Detroit Tigers: Who will be the Opening Day Second Baseman?

The heavy favorite to get the first crack at the everyday job at second base is Dixon Machado. The 26-year old is coming off a season in which he played a career-high 73 games. Of those 73 games, 59 came at shortstop or second base to spell Iglesias or Kinsler.

The Venezuelan has always been known more for his defense, hitting just .246 with a .303 on-base percentage in 105 Major League games. Machado is not known for power either, with just 10 career extra-base hits.

Machado showed improvement at the plate last year, hitting a career-best .259. While the sample is small, it gives optimists hope that he can continue to get better with more playing time.

The real value with Machado has always been with his defense. Baseball America rated him as the Best Defensive Infielder and the Best Infield Arm in the Detroit system for three straight years while he was in the minors.

An Iglesias-Machado double play duo could be a great defensive combination. However, if the Tigers are looking to replace Kinsler’s offense, they likely need to search elsewhere.

With the best of their infield prospects in the lower minor leagues, Detroit was looking for infield depth this offseason. To address that, they brought in a few players as non-roster invitees to spring camp.

Alexi Amarista has played more than 700 games in the majors, but is not much of a hitter (.231/.275/.323 career slash line). He also struggled mightily defensively as a utility guy with Colorado last year.

Pete Kozma played just 39 games last year with the Rangers and Yankees, going 5-for-45 at the plate.

Former second round pick Niko Goodrum hit 13 homers at Triple-A Rochester and was a September call-up for the Twins. Upon his arrival however, he went 1-for-17 and was let go by Minnesota in November.

Ronny Rodriguez may have the best offensive upside of this quartet. In seven seasons with Cleveland, Rodriguez launched double-digit homers five times and owned a .262 batting average. However, his walk rate was less then 5%, he struck out four and a half times for every walk, and has not yet cracked the majors.

None of these guys are likely to be in contention for anything other than a utility spot.

With the Tigers rebuilding, it was presumed Detroit would mostly steer clear of the veteran free agent market. So far that has rung true (minus innings-eater Mike Fiers and speedy center fielder Leonys Martin), but if the Tigers want to look outside the organization for second base help, it could be had in the form of veteran free agents Brandon Phillips or Neil Walker.

Now 36, Phillips has seen his defense slip a little over the last couple of years. He can still hit though, posting a .285 average and 34 doubles with the Braves and Angels in 2017.

Despite his age, Phillips’ 2017 numbers compare favorably with Kinsler’s. Phillips hit nearly 50 points higher, and despite drawing only 21 walks, was still slightly better by both wOBA (.316 to .313) and wRC+ (93 to 91). While those numbers are below league average, they’re easier to swallow when the player isn’t making $11 million, as Kinsler was last year.

The brother-in-law of former Tigers fan favorite Don Kelly, Walker entered the offseason reportedly searching for a four-year deal. With no takers to this point, Detroit could offer a short-term deal for Walker to try and regain some of the value he lost in a down 2017 campaign.

Walker is a switch-hitter with a career .272/.341/.437 slash line and eight straight double-digit homer seasons. While he’s the best hitter of the bunch we’ve highlighted, he lacks the defensive skills of Machado.

Next: A fantasy baseball guide to your Tigers

The Verdict

Ultimately, Machado is the guy at second. The thought of a veteran who can bring more offense to the table is intriguing, but Machado is much better defensively. It also isn’t completely out of the question for his offense to spike a little if given the chance to play everyday. The job is his to lose.