Sometime in early spring when professional analysts were trying to figure out who would dominate the 2008 baseball season, the Detroit Tigers were picked by many to be the team to beat. After all, they had added several high-profile bats to an already potent lineup, and signed Cy -Young  award winning starting pitcher
Dontrelle Willis.
Now it’s fall, and the Tigers are four games under .500 instead of 10 games over like last year. What the hell happened? How could this have happened to a powerhouse ball club with the third highest payroll in the game?

You could start by saying that the starting pitching has been anything but solid, as a minor-league call-up named Armando Galarraga (12-4, 3.20 ERA) has been the only bright spot in a rotation that features hard-throwing Justin Verlander (10-14, 4.53 ERA) and one of the 17 pitchers to ever have pitched a perfect game, Kenny Rogers (9-11, 5.09 ERA).
You’d have a harder time saying that it’s Detroit’s offense that is to blame, even though only Placido Polanco and Magglio Ordonez are batting .300 and above and have enough games to qualify them for the batting title. Slugger Miguel Cabrera’s numbers have declined from where they were last year, and Edgar Renteria’s average has dropped from .332 last year to a paltry .265.
Even so, Detroit is seventh in the majors in runs scored for the 2008 season. If there’s anything wrong with Detroit’s offense, it’s that it seems to be hot and cold. Instead of consistently putting up three to seven runs a game, they’re either having big days at the plate or going home after putting up next to nothing.

Detroit’s bullpen has been inconsistent at best. Lightning-armed Joel Zumaya has been on and off the disabled list this year, and it’s anyone’s guess as to whether or not he’ll ever be more than a grade-A prospect. At least he’ll have plenty of time to play Guitar Hero this October.
Todd Jones is just not performing this year either. In 2006 and 2007, he put up respectable numbers as Detroit’s closer. This year he’s been on the disabled list a couple of times and lost his job as closer to Fernando Rodney. Rodney, in my book, is a decent set-up man at best.
The biggest disappointment this year has been Willis and his 10.32 ERA in four starts. He’s currently pitching in triple-A Toledo and is getting paid $7 million to do so. Why the Tigers offered him a three year, $29 million contract is beyond me. Ever since his Cy-Young season in 2005, his numbers have declined each year. Since 2005, his strikeouts have consistently decreased and his ERA has only gone up. He gave up 69 earned runs in 2005, 96 in 2006 and 118 in 2007.

Oh well, it could be worse — i.e., being stuck with Mike Hampton. Barry Zito was almost mentioned too, but at least he’s gone .500 in his last
six starts.
The 2008 season is lost. It’s gone and there’s no going back. Detroit will finish about six or seven games either direction of .500, depending on whether or not they get hot or drop a bunch in a row as they have been known to do this year.
This is the time of the year when teams who can’t make it need to look ahead to the future. Next season is right around the corner, and if they start planning now, they could easily be a force in October of 2009.

Detroit’s biggest problem is pitching. They have a few real promising arms in Bobby Seay, Aquilino Lopez and Freddy Dolsi. They can build themselves a really promising bullpen and try to cultivate one of those guys into becoming a closer. I’m not going to mention Joel Zumaya in that list, since nobody knows if he’ll be around next year or not. If they get lucky on a minor league call-up or two, (or maybe sign a free agent arm) they’ll have a pretty decent bullpen.

Next year, they’ll have Jeremy Bonderman back, a guy who has gone 25-17 for them as a starter over the last two years. Throw him in the rotation with a rejuvenated Verlander who could very realistically put up numbers like he did in 2007, add in Galarraga and Miner and close out the rotation around Nate Robertson, and there’s a good group of starters. Robertson has never been more than a number four or
five starter.
Couple that pitching staff with an already decent offense, and you’ve got a team that is a serious contender in the American League Central. While 2008 is a loss, perhaps the most hyped-up team of the year can get the job done in 2009.

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