Mikey D

Apparently we should just expect the freakiest injuries that will sideline Joel Zumaya for half a season for the rest of his time here in Detroit. Guitar Hero one year, moving during wild fires in California the next. I'm fully expecting to read the ESPN.com article halfway through next season: "Joel Zumaya out after pulling tendons in his pitching arm after jacking off carnie on ferris wheel ride." It's practically inevitable.

Edgar Renteria. Love it. He upgrades the defense at short (I have a sneaking suspicion that Neifi Perez isn't coming back...call it hunch), as well as the offense. You figure he is basically replacing Sean Casey's production (I doubt he'll be back), which was little to none, so it's an automatic upgrade. Adam made a great point about Renteria's time in Boston and how unsuccessful it was. That makes me worried that this guy is just a productive NL player, but can't cut it in the AL. I hope there's less pressure in Detroit for him to deal with, as well as a line-up with even more protection around him than Boston boasted. Also, he has a great relationship with Jimmy L, going back to their days in Florida. Personally I think he'll fit right in.

On ESPN.com, Buster Olney listed the odds of potential suitors trying to land Alex Rodriguez. Number two? The Tigers. At first I was completely against this move, because I hate A-Rod's character and there's no way in hell I'd want our team to spend 25-30 million on a single player. It feels like we'd be selling out and selling our souls to some evil devil. But after taking a look at our potential line-up, it's tempting:
CF- Curtis Granderson
SS- Edgar Renteria
RF- Magglio Ordonez
3B- Alex Rodriguez
DH- Gary Sheffield
1B- Carlos Guillen
C- Pudge Rodriguez
LF- Marcus Thames
2B- Placido Palonco
Good luck trying to get through the middle of that line-up. I'd be worried about our team defense though. Can Guillen cut it at first? Is Thames going to be the guy in left, and if so, can he show a little mobility? A-Rod is a downgrade defensively at third over Inge. Can Renteria and Polanco develop a chemistry as a double play combo. It's a lot of pieces, and I just want to see them fit together on the field.

As always, pitching will be key for us. Lucky for us, our starting rotation is set already, with Verlander, Bonderman, Rogers (assuming he comes back), Robertson, and Miller. These guys need to step up like they did the year before last. They all had a difficult time last year, and I wouldn't say any one of those guys pitched to their potential consistently. It was frustrating to watch as a fan. Hopefully with the long winter and rest they will be good to go. I'm counting on it.

The thing that is our biggest weakness is our bullpen. To me this isn't fixed through free agency. The good relievers are usually locked up by their teams. It's the mediocre ones that get tossed into the free agent heap and get ridiculously over-priced contracts by desperate teams. I hope we are not one of those desperate teams. With Zumaya's injury (again), as much as I hate to say it, we need Todd Jones back for a little- and this is probably the wrong word to use with Todd Jones- stability. I am hoping that Dombrowski, if he hasn't traded them all away, has some good, young, hard-throwing rookies down in the minors that can step up (a la Jaba Chamberlain, and Zumaya two years ago). Rookies that the rest of the league haven't seen yet and haven't picked up on. Rookies that can come in and baffle the league for the next year or so. And will the real Fernando Rodney please step up? I still can't figure out if this guys is good or terrible.

Curt Schilling listed the Tigers on his list of teams he'd be willing to go to. Seemed like half the league was on the list, but whatever. The only way I see the Tigers bringing in Schilling is if they move him to the bullpen role, which I totally wouldn't mind, because again, that's our weakness. But if they bring him in as a starter, I'll be pissed. One, he's not the Schilling of two years ago. Two, I don't think he can be depended on for a whole year. That being said, whose spot in the rotation will he take? Probably Andrew Miller's. If Schilling probably won't make it through an entire season healthy, that means Miller is going to be going back and forth from the bullpen to the starting rotation. That's the last thing I want for a young starter to do. Schilling=bullpen help.

Please tell me you heard this. The Toledo Mud Hens were the first official team to make A-Rod an offer. If you haven't, read this: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3090231

Funny as hell.

~Mikey D