The Tigers avoid arbitration with another player and agree to terms with Marcus Thames on a one year deal.
I’ll post details when I have them.
UPDATE: Beck says it is a $1.275 million deal which is right in line with expectations. Congrats to Marcus on becoming a millionaire. The Tigers only have Miguel Cabrera and Bobby Seay as the remaining unsigned arb-eligible players.
The Tigers have signed Nate Robertson to a 3 year deal for $21.25 million. The Freep has the break down on the dollars.
Robertson will earn $4.25 million this year, $7 million in 2009 and $10 million in 2010. He would earn $11 million in the third year of the deal if he throws a combined 400 innings in 2008 and 2009 or 200 innings in 2009.
I’ll have more later.
To me this is yet another deal in which the Tigers agree to a deal that seems to be very fair. Robertson is probably a slightly below average pitcher that accumulates at or around 200 innings per year. Not outstanding to be sure, but those types of guys are far from common as well.
The Tigers are buying out Robertson’s last two years or arbitration eligibility and his first year of free agency. The way the contract shakes out it looks like the Robertson is giving the team a break of about $1 million dollars this year, but it looks like he’ll get it back in the 3rd year of the contract. Inflation will likely make the $10 million look reasonable, but Robertson will be 3 years older at that point and probably won’t be as effective while being more of an injury risk.
Continue reading Robertson extended for 3 years
Jonathan Mayo covers the minor leagues and the draft as a senior writer for MLB.com. Mayo also has a book coming out that has some remarkable timing. It is a look at what it is like to face Roger Clemens and is appropriately titled Facing Clemens. The book was written and put to bed prior to the release of the Mitchell Report and will be available on March 1st, though you can pre-order it now.
Regardless of your feelings about Clemens, steroid users, and their place in history, the book looks to be a fascinating read. Mayo interviewed many of the great hitters about what it was like to dig in with Clemens on the mound. Whether or not Clemens did it naturally doesn’t change what the batters experienced when squaring off against the Rocket.
Mayo was kind enough to answer some questions about the now-depleted Tigers farm system as well as a look forward to the 2008 draft.
Continue reading Talking Tigers prospects with Jonathan Mayo
Dave Dombrowski has some advice for Brandon Inge’s best friend:
“If I was Brandon Inge’s best friend,” said Dombrowski, “I’d tell him ‘you should catch.’ I say that, not thinking he can’t play third, but because to me, this guy can be an All-Star catcher.
Pointed words to be sure and you can dispute his All Star candidacy as a catcher, the message is clear. If Brandon Inge wants to play, be it for the Tigers or anyone else, his willingness leverage his athleticism is what will get him that playing time. Dombrowski also reiterated that he felt that they “owed it to him” to try and make a trade, but short of a trade they are a better club with Inge moving around.
As for his absence at Tigerfest, that was the Tigers choice and not Inge’s. They recognized it would be an uncomfortable situation. Inge, who has been keeping quiet will make an appearance at a Grand Rapids Griffins game on January 18th. He’ll sign autographs starting at 6 p.m. and drop the puck. I’d have a hard time imagining he’d be able to duck the media. (As an aside, the Griffins and Whitecaps teamed up to offer a deal where you get 2 Griffins tickets and 2 Whitecaps tickets for $32. To get the deal go to griffinshockey.com/themenights and use username inge and password griffins0708).
In other Inge news, Miguel Cabrera looks good and is excited that there were more people at Tigerfest (8500) than a typical Marlins game.
I caught part of Dave Dombrowski’s interview from Tigerfest on 97.1 today and he said that Sheffield’s rehab was progressing nicely and that he should be able to swing a bat.
If you were one of the 8,500 who went, I’d love to hear what you thought. The weather was certainly more favorable this year, but I was wondering if it seemed less crowded or better organized.
