Detroit Tigers: 3 realistic free agents to pursue

Kolten Wong could give the Detroit Tigers second base help

The excitement level drops quite a bit for the second name on the list: Kolten Wong.

Wong could give the Tigers a second baseman for a couple of years, allowing them to move Niko Goodrum around the field as kind of a superutility player who can play both infield and outfield positions.

The price would likely be right, too.

The St. Louis Cardinals turned down a $12.5 million option on Wong earlier this offseason, and Wong reportedly turned down a multiyear offer from the Cardinals after that, per Bob Elliott. Figures were not mentioned.

MLBTR projected his contract at two years, $16 million. The reader prediction at FanGraphs came in a little higher on both figures, three years and a little shy of $30 million.

Tim Dierkes wrote:

Wong shines defensively, picking up a Gold Glove last year and showing strong marks in UZR, DRS, and outs above average.  Still, I’m not convinced defense-first, second-base only players like Wong or Cesar Hernandez will do well in free agency.

Although Wong was not projected to the Tigers, they were among the teams listed as possible fits.

Wong was worth 1.3 fWAR in 2020 and is projected to be worth 1.8 fWAR in 2021. His above-average glove could be helpful to the Tigers’ young pitching staff.

His below-average bat (a career .261/.333/.384 slashline or 96 wRC+) isn’t going to help much, but it probably won’t hurt greatly either.

A three-year deal could help the Tigers transition with a veteran presence up the middle to go alongside Castro, with the knowledge that the bigger bats will be rising to the big leagues by 2022.

Joc Pederson could fill the Detroit Tigers’ outfield needs

Joc Pederson does not exactly answer the Tigers’ upcoming issues up the middle. The 28-year-old has logged plenty of innings in center field, to be certain.

But even before the arrival of Mookie Betts in Los Angeles, the Dodgers made the decision to move Pederson to the corner positions. Pederson played just 21 games in center in 2019.

Maybe that’s not that big of a deal in the long run. Maybe Detroit can afford to carry a little weaker bat in center in the future (and they’ll certainly have some glove guys with weak bats to choose from, like Victor Reyes) if they have Greene and Pederson’s bats in the order.

Or maybe Pederson, who is plenty young still, holds down the center spot, too, even if he’s a little weaker there.

Pederson’s contract shouldn’t be out of line for a Tigers club with a relatively low payroll and no big-ticket pieces to pay beyond Miguel Cabrera and his $32 million per year deal.

MLBTR puts him at two years, $18 million. FanGraphs readers essentially agree: two years, $20 million.

The left-handed batter struggled last season, but his career figures should outweigh a poor 60 games under unique conditions. He doesn’t hit for average (.230, oy) and he strikes out too much (24% last year, 22% for his career), but that power. “Can he ever hit the ball?” has the potential to quickly become “Can he ever hit the ball!” quick. That’s led to a 118 wRC+ for his career.

Certainly, he’s not the kind of solution to the problem Springer may be. But he certainly fits the budget much better and seems a lot more realistic in terms of players who might actually play in Detroit.