Happy Trails to Adam Everett and Clete Thomas

As we all know by now, the Tigers plan to designate for assignment tomorrow shortstop Adam Everett, he of the .185 batting average, and recall infielder Danny Worth to take his place.

This seems almost a lateral move to me, as neither Everett nor Worth are ever going to hit all that much. Everett has an above average glove, and so does Worth, at least potentially, but Worth is likely to hit a bit more. Not a lot more, mind up, just a bit more.

Worth has never been a great hitter in the minors, so counting on him to all of a sudden become an above average hitter in the big leagues is a fool’s errand. While he did impress in his two week stay in the Show last month, keep in mind that in his 25 plate appearances, he walked just once and recorded eight hits (.333 average), but all were singles. (…)

If you are expecting to be wowed by the new Tiger’s bat, you will likely be disappointed.

But you will be wowed with his glove. As Worth showed last month, he can pick it at second base. He can pick it at short, too, that you’ll see. He’s not ever going to hit .300, I don’t think, and he’ll probably never hit even 10 homers in a year, but he likely won’t hit .185, either.

All that being said, this still feels like the right move. If Everett isn’t a starter, he offers no value to his team, as there would almost never be a time he would be a viable pinch-hitting option. Unless you need to lay down a squeeze bunt, anyway.

In other news, the Free Press is reporting today that Toledo OF Clete Thomas will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing microfracture surgery on his knee. This is the same surgery that Indians OF Grady Sizemore underwent last week. The rehab will take 9-12 months.

This is obviously bad news for Thomas. Clete was expected to make the big club out of camp this year after being a staple of the Tigers bench for most of the last two years. The signing of Johnny Damon likely cost Thomas a roster spot and a shoulder problem landed him on the DL to start the year.

Thomas has been passed over by Brennan Boesch and probably Casper Wells on the Tigers depth chart even before this knee injury, so even without it he might have had trouble returning to Detroit this year. Now, he’ll likely have to prove his health next season before the Tigers can use him, either as a reserve, or as a trade chip.