan Boesch needs to learn the outfield anyway so I don't have a problem running him out there. Damon isn't a great option but I think he can still get it done for a short stretch. As far as Magglio's return goes, we're only talking about the last 2-4 weeks of the season. If they are out of it by then it won't matter anyway and if they are in it then his return means the Tigers have a good problem on their hands.

Landing Dunn may not be the prudent move but it would be a bold move. In general, I think the Tiger just need to play the season out and focus on next year.

I don't think Damon's defense in LF is all that bad. Since 2007 he's played 2265 innings there with a 3.5 UZR/150. He's certainly good enough to be an everyday outfielder.

As far as the money issues are concerned, that's Mr. I's deal. If he approves a big budget, it's no skin off my nose.

Of course, the asking price will have to come down considerably, but I still say go for it. I doubt he accepts arbitration.