As someone who went through his formative season ticket buying years (defined as: the time period shortly after college when I had an income and little responsibility) in the late 90’s and early 00’s, getting Tigers season tickets was a breeze. Where do you want to sit? No problem. What package do you want? No problem. The programs were great with liberal ticket exchange policies and other bonuses. Entering into the 2008 season things have certainly changed.
Here we are on the day of Tigerfest, and today is the first day that the Tigers have promoted 27 game packages. The team had to wait on the mini-packages because ever since the Willis-Cabrera trade there has been so much demand for full season packages. The official word from the Tigers is that as of Wednesday they had sold 3,300 new full season equivalent (FSE) season ticket plans. And with the team just recently starting to sell the smaller packages, the bulk are probably actual full season packages.
When I called the week of that trade to put down a deposit on a 27 game package, I encountered hold times of 10-15 minutes because of increased demand. I did manage to secure a pair of seats for the 2008 season, but the package doesn’t include a seat for Opening Day. With the additional full season purchases, combined with a high renewal rate of the 19,500 FSE from last year, there just aren’t the physical seats available to offer to those buying season tickets for the first time. The team is offering up a Yankees or Red Sox game as an alternate, which is really about the best they can do. Still, I’ve been to every Opening Day for a decade and it was a prime reason for the decision to go for a plan so I can’t help but be disappointed.
The Tigers are encountering all kinds of challenges, but these are the kinds of problems you want. Much like Jim Leyland trying to figure out the best way to get 3 or 4 number 3 hitters fit into a lineup, the Tigers are challenged with cramming as many people into a park that now seems a little too small. Which is unfathomable for anyone who spent a September night with their own section back in 2003. The Tigers are at a point now where they have to:
Again, all good problems to have but challenges nonetheless.
So if you’re on the fence about getting a package, you might not want to wait to long. Already, some packages are sold out for some areas and that was prior to the team even promoting them on the website.
As for my Opening Day dilemma. I decided not to wait around and went the StubHub route. I got a pair in the right field grand stand for $130 a piece. Clearly more than I wanted to spend, but that’s the going rate right now and I don’t see it getting any cheaper. But with over 300 listings at least there is a decent selection.
There will be 23 Tigers players on hand at Saturday’s Tigerfest. They are: Jeremy Bonderman, Tim Byrdak, Miguel Cabrera, Curtis Granderson, Jacque Jones, Todd Jones, Macay McBride, Zach Miner, Magglio Ordonez, Placido Polanco, Rick Porcello, Ryan Raburn, Clay Rapada, Edgar Renteria, Nate Robertson, Ivan Rodriguez, Kenny Rogers, Bobby Seay, Jordan Tata, Marcus Thames, Justin Verlander, Dontrelle Willis and Vance Wilson.
Tigers President, CEO and General Manager David Dombrowski and Vice President, Assistant General Manager, Al Avila, will participate in activities around the park along with manager Jim Leyland and his entire coaching staff. Former Tigers expected to be on hand include Gates Brown, Barbaro Garbey, John Hiller, Mickey Lolich, Dan Petry, Dave Rozema, Jon Warden and Milt Wilcox. Tigers broadcasters Rod Allen, Dan Dickerson and Jim Price will also be on hand.
A quick check of the list reveals four prominent players who won’t be attendance. By my count Carlos Guillen, Joel Zumaya, Fernando Rodney, and Brandon Inge will not be there. I’m not going to read too much in to any of those that won’t be there, just pointing it out for those who are going. The event is a sellout, but there are tickets available on StubHub!
I received an email from Ashley Diersch who is with the Special Olympics. The Tigers North caravan bus will make two stops at luncheons that will benefit the Special Olympics. The details are below:
Lunch # 1
Sunday January 13, 2008
The Atrium Restaurant
Bay City, MI
Doors Open at 11:15 am
Program Begins at 11:45am
Tickets are $100/each
Lunch # 2
Monday January 14, 2008
Mountain Town Station
Mt. Pleasant, MI
Doors Open at 11:00 am
Program Begins at 11:30am
Tickets are $100/each
Limited Seating- First Come First Serve!
