Detroit Tigers: Time to Bring On The Young Guns

It’s time for the Detroit Tigers to embrace their future and start their young arms for the remainder of the season.

Michael Fulmer, Daniel Norris and Matt Boyd are the future of the Detroit Tigers. With no other viable options, it’s time for Brad Ausmus and the rest of the organization to get behind guys who give you a better hope to win baseball games now and in the future.

Fulmer has already displayed what he can do at the big league level over his last couple of starts, Norris is the highly-regarded prospect that was the centerpiece of the David Price deal in 2015 and Boyd has had a couple of solid starts this season.

Like it or not, these are the guys the Tigers need to perform if this organization is going to avoid going into the tank once Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera can no longer carry this team.

The time to start finding out exactly what this organization has in its arsenal is now.

Anibal Sanchez has already made his way to the bullpen. And while I’m not convinced he’s going to be there for good, it still provides a golden opportunity for these young arms to show what they can do over a prolonged stretch. 

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Mike Pelfrey was a waste of a signing. The Tigers are better off cutting him and just forfeiting the ridiculous amount of money he’s owed over the next two seasons. If he wants to accept a role in the bullpen, that’s fine, but you can’t continue to trot this guy out there every fifth day.

Shane Greene is nearing a return, and all indications are that the Tigers are prepared to give him a start or two to see if he can round into form. Well, I just don’t see that happening. Greene is a guy I would love to have in the bullpen over Pelfrey. He’s young and he can get on a roll quickly. He just doesn’t have enough in the tank to throw more than one or two quality innings.

That brings us to the young guns, the future of the rotation.

Verlander and Jordan Zimmerman are two guys who are going to be here a while. It’s time to start filling in the spots behind them.

Fulmer has already shown that he has the stuff. It’s tough to see how the Tigers could justify taking him out of the rotation at any point this season.

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Norris had a couple of real nice starts last year before succumbing to injuries. After being called up, he was just an “extra arm” in the bullpen, according to the Tigers. We all know that’s not going to last. The kid hasn’t been without his struggles in Toledo, but that doesn’t mean he won’t dazzle in a Tigers uniform. Sometimes being in the minor leagues is more about tinkering with things than it is about producing results.

Even though he falls to third on the Tigers’ pitching prospects totem poll, Boyd has shown promise. The southpaw is a change-of-pace kind of guy that just needs some seasoning. He moves around the strike zone well and is able to keep hitters off balance with regularity. He could be the casualty from this list should Sanchez find a groove later in the season.

Listen, these guys aren’t going to power the Tigers to a world championship this season. That responsibility falls on the shoulders of the team’s veterans (though that doesn’t seem likely to happen, either).

The youngsters are going to take their lumps. But let me let you in on a little secret: Pelfrey and Greene will as well. Why not let the guys who are so vitally important to the franchise’s future be the ones to learn those lessons and possibly use them to build for a brighter future?

It seems simple, and it is. Pelfrey and Greene aren’t going to do anything for the team this season that Fulmer, Norris and Boyd won’t be able to do. You’re giving yourself a slightly better chance to win now and definitely building for a better tomorrow.

Next: The Rise of Michael Fulmer

It’s time to turn this team over to a new generation.