Detroit Tigers: Bringing the Band Back Together?

Sep 7, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers left fielder Rajai Davis (20) hits a home run in the seventh inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Five Detroit Tigers that ended the season on the Major League roster are free agents after the season. They are Alex Avila, Rajai Davis, Tom Gorzelanny, Alfredo Simon, and Randy Wolf. The Tigers also traded David Price, Joakim Soria, and Yoenis Cespedes at the trade deadline, all of whom are also free agents.

The Tigers should not just get the band back together from a failed season. If you bring back a group that failed, why would anyone expect a different result?

There are some quality players the Tigers can bring in to try to fix their issues from this group, but the Tigers should not bring back not even half of those players.

The Tigers have all but officially moved on from Avila, Simon, and Wolf, but at least have a mild interest in signing the rest of the players.

Rumors have surfaced this week that the Tigers have a significant interest in signing Davis and Soria, but have not ruled out the rest of the players. Rumors swirled that the Tigers would try to re-sign both Cespedes and Price.

The Tigers should not sign neither Price nor Cespedes. Those two will cost the Tigers too much money going forward. Price will demand a $200+ million contract while Cespedes’ contract will exceed $100 million.

The Tigers need to build from within without trying themselves up going forward. If 2016 is another disaster, the Tigers should start from the ground floor and build from there. A Price or Cespedes contract will not give the Tigers the future flexibility they will need.

An interesting name to watch will be Gorzelanny. His future may show the future of the Tigers’ bullpen. If the Tigers sign Gorzelanny, it shows they either believe in his mechanical tweaks in September that led to his 2.89 ERA and 1.071 WHIP, or they do not believe they have a better option in free agency or in their farm system.

The bullpen is the biggest fix the Tigers need going forward. If the Tigers want to re-sign Soria to lock down the 9^th, that would be the first step in the right direction, but they still need to fill spots not filled by players named Alex Wilson, Drew VerHagen, and Blaine Hardy.

If the Tigers bring back a majority of their free agents in 2016, the expectation for the season should be no different than how the season ended: a failure. The Tigers are a point in their organization where they need to move in a new direction. Moving on from these players is a step in the “rebooting” process.