The ticket includes private lunch with the Detroit Tigers Personnel, pictures with the 2006 Championship Trophy and exclusive Tigers Souvenirs.
Portions of the ticket price are tax deductible.
Here are the caveats. First, the listing of players/coaches hasn’t been announced yet. Second, the caravan is a strict no autograph time, so those in attendance can not ask for autographs. The Tigers players are not working, and will not be ready to answer questions as if in an interview, it is designed more to be an opportunity to converse rather than question. My experience with these types of things is that these aren’t rules that the players are imposing so don’t be upset with the Tigers players about the lack of autographs. Typically it’s not because the organizers, or the team want to be jerks. It is usually a matter of logistics and crowd control. And really, a conversation would probably care more meaning than a hastily scribbled signature anyways. As for the lack of interview type questions, I’m not entirely sure what that means but I’m confident that the players would be receptive to typical fan-type questions.
But if you want to meet some Tigers, support Special Olympics of Michigan, get a meal, and a tax deduction this sounds pretty good. If you’re interested, here are the order forms for the Mt Pleasant Tickets and the Bay City tickets.
The Tigers and Dontrelle Willis agreed on a 3 year contract. The Tigers will pay Willis $7 million in 2008, $10 million in 2009, and $12 million in 2010.
It’s a very reasonable deal with limited downside. The surge in homers and walks last year was disturbing, but he should benefit from Comerica Park’s left field which is more favorable for fielding than Florida and may trap a few of those homers. Of course Willis is a ground ball pitcher and he’ll have better defense at short and second than he had in 2007.
Plus given his age there is a decent chance he rebounds and gets better. There’s also the chance he was overworked at a young age and the injury he said he battled in 2007 could simply be foreshadowing of larger problems.
Regardless, there is little not to like. Given the current market for starting pitchers, and even discounting that Willis isn’t on the open market, the contract appears to be a very fair valuation.
Danny Knobler has some notes from presser and came away impressed. And for those wondering Willis will wear 21 in honor of Deion Sanders.
Chad Durbin’s stint as a Detroit Tiger came to an end today when the club made the decision to not tender him a contract. Durbin, who entered 2007 out of options made the team as a bullpen arm as the team broke spring training. But an injury to Kenny Rogers thrust Durbin into the starting rotation.
Durbin made 19 starts and appeared in 36 games in total. He did a decent job as a swing man, and when he was returned to the bullpen he even was given some critical innings.
But I think Durbin’s fate was sealed on September 11th. The Tigers were coming off their dramatic come from behind victory against the Blue Jays and had a double header against the Rangers as they tried to hang in the playoff race. Durbin started the first game and was rocked for 2 homers, a double, and 3 singles before being lifted in the 3rd inning.
Durbin didn’t make it into another game until September 25th when he pitched the 9th inning of an 8-0 game. That would be his last appearance of the season. It was clear that Durbin lost his manager’s trust during that September 11th game.
When you factor in the bullpen crunch the Tigers have with a number of players out of options (Cruceta, Bazardo) and another pitcher who can fill the same role (Zach Miner), it just didn’t add up for Durbin staying with the team.
The move also means the Tigers have a free spot on their roster.
Tim Byrdak on the other hand was inked to a one year deal. He’ll make $700,000 in 2008 which isn’t a bad price for a decent LOOGY. The question is whether Byrdak will be a decent LOOGY. His career was nondescript until last season and there aren’t a lot of guys who blossom at age 33. But Byrdak did add a new split finger pitch and did fan more than a batter per inning so I think he has a decent chance to be productive.
As for the other guys, they were all tendered contracts which wasn’t a big surprise. Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis, Bobby Seay, and Nate Robertson weren’t going anywhere. Marcus Thames has been the subject of trade talks, but the Tigers weren’t going to let him go for nothing. By tendering contracts it insures that the Tigers will be paying each of these players in 2008 and Cabrera and Robertson are particularly likely to get long term contracts. I’d suspect that they’d like to lock up Willis, who is fond of the idea, but want to see if he bounces back from a rough 2007 first.
