Detroit Tigers: These Are Their Five Core Players for 2016

The Detroit Tigers were a disappointment in 2015 but the team still has an excellent core of players to build around for the 2016 season.

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There are a few that the Tigers will have to make decisions about between now and spring training. It’s already been all but confirmed that catcher Alex Avila will most likely not be back with the team in 2016. James McCann took over the starting job when Avila was out early in the season with a knee injury. Bryon Holaday is out of options and can’t be sent back to the minor leagues without clearing waivers so he’ll certainly be McCann’s backup next season.

The main question to concern the Tigers for next season is Victor Martinez. He fought through injuries last season but still played in 120 games. In 2015 he slashed .245/.301/.366, arguably the worst season of his career.

This is no suggestion that the Tigers try to move him, even if they could. He’ll be 37 next season and is under contract for $18 million for the next three years. Martinez’ rehab has to be the team’s top priority. He can still be a valuable contributor to the Tigers as long as his legs are completely healthy and he can drive through the ball again.

Those are just two of the players who’ve been an integral part of the team in years past. What follows are the ones they will be counting on in 2016.

May 31, 2015; Anaheim, CA, USA; Detroit Tigers catcher James McCann (34) hits a sacrifice RBI in the second inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

James McCann

The catcher is the field general and no team contends for the World Series without a good one. When McCann got the chance when Avila went on the disabled list he took over the job and made it his.

In his first full season in the major leagues McCann slashed .264/.297/.387, hit seven home runs and 41 RBI’s, a solid season at the plate but what a catcher does behind the plate is even more important.

McCann was the only catcher in the American League with a Total Zone rating above 10, an outstanding number for a player at any position, especially catcher. He was also second among catchers who played over 100 games in throwing out base stealers, nailing 41 percent of the runners who ran on him.

The offense McCann provides is more than sufficient for a catcher who does as much behind the plate as he does.

J.D. Martinez

Early in the season it was looking like Martinez was a one-hit wonder early in the season. His batting average dropped to a low of .216 early in May. He was putting too much pressure on his own shoulders with Victor Martinez on the disabled list and was trying to pull everything. When he began taking the ball to all fields again his batting average and power levels soared into the stratosphere.

He finished the season with a slash line of .282/.344/.535 with a career high in home runs with 38 and RBI’s with 102.

In the field, he’s another positive player on defense, though not as highly rated as McCann or Kinsler. Martinez was third among American League right fielders in put-outs and second in assists.

Martinez won’t be a free agent until 2018 so he’ll be at the core of the Detroit Tigers for a long time.

Justin Verlander

Verlander was shut down near the end of spring training with a triceps injury and didn’t make his 2015 debut until June 13 against the Cleveland Indians. He struggled through his first month back but from July 24  to the end of the season he pitched like the ace of the staff Tigers fans knew from 2006 to 2012.

Over that span of 14 starts he had a record of 5-5, threw 99.1 innings with one complete game, struck out 91 hitters and put together a .207 ERA. He was hit by opponents for a meager 2.27 batting average with an excellent BAbip of .260.

Verlander will be paid as the ace of the staff, $28 million a year over the next four seasons, and appears ready to take up that mantle for the Tigers once again.

Miguel Cabrera

Obviously no list of core players for the Tigers would be complete without future Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera. Miggy will only be 33-years old next season and still has prime hitting years ahead of him.

Cabrera combines the rare ability to hit for tape measure power with high average. He struggled this season with various injuries but still led the American League in hitting for the fourth time in five seasons. He also led the league in On-base percentage for the fourth time in six seasons.

Cabrera is signed with the Tigers through 2023, will retire with the team and be in the Hall of Fame with a Detroit cap five years after that.