Detroit Tigers: Two More Robbie Grossman-like Deals to Fill Out a Lineup

After executing their first multiyear signing since 2016, the Detroit Tigers have a couple more holes to fill before Opening Day

On Tuesday, the Detroit Tigers signed outfielder Robbie Grossman to a two-year, $10 million contract to roam a corner outfield spot at Comerica on an everyday basis. The assumption is that Grossman will play left field mostly–considering he played just six innings in right for the Oakland A’s last season.

Grossman fits the bill of what fans have been begging for this offseason: improvement. I have seen some describe Grossman as ‘low risk, high reward’ and I just don’t see how that is the case. There is not much high reward to be had with Grossman, who will now be entering his age-31 season, has never supplied a 2-WAR season across any of his eight seasons in the league.

That said, Grossman is a unanimous upgrade from the Christin Stewart/Jorge Bonafacio experience we had in 2020; and perhaps it could allow Reyes to have some more time in centerfield if necessary. The true value in Grossman is not his upside or ‘high reward,’ but the reasonable expectations that come with the veteran switch-hitting bat. A .240-.260 batting average, a hand full of steals, the ability to take walks and limit strikeouts, and perhaps some newfound power. Not the most exciting profile, but one worthy of an everyday slot on this team.

Grossman gives us a nice baseline for what the club plans to do this offseason. Frankly, it is pretty similar to the strategy last season, which is to fill holes with second division regular talent to hopefully play competitively as their prospects mature and reach the big leagues. With this in mind, there are a couple more options that the Detroit Tigers could pursue that would not sacrifice their financials but would be steps two and three of overhauling a third of their lineup from last season.

1) Andrelton Simmons – MLBTR Projection: One Year, $12 million

Perhaps Simmons proves too costly, but I hope that the Detroit Tigers have begun to realize that having a strong right side of the infield defensively is going to be vital for their young pitching to sustain a season. Giving away extra outs prevents the club from being able to maximize the innings of Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal, who will almost certainly be on some type of strict limit in 2021.

Simmons does fit the bill of a glove-first option, but his high contact at a premium defensive position makes his power less requisite than someone like Grossman. At one year, this still gives the Detroit Tigers the flexibility long-term to decide how they want to handle the position while allowing players like Niko Goodrum and Willi Castro the opportunity to shift in and out of the second base spot as needed. Our own Jon Erkkila wrote more about the possibility of Simmons in Detroit here.

2) Travis Shaw – 2020 Salary $4 million

Both Al Avila and AJ Hinch have not been private about their affection for versatility. Travis Shaw would certainly provide that with his ability to play first, second, and third base at the big league level–and with a $4 million salary last season that figures to take a slight dip, it would be the type of deal the Detroit Tigers would be seeking.

Shaw’s career has been one of peaks and valleys–posting back-to-back 30+ home-run seasons in 2017 and 2018 with the Brewers, but slashed just .239/.309/.411 across 50 games with Toronto in 2020. Like Grossman, Shaw is someone with well-built walk numbers across his career and would allow Candelario to stay more toward his familiar third base stable.

https://twitter.com/fswisconsin/status/1173764993428312064

The downside to someone like Shaw is it doesn’t fill the catching need they still have–and I am increasingly convinced the Detroit Tigers will be looking for someone that can catch as well handle first base occasionally. Additionally, considering Shaw and Candelario play many of the same spots and both are lefty bats (although Candy switch hits), there might be too much duplicity there to overcome as well.

Regardless, it appears the Detroit Tigers are starting to make some improvements to help the on-field product in 2021. Simmons would provide defensive stability for the young staff, Shaw some true offensive upside. Neither are needle-movers in terms of contention, but it will go lengths toward a competitive roster–hopefully, a roster in which fans will be able to witness in-person.