If you’re wondering about the process, the players and teams can continue to negotiate. On January 18th the two sides will exchange figures. Then starting February 1st arbitration hearings will be held. The players and agents talk about how great they are, while the teams talk about all the flaws of the players and why they don’t deserve more money. An awkward situation to be sure, and one that Dombrowski has avoided historically. I’d be stunned if any of these cases made it to the hearing and expect contracts to be hammered out in January.
Wrapping up some outstanding items from what very well could be one of the most significant trades in franchise history…
Peter Gammons astutely pointed out that the Tigers were able to make this trade because of Ilitch’s and Dombrowski’s refusal to adhere to the asinine draft slotting system. Not only did a willingness to pay above slot money directly allow for the acquisition of main trade chits Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin, it also meant that a this type of aggressiveness meant that the Tigers cupboard – while depleted – isn’t bare.
Many of the Tigers new top prospects are the product of slot-buster signings in the most recent draft. Headlined by Rick Porcello, the group also includes Cale Iorg and Casey Crosby among others.
The question then becomes how long can this remain an advantage for the Tigers? Surely other organizations have taken notice of the Tigers strategy, and it’s not that different than what other big market clubs have done. While some teams will still religiously adhere to the slotting system, I have to believe that more teams adopt a more aggressive stance on acquiring top shelf talent early on.
Will the Tigers be able to reload quickly by just outspending on the draft? I don’t mean to minimize the work that David Chadd and his scouts do, because it is easy to make bad decisions with big piles of money. But when you’re willing to spend what it takes to get Maybins and Millers and Porcellos, it certainly improves your chances for success.
I just wanted to do a quick follow up on the value of Cabrera’s defense. It was a hot topic here on Friday and commentor Ryan S pointed out that PMR thought Cabrera was okay in 2006. I should have looked at more than one year of data, and in my haste I got a little sloppy. In terms of run value PMR had Cabrera at +5.2 runs in 2006 at the hot corner. Perhaps Cabrera isn’t awful, and simply underperformed in 2007 due to his weight gain, or the crappy Florida environment.
Taking it a little further I also looked at UZR numbers for Cabrera. In 2006 he rated -14 runs per 150 games. That happened to be the worst rating for third baseman who played at least 120 games. In 2007 UZR rated Cabrera as the worst third baseman in the National League at -28 runs while Brandon Inge ranked tops in the AL at +12.
As for his outfield prowess, he was merely below average in UZR splitting time between left and right field in 2004, but was -21 runs per 150 games while manning left in 2005.
Jim Leyland was quoted yesterday talking about how this deal and the players they acquired were like a presents under the tree. Well, now that we can open up the presents, it’s time to play with them. The common refrain is that the Tigers should play Miguel Cabrera at third base and move Brandon Inge. It’s pretty clear that Cabrera is better than Inge and I’m not going to try and dissuade you from thinking that way. But as both Rob Neyer and Lee Panas have pointed out, the chasm in defensive ability between the two makes the upgrade not as dramatic as it appears at first blush. Are the Tigers better served putting Cabrera in left field?
There is an unprecedented buzz around the Tigers right now. I know it by looking at my server logs, but a much less obscure measure is the fact that Tigerfest sold out in 24 hours. I was astounded when it sold out last year, and was prepared to move quickly. But I didn’t move quick enough and now I’m left out in the cold. Or considering it’s at Comerica Park maybe I’ll be left out in the warm?
Oh yeah, there was another trade yesterday. I knew about it, was aware of it, but it really didn’t seem to fit anywhere last night. The Tigers swapped relievers with the Rockies and shipped out Jose Capellan for Denny Bautista. Matt took one for the Tigers blogosphere and broke it down. Then again, it’s not like the Tigers minor league blogger has anything else to do right now.
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