Detroit Tigers Player Preview: Andrew Romine

Over the last two seasons, Andrew Romine has made himself at home as a backup infielder for the Detroit Tigers.

After spending some time as a starting shortstop in 2014 he has been a frequent defensive and base running sub for Nick Castellanos. The plan is that he will have the same role this coming season that he had last year.

Andrew Romine was acquired by the Detroit Tigers in the 2013-2014 offseason to replace Jose Iglesias at shortstop when it was announced he would miss the 2014 season. He was the starting shortstop for a while but started to split time with Eugenio Suarez when Suarez made his way to the big league roster. The left-handed batter Romine hit a .227 batting average with 2 home runs in 2014, but was held on to mainly because of his decent defense.

In 2015 he was relegated to a part-time role with the return of Jose Iglesias. He came in a lot late in the game as a pinch runner or defensive sub at third base for Nick Castellanos because he was a lot faster. Late in the season, he got more reps at shortstop after Iglesias went down with his thumb injury. In 2015, he hit a .255 batting average with 2 home runs. So far, he is hitting .259 in 17 games this spring training.

Best Case Scenario

For Andrew Romine, the best case scenario is that he just keeps playing at the level he’s at. He’ll probably never be a power hitter, but that doesn’t really matter since he’s mainly a defensive sub or pinch runner. It has become somewhat of a routine to put him at third in the 9^th when the team has a close lead because of his better defensive abilities. So far that seems to be working. It also seems pretty clear that Jose Iglesias will need some games off in the regular season so Andrew Romine is good insurance there. Hitting around .250 is good enough for a backup infielder.

Worst Case Scenario

The worst case scenario for Andrew Romine is that he somehow just fails to produce at the plate or on the infield. He’s a good infielder so barring an injury he’ll probably stay good on the defensive side. What could hurt him are his offensive numbers. He hit .255 last season, which is good enough to stay on the big league roster, but in 2014 he hit .227. In 2014 he was able to get away with a low batting average because there weren’t any good shortstops available to replace him – which is an entirely other issue. With the infield already being set, he is already at backup status, and with a batting average in the low .200’s with almost no power, he may not stay him on the big league roster.

Next: Detroit Tigers Blow Out is Not the End of the World

For someone who was first acquired as just a fill-in, Andrew Romine has made a name for himself on the Detroit Tigers’ roster. After playing a big role in 2015, it’s time to see if he will follow it up this season.

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