Detroit Tigers: 3 way-too-early high-impact free agents to target

The Detroit Tigers sign Carlos Correa to be their everyday shortstop

Carlos Correa turns 27 next month and has put up an impressive season as he seems to be hitting his stride on offense and defense.

His slash line has been .272/.367/.478 with a WRC+ of 137 with 17 home runs and 59 RBI so far this season. He hits the ball all over the field with power and his current hard hit% contact rate is just below his high in 2017 of 44.6% and his walk and strike-out rates are below the league average. 

He has had some injuries sure but he has played over 100 games in every season but his rookie season and in 2019. Currently, he has an fWAR of 3.9 and we are all familiar with the fact he once played for manager A.J Hinch.

Whatever the state of Michigan has to do as a collective to make this happen outside of money,  whether its stock in all three automakers, renaming a city “Correa City”, this would be high impactful because it would provide a much needed steady power threat and defense at a position that has been near the bottom as a team in fielding (26th according to FanGraphs) compared to Houston, which is ranked number 6 on the strength of Correa.

As painful as this next sentence is to say, Detroit struggles as a free agent destination because it is in the Midwest however, there is enough talent here that doing whatever it takes to make Correa a Tiger must happen. His impact alone could help Detroit get into playoff contention sooner.

Detroit Tigers sign right-hander Marcus Stroman

Ignore the win loss record because some people believe that is important for a second and look at starting pitching market in the winter. 

• Zach Greinke
• Justin Verlander
• Max Scherzer
• Kevin Gausman
• Clayton Kershaw
• Marcus Stroman

Gausman and Stroman are the youngest ones of that group. All you would need for Stroman to do is to be a middle rotation pitcher who can not only mentor Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal but give you anywhere from 150 to 200 innings.

Storman is a gamer and he shows a flare on the mound. He has played in a tough media market and I think personally here in Detroit, people would love his energy and makeup as a player. He has an ERA of 2.80 (FIP is 3.49) and currently has an fWAR of 2.4.

Verlander coming home to Detroit is a good idea but it can’t be the only one. Look at the way the Dodgers and White Sox loaded on pitching during the trade deadline. For kicks, LA is set to sign Cole Hamles.  As cliche as this is to say, you can not have enough pitching.

Detroit needs pitching and if they could bring back the gang and sign Verlander and Scherzer that would be great to all Tigers fans but that is not reality.

Detroit Tigers sign Chris Taylor

Wait, a super-utility guy? What? How is that impactful?

Perhaps since Tigers fans may have not seen one hit some sort of power (21 homers in 2017, 17 in 2018, 17 so far this season) and one who has had a wRC+ of over 100 in his time in five seasons.  Not to mention this season, he has an fWAR of 3.7 and before you say “so, your point?” he has played in centerfield, second base, shortstop, left field, a pair of games at third and right field this season.

The best part about Taylor? He does not have a negative DRS (Defensive Runs Saved) in any of those positions listed above. He is a solid defender who can get on base consistently and that is something the Tigers could use. Manager AJ Hinch loves utility players so why not get the most impactful one on the market?

Salary numbers for all three would be hard to guess, considering there could be a possibility of a strike this off-season. But adding two of these three high-impact players in addition to other smaller deals to address the lack of depth would help the Tigers get closer to playoff contention.

The Tigers just need to be the smartest team in free agency. Spend smart to get impactful players and these three to me, are a good start.