Detroit Tigers: Why Curtis Granderson is ideal outfield addition this winter

Power

With J.D. Martinez and Justin Upton gone, Ian Kinsler a potential trade chip and Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez coming off seasons plagued by trips to the disabled list, Detroit will be in need of some middle-of-the-order production.

Nicholas Castellanos looks set to hit behind Cabrera, while Jeimer Candelario should also play a part, whether it be hitting second or fifth.

Outside of those two, however, Detroit lacks players capable of driving in runs on a consistent basis.

This is especially true considering Tigers batters logged a .149 ISO in the month of September. Only six teams had a lower collective mark in the month.

That’s where Granderson comes in.

The former Tiger has ISOs of .241 and .228 in the last two seasons. His mark in the category hasn’t dipped below .160 since he left the Motor City.

By comparison, just five players on the current roster, Castellanos, Mikie Mahtook, Kinsler, John Hicks and McCann had an ISO over .160.

Castellanos was the only one of the group to eclipse the .200 mark in 2017.

It also doesn’t hurt that Granderson has mashed 102 home runs since the start of the 2014 season.

Only 13 outfielders and 27 players total have more over that span. The veteran also ranks 24^th among outfielders in ISO with a .205 number since Opening Day 2014.

Ideally, the outfielder would hit fifth behind Cabrera and Castellanos and ahead of Candelario.