Detroit Tigers
July 7, 2023
The following piece was compiled by my son, Nick. He’s the public address announcer for Long Beach City College’s Baseball Team in California and a born and raised Michigander. He breaks down what he sees as some of the pros and cons of the 2023 Detroit Tigers leading up to the All-Star Break this weekend.
– Rick
By Nicholas Andrew Alampi
As we near the All-Star break, I wanted to take a look back at the Detroit Tigers first three months of the season. There have been highs and lows, but the team sits at 38-48 and only 6 games back of the Minnesota Twins for first place in the American League Central Division. Let’s look at the pros and the cons of the season up to this point of the year.
- PROS
1. The Bullpen: Former University of Michigan pitching coach Chris Fetter deserves all the credit in turning this pitching staff into a respectable group. The bullpen specifically has helped the team when the starting pitching has gone down due to injuries.
2. Riley Greene: Tigers first round pick from 2019 has had a nice start to the season hitting .296/.362/443 with an .805 Ops and 5 homers in 52 games, before going down with a shin injury. As of this writing, he looks to return this weekend before the All-Star break.
3. Eduardo Rodriguez: One of the Tigers two big moves before the players went on strike last offseason. After struggling last year with injuries and personal issues, Rodriguez, who has an opt out after this year, looks like the pitcher we expected when the team signed him. 4-5 with a 2.64 era.
4. Spencer Torkelson: While he has struggled this year hitting just .225, he currently leads the team in homers with 12 and walks with 37.
5. Miguel Cabrera: Saving the best for last, the future first ballot hall of famer is enjoying his swan song. Despite hitting only .248 with one homer, the big fella is enjoying his last year and is as healthy as he can be. Look to 2029 for his first year of eligibility to the selected into Baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
- The Cons:
1. Jonathon Schoop: It wasn’t that long ago that he was a productive member of the team, but since signing his two year extension near the end of the 2021 season, he hasn’t been the same. Schoop is currently homerless through 136 at bats.
2. Javier Baez: The other big free agent signing of 2021, and one of my favorite players, ‘The Magician’ continues to struggle with striking out a lot. His streakiness has been exposed, by not being used to having to be the best hitter on the team.
3. The Injuries: The worst part of the season has been the insane number of injuries this team has gone through. When Greene went down with his shin injury, the team was 26-28. Since then, the team has gone 12-20. While one shouldn’t say that one player being injured has halted momentum, it’s hard to ignore his impact on the team.
Upcoming Key Dates
1. MLB Draft 07/09/21-07/11/23
2. All Star Break 07/10/21-0713/23
3. Miggy’s last series against the Marlins 07/28-07/30
4. MLB Trade Deadline 08/01/23
I’d like to thank my dad for the opportunity to write this piece for his blog.
-Nicholas Andrew Alampi
Blogger
Detroit
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MLB All-Star Game
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