The last time a starting pitcher won their league’s Most Valuable Player award was 1992 when Dennis Eckersley won it out of Oakland’s bullpen. The last starting pitcher was Boston’s Roger Clemens in 1986. So clearly pitchers never get much credit as far as MVP goes as hitters do. Maybe it’s time to change that. What Justin Verlander has done in Detroit may end up having historic implications. Traditionally the best pitcher in the league receives the CY Young Award. The best hitter receives the MVP Award. That right there is the problem. Pitchers have their own award, as should hitters. What if a hitter isn’t the most valuable player in the league? What if the Most Valuable Player in the league pitches for the Detroit Tigers? Those esteemed baseball writers with MVP votes- pay attention.
no commentsI know I’m a little late and the trade is almost a week old, but I wanted to reexamine the Tigers’ main Trade Deadline move. Last Saturday the Tigers acquired RHPs Doug Fister and David Pauley from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for Casper Wells, Charlie Furbush, Francisco Martinez, and most likely Chance Ruffin. While none of the players that the Tigers gave up have had prolonged success in the big leagues, Fister before the move had a career line of 12-30, 3.81 ERA, and averaged over 6 IP per start. Even with only 6 wins last year, Fangraphs still has him with a 2.9 WAR. Though Pauley has not had tremendous career success, he is in the midst of a fine season. Out of the bullpen this year, he posted a 2.15 ERA with a WHIP under 1.000. Clearly the Tigers were very high on Fister, and Pauley makes a good complimentary piece. But what about the prospects Seattle received? Did the Tigers give away too much?
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Without fail, as late July comes around names of players are tossed around as “trade rumors.” Often times teams have no intention of trading such players, but sometimes they do in fact pull the trigger. Two fantastic pitchers are victim of that this year- as Ubaldo Jimenez and James Shields are reportedly on the trading block. Whether either of these pitchers actually does get traded remains to be seen, but it remains an interesting thought to think of either of them wearing the Old English D. But which one should the Tigers pursue more aggressively?
no commentsI go back to school pretty soon, and I've picked up many more hours at work, and I need some help with the writing of the site. This website has potential to be very popular but I just can’t put up posts as often as I’d like. This is where I need the help of The Tigers’ Den. It is an opportunity to write about the Detroit Tigers and have your writing published online.
- You need to be a Tigers fan- that’s first and foremost!
- Preferably someone who lives in Detroit and goes to the games, but that’s not a requirement
- No writing experience necessary, but preferred
- Someone to write recaps of the games, analysis, and/or minor league articles
So if you or someone you know is or wants to be a sports writer, here is a great opportunity to have your work published. You can get a hold of me through the “Contact” tab on the home page. Contact me and let me know why you’re qualified to write for the best team in the AL Central!
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Ask around baseball experts, and you’ll be hard pressed to find someone who doesn’t think the Tigers will win the AL Central (the Twins? Really Harold Reynolds?). It may be a little early, but for the sake of this article, I’m going to assume that the Tigers win the division and are in the playoffs (sorry Cleveland fans but this is a Tigers blog). This team is certainly good enough to win this division, but there is a huge distinction between making it to the playoffs and making it through the playoffs. So how good are they?
Justin Verlander was seemingly a lock to make his 4th All-Star Game this year in Phoenix. But he wasn’t content being the only Detroit representative. He logged onto his seldom-used twitter account, and campaigned for his battery mate Alex Avila to make his 1st game. And the fans responded. Avila had a huge surge in the balloting, narrowly beating out Yankees catcher Russell Martin. Also included in the game will be closer and 3 time All-Star Jose Valverde and perennial MVP candidate and 6 time representative (3rd with Detroit) 1B Miguel Cabrera. Noticeably missing from this game are DH Victor Martinez and SS Jhonny Peralta, though Martinez is a candidate to be voted in via the final vote. The case for each is below.
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And then there were four. All four of these men have produced outstanding seasons so far, but who is the best pitcher in all of baseball? Is it Tigers ace, flamethrower Justin Verlander? What about the Dodgers young stud, the national league strikeout leader, Clayton Kershaw? Perhaps Kershaw’s cross town rival, the 2010 major league strikeout leader Jered Weaver of the Angels? Or maybe it’s “The Good Doctor” himself, the 2010 NL CY Young award winner Roy Halladay? Let’s find out.
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After 8 more shutout innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks and a career high 14 strikeouts, the pitching line of Tigers Ace Justin Verlander over the last six games is an otherworldly 6-0, 0.72 ERA, 51 K in 49.2 innings. The question must be asked- is Verlander the best of the best? Obviously Verlander is not the only one having a remarkable year. So now I will examine seven other pitchers, creating an “Elite Eight” of starters having great years and determine as of this writing, who is the best pitcher in baseball. Others for consideration- Boston’s Josh Beckett, Tampa Bay’s James Shields, Los Angeles’ Jered Weaver, Los Angeles’ Clayton Kershaw Atlanta’s Jair Jurrjens, and of course, the
no commentsOn Tuesday June 28, 2011 Justin Emerson was named editor of The Tigers' Den. Justin lives in Phoenix, Arizona but is an avid Tigers fan. Living in AZ he does follow his hometown Dbacks (openly hoping for a Dbacks and Tigers World Series), but the only thing keeping him from the Tigers is geography. He recently drove up to Los Angeles solely to see them play. He became a fan immediately following the Miguel Cabrera trade of late 2007, going out and buying a Tigers hat that week. Being in Phoenix, he does not get to see many Tigers games, but watches every one that is on TV. He is currently following steps to gain his journalism degree, and hopes one day to write about the Tigers.
You can follow him on Twitter at @Tigers2436
