A.L. Central Discussion 2016

[dougplayer]

Verlander. Wins. Duffy.not so much.
I called that. Just call me. The shot caller

 

[dougplayer]

JD hurt. Out awhile.
We only need him for play offs.
Tigers rolling.

 

[Howie115]

Doug....do you have the inside dope on JV and Kate? I often wonder if JV ''keeps out of bed'' for a day or two before a start. Casey Stengel says that stuff weakens the legs! I'd hate to see Verlander only butterknife sharp today.

Verlander WAS only butterknife sharp.

But the KC bullpen was basically a spoon.

 

[navamind]

Castellanos has regressed. Down to .296/.329/.529 (126 wRC+), batting .233 over the last month or so. ZiPS projects him to bat .271/.319/.452 (108 wRC+) for the rest of the season, which would be a considerable improvement over 2014-15. The Steamer/Depth Charts projections are about the same.

 

[Howie115]

Castellanos has regressed. Down to .296/.329/.529 (126 wRC+), batting .233 over the last month or so. ZiPS projects him to bat .271/.319/.452 (108 wRC+) for the rest of the season, which would be a considerable improvement over 2014-15. The Steamer/Depth Charts projections are about the same.

I don't think anyone (but maybe Doug) in TigerTown saw Castellanos being a .300 hitter this season. When he was hitting about .350 and leading the AL, I mentioned on the Tigers board that he was still striking out too much and his BABIP was a completely unsustainable .440, or something close to that.

That said, I think any Tiger fan should be thrilled if Castellanos hits .275 with 20+ HR and around 80 RBI, and maybe cuts down on the strikeouts this season by about 15-20.

He's also improved on defense ... from godawful in 2014, to crappy in 2015, to just plain "below average" this season. He's only made 4 errors in 61 games this year, and his RF/9 is near the league average for third basemen (2.62 vs. 2.68). Defensive Runs Saved is still at -6, though (meaning 6 fewer than the average 3B).

 

[Howie115]

Victor Martinez still has two years on his contract, while Miguel Cabrera is signed through 2023 (yikes!). The thought around D-town is that Cabrera will be a full-time DH in 2019, with Castellanos (if he is still with the team) moving over to 1B.

 

[navamind]

I don't think anyone (but maybe Doug) in TigerTown saw Castellanos being a .300 hitter this season. When he was hitting about .350 and leading the AL, I mentioned on the Tigers board that he was still striking out too much and his BABIP was a completely unsustainable .440, or something close to that.

That said, I think any Tiger fan should be thrilled if Castellanos hits .275 with 20+ HR and around 80 RBI, and maybe cuts down on the strikeouts this season by about 15-20.

He's also improved on defense ... from godawful in 2014, to crappy in 2015, to just plain "below average" this season. He's only made 4 errors in 61 games this year, and his RF/9 is near the league average for third basemen (2.62 vs. 2.68). Defensive Runs Saved is still at -6, though (meaning 6 fewer than the average 3B).

Plate discipline is a work in progress though. His strikeout rate isn't crazy (albeit above average at 25.2%), but he isn't drawing walks (only 5.4%). But at least he's flashing power.

Fangraphs had a good article on him last month.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Cheslor Cuthbert is pleasantly not terrible. Defense making him a passable MLB 3B so far in his career.

 

[navamind]

Twins DFA Arcia. He sucks, but it amazes me how the Twins lack the creativity to try a platoon (among other things).

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Twins DFA Arcia. He sucks, but it amazes me how the Twins lack the creativity to try a platoon (among other things).

If they can't develop this wave of talent, Terry Ryan isn't ever turning that ship around.

 

[navamind]

If they can't develop this wave of talent, Terry Ryan isn't ever turning that ship around.

I don't understand how he still has a job. The Twins have had poor drafts for a while now, and the only players they've really produced were Dozier/Plouffe. Nice players, but hardly stars. Sano and Buxton are works in progress. Then there's the many poor free agent signings/trades they've made over the years.

Twins haven't won a postseason game since 2004, and haven't reached the postseason since 2010.

http://www.1500espn.com/twins-2/201...-at-the-architect-of-the-twins-gm-terry-ryan/

 

[BigRedMoe]

Good news, everyone! The commissioner was impressed with our audition last night and we've moved on to the final round of tOfficial HR Derby Pitching Staff competition! FFS

 

[TrustMeIamRight]

JD hurt. Out awhile.
We only need him for play offs.
Tigers rolling.

I need to stop in here more often. Doug's posts are pure gold and put a smile on my face.
You need to post more Doug!!

 

[TrustMeIamRight]

Good news, everyone! The commissioner was impressed with our audition last night and we've moved on to the final round of tOfficial HR Derby Pitching Staff competition! FFS

I was impressed with Duffy, sans the few long balls. Has to be encouraging to see him throwing strikes like he is for KC.

 

[TrustMeIamRight]

Going to be a great game tonight. Looking forward to see how Fulmer looks against the Royals. It is unrealistic to think he will continue the current stretch he is on (5 games, 5-0 37 IP and only 1 ER) -- I'm curious where he will settle in as a full time starter. Crazy to think Fulmer could be on the Mets with Syndegaard, DeGrom, Matz, etc. Some great drafting by the Mets over the last few years

 

[BigRedMoe]

I was impressed with Duffy, sans the few long balls. Has to be encouraging to see him throwing strikes like he is for KC.

We've all been waiting for Duffy to get back into the starting rotation. It definitely seems like he is there to stay now. Just need to get his arm worked up to a higher pitch limit. He's exceeded my expectations so far.

 

[dougplayer]

I was impressed with Duffy, sans the few long balls. Has to be encouraging to see him throwing strikes like he is for KC.

Yep. Duffy impressive. Cep ting for them thar.long balls..yep. them thar.long balls. Other than that. He wasn't to bahhhwaaaaa

 

[dougplayer]

Tigers go into KC. bloody the nose of the royals.
It was expected. Since Verlander was on the mound.
Tigers need brooms for this series????? Maybe. Maybe

 

[navamind]

Yeah, that 5.14 ERA he put up last night just screams Cy Young-worthy.

 

[TrustMeIamRight]

We've all been waiting for Duffy to get back into the starting rotation. It definitely seems like he is there to stay now. Just need to get his arm worked up to a higher pitch limit. He's exceeded my expectations so far.

You don't see many lefties with his power arm. If he continues to work on his secondary pitches, he can be a stud. I've watched him for a few years now. He looked night and day from past seasons -- going to the stretch full time worked wonders for his control.