Detroit Tigers 5 defensive questions

Mar 19, 2015; Melbourne, FL, USA; Detroit Tigers left fielder Yoenis Cespedes (52) throws against the Washington Nationals at Space Coast Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Barr-USA TODAY Sports

The Detroit Tigers rolled through the first week of the season largely because of eye-popping offense, aggressive base running and strong starting pitching.

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But the defense should not be overlooked.

We all expected the Tigers’ defense to be one of the units to take a step up this season with Yoenis Cespedes on the team, Jose Iglesias back at shortstop and added outfield speed from Anthony Gose.

It has been actually better than advertised.

Other than the pitchers struggling defensively 2006-style, the defense has been good and sometimes dazzling. Will it hold up throughout the next five months and three weeks of baseball?

Let’s take a look at five defensive questions for the 2015 Detroit Tigers.

Next: Miggy

Mar 30, 2015; Lakeland, FL, USA; Detroit Tigers first basemen Miguel Cabrera (24) attempts to tag out Atlanta Braves third baseman Kelly Johnson (24) in the second inning of the spring training game at Joker Marchant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

#5: Will Miggy be slowed at first base?

The early returns for Miguel Cabrera at the plate have been beyond impressive.

Miggy has suffered through some rather painful injuries in each of the last two seasons, but he now appears to be very healthy and ready to go.

After two surgeries in the last two offseasons, the Detroit Tigers don’t seem to be taking the cautious approach to Cabrera’s return to the game–much like they are doing with Jose Iglesias. They are also being extremely careful with Victor Martinez, which means no time in the field at first base.

This means that Miggy will be on his feet in the field 5-6 days per week. Will this cause too much wear and tear and lead to a less effective first baseman?

He will never win a Gold Glove, but Cabrera knows how to play first base. I would call him a slightly above average first baseman, which is an upgrade over Prince Fielder, who was simply a terrible defender.

It is also impressive that Miggy is good at first because he played in the outfield in his early days with the Florida Marlins, shifted to third base, shifted to first during his first year in Detroit in 2008, then to third, and back to first.

I am betting Cabrera’s defense will still be good this season. He seems to be driven in all facets of the game this season as he finally seems to be (knocking on wood as I type) fully healthy.

Next: James McCann

Mar 14, 2015; Lakeland, FL, USA; Detroit Tigers catcher James McCann (34) catches a ball during a spring training baseball game at Joker Marchant Stadium. The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Detroit Tigers 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

#4: Will there be a downgrade defensively with James McCann?

This may be more of a non-issue than we originally thought because James McCann has started just one game in the early going.

Throughout the offseason it seemed as if the Detroit Tigers would be going with a fairly even split between Alex Avila and McCann depending on the opposing starting pitch, but with Avila’s hot start, manager Brad Ausmus seems to be going with the starting-backup arrangement, much like it was last year with Avila-Bryan Holaday.

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This could, of course, change as the season progresses if Avila regresses back to his hitting norms of the last 2-3 years. Should that time come where McCann gets more playing time, will it downgrade the Tigers’ defense?

Though it was largely in the minors, McCann’s stats stack up or are better than Avila’s. He threw out 42% of would-be stealers while Avila was a solid for MLB 34%. Fielding percentage was .993 for McCann, .995 for Avila. Each committed just five errors.

McCann is a rookie, so don’t expect him to hold these numbers for an extended period in MLB–at least not yet. But thinking it would be a tremendous downgrade going from Avila to McCann behind the plate is not the case.

Next: Casty

Mar 14, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Detroit Tigers third baseman Nick Castellanos (9) throws to first base during the fifth inning against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

#3: Will Casty’s defense be the weak link?

No one believes that Nick Castellanos will ever be a Gold Glove defender, and looking across the diamond, he might actually be the worst defender among the regulars on the Detroit Tigers.

You will always have a defensive liability on any baseball team, but Dave Dombrowski has done a good job in recent years of providing balance to the team.

In the Jim Leyland years it was about the sluggers, waiting around for a three-run homer with strong starting pitching. That was not a bad way to construct a team, but with a new manager comes a new mindset and Ausmus wanted his teams to be quicker and better defensively.

Castellanos is a hold-over from the Leyland age, where offense trumped defense. Yes Casty may be the weak defensive link, but you can see bits and pieces of being a bit stronger through the season’s first week.

Sunday in Cleveland with Kyle Lobstein struggling mightily, Nick made some sliding stops to prevent the Indians from getting back into the game. It was nothing spectacular, and he looked a bit awkward doing it, but he got the job done.

I suppose that will be the best thing we can say about Castellanos at third this season: “he got the job done.” That’s all the Tigers expect out of him.

Next: Cespedes for the rest of us

Apr 12, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Detroit Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias (1) throws out Cleveland Indians left fielder Jerry Sands (40) in the seventh inning at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

#1: Will the Detroit Tigers have two Gold Glove middle infielders?

Fans were extremely excited in November 2013 when the Detroit Tigers sent Prince Fielder to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Ian Kinsler. While the Prince-Tigers’ fan relationship turned very sour throughout the 2013 season, and many fans were delighted to see him go, they were equally happy to see Kinsler come back in return.

Kinsler has offered a decent stick throughout his career but the most exciting thing about his addition to the team was his paring with Jose Iglesias. Fans were thinking that it would finally give the Tigers a keystone combination they have lacked since the glory days of Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker.

The team even symbolically acknowledged this by issuing Kinsler #3, thus making Iglesias #1 a sort of bizzaro Tram-Sweet Lou. Of course this duo never saw one game together in the field in 2014 because of Jose’s season-ending shin surgery.

Now (again knocking on wood) seemingly fully healthy, Iglesias and Kinsler have settled in nicely to become a formidable double-play duo.

Could this be the duo that wins Gold Gloves at these positions in the same year for the first time since 1984 when Trammel and Whitaker won the hardware?

That was the last year a Tigers’ shortstop won it and the last time any Tiger won it was Placido Polanco in 2009 at second base, though many of us feel Kinsler was absolutely robbed of the honor a season ago.

I am predicting it now. The Tigers will take home their first Gold Glove in five seasons and the new #1-#3 combo will each take one home.

Next: MCB: TigerTalk #4