Tigers' final Opening Day roster prediction: Stacked pitching staff but iffy outfield

The Tigers came into spring training with a fair amount of uncertainty about who was going to be their everyday third baseman (a perennial issue, at this point), but things have gotten even more iffy since the losses of Parker Meadows, Matt Vierling, and Akil Baddoo to injury. Vierling would've been the easiest pick for the hot corner, given that the Tigers weren't swayed by Jace Jung's performance and demoted him, but he'll miss Opening Day with a rotator cuff issue.

Both Vierling and Meadows' injuries also heavily effect the outfield; Meadows was expected to be Detroit's everyday center fielder; and Vierling could've taken reps at the corners if the team isn't enthused with early performances from rookies Wenceel Pérez and Justyn-Henry Malloy.

AJ Hinch has been playing around with his defensive configurations a lot over the past week, with Colt Keith heading back to second base for a game, Javy Báez over at third, and Spencer Torkelson in the outfield (of all places). It seems that the key for the Tigers, while they wait for Meadows and Vierling to be ready, will be versatility. Last year, the first few Tigers lineups offered a lot of day-to-day changes, and we should probably expect the same this year.

However, if we had to take a best guess at what the roster might look like when the Tigers head to LA to face the Dodgers, it might be something like this:

• Catchers (2): Jake Rogers, Dillon Dingler
• First base (1): Colt Keith
• Second base (1): Gleyber Torres
• Shortstop (1): Javier Báez
• Third base (1): Zach McKinstry
• Outfielders (3): Riley Greene, Wenceel Pérez, Justyn-Henry Malloy
• Designated hitter (1): Kerry Carpenter
• Bench/utility (3): Trey Sweeney, Spencer Torkelson, Ryan Kreidler
• Starting rotation (5): Tarik Skubal, Jack Flaherty, Reese Olson, Jackson Jobe, Casey Mize
• Bullpen (8): Tommy Kahnle, John Brebbia, Jason Foley, Will Vest, Beau Brieske, Tyler Holton, Kenta Maeda, Keider Montero

Tigers Opening Day roster projection 1.0: Detroit's bullpen looks great, the defense less so

Despite the uncertainty with the defense, the pitching staff looks incredibly solid. Of course, the Tigers will have ace Tarik Skubal on the bump against the Dodgers, Jack Flaherty and Reese Olson will slot in as Nos. 2 and 3, Jackson Jobe is likely to get a shot at a complete rookie season, and Casey Mize will be fighting for his life in the organization.

Kenta Maeda and Keider Montero will go to the bullpen, giving the Tigers a lot of optionality in terms of usage. Jason Foley and Tommy Kahnle should be expected to get the ball most often in high-leverage late-innings, but Montero especially could be an effective long reliever. Kahnle and John Brebbia's signings push late-season standouts from last year off the roster — Sean Guenther, Brenan Hanifee, Brant Hurter — but it'll give the Tigers some nice depth in Triple-A in the event of injury.

If you think this roster feels a little lopsided, that's a good observation. The Tigers' pitching staff shouldn't give fans too much to worry about, but the lineup may be a bit of a different story.