Detroit Tigers: Diving deeper into Scott Harris’s 3 fundamental concepts

The Detroit Tigers need to revolutionize the way they handle young talent.

One of the things that the Detroit Tigers need to do is create changes in the way that they handle young talent. For Scott Harris, this means bringing in and acquiring young talent to add to the farm system and help the team move in the right direction.

In fact, during the presser, Harris was asked several times how he views and values the Detroit Tigers farm system at the moment. Every time he side-stepped it, including a comment from a San Francisco Giants perspective. This one stood out to me because of his small chuckle after he finished talking.

Harris said he did not feel that it was fair to throw valuations out about the Tigers farm system opting to say this instead.

“I’m not sure it’s a good idea to share the Giants’ perspective of the Tigers’ farm system.” – Scott Harris from the introductory press conference on Tuesday.

For the Tigers, that has to sting a bit. Not that Harris is in the wrong saying it, but it speaks to the lack of talent in the minors. The team has some players to be excited about and players who will be future big leaguers, but they are not stacked with the ability to acquire young talent being something to boast about.

Harris is aiming to come in and change this. He’s going to focus on improving the team’s drafting, so there are no reservations about the team’s first-round pick like there are with Jace Jung. The hope is that he can transform how the Tigers operate regarding talent acquisition.

This means trades, drafting, free agents, etc., which is vital for the Tigers to build a farm system with prospects to replenish the big league club when needed.

Harris has a lot of work to do with a big road ahead of him, but his visions seem doable in the long run.

Detroit Tigers need to create their own brand and own culture of development.

The second thing that the Detroit Tigers’ new president of baseball operations mentioned was developing a culture that fosters player development. This plays into exactly what I meant when I wrote about the Tigers copying the Baltimore Orioles’ rebuild and fostering an excellent place to develop.

But as Harris suggested, the Detroit Tigers want to do things differently. They do not want to copy others but rather find their own way. This feels like finding a way to reinvent the brand that is Tigers baseball.

The Tigers will come out in 2023 and look much different if Harris has anything to say about it, and he will. He’s going to make changes and start putting this Tigers team into a position to be an attractive destination.

For the Tigers, this means becoming a destination players want to come to in the offseasons. Harris noted that they want to bring in players who feel they can come to Detroit to get better.

On top of that, Harris noted during the presser that he wants prospects to not feel like they are only working towards a big-league call-up. He mentioned that he wants prospects to view the big leagues as the next step for them as they progress, with the big leagues being another place to keep developing.

The Tigers baseball brand will be changed greatly by Harris, and in turn, being able to create a culture of development and a new brand, he should be able to accomplish the second concept he mentioned.

The Detroit Tigers need to own the strike zone on both sides.

The last thing that the Detroit Tigers’ new president of baseball operations mentioned is owning the strike zone. Scott Harris gave a quick testament about why dominating the strike zone on both sides of the baseball is important.

For example, the Detroit Tigers need to find pitchers who can live in the zone and be efficient while employing hitters who can own the strike zone. It’s more than throwing strikes and hitting strikes.

For pitchers, being someone who goes out and shoves, dominating on the mound, the Tigers do not have to reach into their bullpen as often, which helps the durability. Guys who are in a battle on the mound, not with the hitter, but with themselves and the strike zone, are a problem.

Being able to work the zone as a pitcher and be effective influences the outcome of the game. On the flip side, the Tigers do not just need hitters who will go out and hit strikes. They need players who are able to have awareness of the zone and also stay committed to an approach.

Being able to hammer fastballs, hunting the heater, and adjusting to offspeed is one way to get it done. Instead of chasing at 56-foot-breaking balls in the left-handed batters’ box as Javier Báez likes to do, being able to hunt fastballs and punish breaking balls that pitchers leave over the plate is the best way.

It’s another one of those instances where owning the strike zone can attribute to more than just a few hits.

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The Tigers need to own the strike zone, and Harris is going to try and work with members of the organization to ensure this happens.