Horrifying defensive numbers could be Tigers' kiss of death if they don't improve soon

The Detroit Tigers have had a middling, somewhat uninspiring first month of the season. There are a number of reasons for that, but the team’s awful defense is an issue they need to address. If they don’t, they can kiss whatever playoff hopes they had for this season goodbye.

Detroit’s collective outs above average as a team is at -14 which is the worst mark in MLB. The only three players who grade out favorably are Zach McKinstry, Parker Meadows, and Gleyber Torres — and two of them are on the IL. Sloppy defense produces sloppy baseball, so this is something the Tigers have to be concerned about.

If OAA isn’t your bag, the Tigers rank 22nd in MLB when it comes to team fielding percentage at .984. Entering Wednesday night’s game they’ve committed 17 errors, which is tied with the Colorado Rockies and Chicago White Sox for 20th-most in baseball. Anytime a team is mentioned in the same breath as the White Sox and Rockies, it is not a good thing.

A few of the worst offenders for Tigers on defense need to clean it up

Two of the worst offenders on defense are Spencer Torkelson at first base and Kerry Carpenter in the outfield. It’s not all that surprising that Torkelson isn’t the most fleet of foot and does not possess the softest hands at first base. He is out there because of what he does at the plate and the power he possesses. But this has been a recurring issue for him. It’s easy to overlook it when he hits 31 homers like he did last season, but when his bat isn’t quite as hot this season it makes every defensive miscue stand out even more.

Carpenter has been the most egregious offender with his defense in right field, worth -5 OAA so far this season. His defense was worth -3 OAA last season, so it’s a continuation for him as well. Carpenter’s performance at the plate also isn’t quite strong enough to gloss over his defense and accept it in exchange for his offense.

While Kevin McGonigle has been stellar at the plate so far for Detroit, his defense has been an issue. Perhaps part of that has to do with the fact that he’s playing out of position at third base. He’s been a shortstop throughout his minor league career, so maybe it will take him time to get used to the hot corner.

He’s got one error at shortstop and one at third base so far and has been worth -4 OAA overall. Maybe Javier Baez going onto the IL will allow McGonigle to get more playing time at his natural position of shortstop, where he should be more comfortable. Tigers fans will probably cut him a little slack, though, as he’s hitting .328/.426/.509 with two home runs and 13 runs batted in.

Still, the defense needs to get cleaned up. The teams that make a run in October play clean baseball, so the sloppiness needs to end if the Tigers want to prove that they are a legitimate contender this season.

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