Figaro has been formally recalled and Ryan Raburn has been optioned to Toledo where he’ll stay for at least the requisite ten days unless a DL stint is required. It could be longer however if Carlos Guillen is ready to return. Presumably Figaro is here short term just to get through the doubleheader with Thomas unavailable and the team probably preferring to give Bonine the day off as well.
With the double header scheduled for Wednesday, it appears that Alfredo Figaro will be joining the team in Detroit. Dontrelle Willis was reportedly still sick today, and the team is probably concerned about getting thin if Rick Porcello and Jeremy Bonderman struggle to put up innings.
It’s unclear at this point if Figaro has been activated or if he will just be in Detroit and available should the need present itself in game 2.
My theory on the move is that the plan is to use Figaro as a long reliever today, then have him start Sunday against Boston. After that, I think he gets sent back down for a bat. Ryan Raburn can’t come back that soon unless someone else hits the DL, so I’d guess they call up Wilkin Ramirez for a few days before swapping him for Carlos Guillen whenever Guillen is healthy enough to return. BilFer, What are your thoughts?
Toledo is a good spot for Raburn, as he needs ABs and to spend some time in the OF – and he shouldn’t be doing either for the Tigers, based on his performance thus far… too many K’s and fielding gaffes. I assumed Kelly would be returning to AAA when Guillen gets off the DL… apparently not.
Rayburn needs some work at 3b + 2b also. He actually isn’t bad at 2nd but it a butcher everywhere else. We need to do something about inge, he is horrible now and we can’t have that with Laird and Everett on the team. It probably makes more sense to go out and make a deal and get a decent left handed hitting 3rd baseman and average shortstop. Those are pretty easy to get , the good starting pitcher and good cather are pipe dreams. Somebody in the NL should value Inge enough if we can eat half his salary, he probably would be league average over there but I think he’s done here. Too bad Guillen doens’t work out because he would be perfect for 3rd and should never see the outfield again. There is a lot of dead weight on this roster, personally I would just cut Everett, Guillen and Inge and go with minor leagues worst case, Everett and Inge are below replacement value and Guillen is just in the way since he can’t play the field and we can just have a Boesch /Rayburn platoon and we’d be better off splitting the DH between Mags and Damon to keep them fresh.
There’s absolutely no reason to cut Everett. He’s a cheap solution on a team full of expensive contracts, but he does exactly what was advertised: He’s got a deft glove and a sure-fire arm. He doesn’t hit much, but he ain’t Laird, and he can bunt and run. Everett’s not one of the team’s problems.
Guillen is going to get paid any way you slice it, and he’s not on the roster at present, so there’s no reason to cut him. When he’s healthy, he’s a far better bat than Kelly, Raburn, Inge, Laird, Everett, Santiago, Avila or Sizemore. Given that you have to pay him, why cut him?
I think the team’s best hope is that Raburn shows some revival in Toledo, and I believe the emergence of Boesch spells curtains for him in Detroit. I expect he’ll be on the trading block when he gets his bat back on track.
Agree with the sentiment that Raburn needs to stay in AAA. It seems that the general consensus is that he is considered a valued asset on the team. Sure you can play with his numbers from last year and predict him to be the next Al Kaline, but the guy is going on 30; can’t play outfield at the major league level; is a streaky hitter at best and now with Kid Boesch clearly staking his claim for the 4th outfielder spot, along with Kelly filling it more than admirably defensively, and with Santiago for SS/2B, there is no room for him on the big club. The only value he brings it seems is keeping his bestest buddy Inge happy, which equates to zero value for the team.