A.L. Central Smack 2015

[gandydancer]

Duke Vs Kentucky. its all it can be.

why do we have to hear how great Izzo is???? he has won 1 championship. 1!!!
steve fisher has the same amount. as some have said on here...if you don't win it all ..it don't mean nuttin!! so Izzo gets cred for losing a lot in the tourney???
when he wins 2...(aint happening this year) then we can talk.
little brother falls hard today

Wrong again Dougie...<<<<on Kentucky and Izzo
Doug if you can not give Izzo his props as one of the greats? You truly must not watch the games at all. Not a Sparty fan in any sport. I do know great coaches, and he is one of them. He does win a lot of BIG titles. About the same as these Tigers we love. Win Central and can't win it all. However you still think the Tigers are the best ever.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

I don't get it.. Moancada gets $60M and Yordano Ventura only gets $23M? IMO I think the Royals and Yordano both know something we don't.

Top Cuban and Japanese prospects are anomalies within the baseball prospect world. They function much more like FA's than normal prospects. With the opening of Cuban relations, it might end up allowing MLB to have an international draft instead of the haphazard nonsense we have now. We have Puig getting shipped out by mobsters and drug dealers, wtf? If Buxton was Cuban for example, he would have gotten 70M in FA I bet. The Ventura deal if the options are picked up can max out to 47M. If nothing else, it provides an interesting window to what it would be like if top prospects were essentially FA's after leaving AAA.

 

[Howie115]

My assessment of the Tigers and the division, as the first pitch approaches...

Major Improvement: DEFENSE
Gone are Eugenio Suarez and Torii Hunter from last season. Replacing them are Jose Iglesias and Yoenis Cespedes, both among the best defensively at their positions. Anthony Gose is as good or better than Austin Jackson was in CF. And the Tigers retained their three Gold Glove finalists from last season: Alex Avila (C), Miguel Cabrera (1B) and Ian Kinsler (2B).
Improvement: HITTING and SPEED
The Tigers 2-6 hitters are likely to be Ian Kinsler, Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, J.D. Martinez and Yoenis Cespedes. There’s no break in there for opposing pitchers. No. 7 hitter Nick Castellanos should improve over his rookie season, and has 17-20 HR potential.
The Tigers added flyer Anthony Gose and still have base-stealing threat Rajai Davis. Cespedes has excellent wheels, and the return of Jose Iglesias adds another speedy baserunner. Yes, the team has a bunch of big, slow base-cloggers in the middle of the order (except for Cespedes), but those guys were there last season, too.

Minor Improvement: COACHING
Brad Ausmus made some notable goofs last season, but should have learned a lot from his rookie season and he is returning his entire staff.

Push: BULLPEN
Only because it can’t be worse than last season. Bruce Rondon will help when he returns from the DL, and Tom Gorzelanny is better than any LHP the Tigers trotted out from the pen last season. Other than that, there isn’t much to like.

Major Decline: STARTING PITCHING
Gone are Max Scherzer and Rick Porcello. In their places are Alfredo Simon, who is 33 and has only been a starter for one full major league season, and Shane Greene, who showed flashes of brilliance in 78 innings for the Yankees in 2014 but is no certainty to do that over a full year. If fully healthy, Justin Verlander should bounce back some from his worst season since 2008, but there is no question the Tigers’ rotation is considerably worse off in 2015.

The Tigers can finish anywhere from 1st to 4th. The ALC is that unpredictable this season, IMO. I will go with the following for the standings, and hope I'm wrong:

1. White Sox
2. Tigers
3. Royals
4. Indians
5. Twins

 

[GenJac]

I think the Indians should have let Carlos Carrasco prove a little more. Though the Indians obviously like what they see. I don't have any share of him in Fantasy as his price tag has risen to crazy high status!

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

I think the Indians should have let Carlos Carrasco prove a little more. Though the Indians obviously like what they see. I don't have any share of him in Fantasy as his price tag has risen to crazy high status!

I read the base is only $22MM for four years. That's not too much risk, I'd say.

 

[HammerDown]

 

[SlinkyRedfoot]

It would be interesting to know how often a WS participant does not make the playoffs the following year. I think the Royals are going to have some difficulty getting back to October baseball this year.

 

[da55bums]

I hope you're not implying that the Royals invented team options and that the Indians just copied them because that would be retarded.

Indians mastered that in the '90's

 

[da55bums]

It would be interesting to know how often a WS participant does not make the playoffs the following year. I think the Royals are going to have some difficulty getting back to October baseball this year.

only need to look back to the 2012 SF Giants, 2013 they finished last

 

[gvsulaker82]

JV on the DL. 1st time ever! and people are stabbing him in the back.

all he has don't for this club..
don't worry just a cramp/soreness in his tricep.
he will just get his first start a little late. he still will be in the top 10 in innings pitched.
look for him to shut up a lot of so called fans

Whos stabbing JV in the back?

 

[Howie115]

Great outing by David Price. Crappy infield single by Mauer with 2 outs in the 9th extended him, and Ausmus went to Nathan. Fantasy geeks are lamenting the lost CG/SHO.

So, the Tigers get 2 home runs, great pitching by Price, and a great catch by Cespedes to rob the Twins of an HR. All things we expected this season. Will have to see how it goes when someone other than Price is on the mound.

 

[HammerDown]

 

[dougplayer]

Wrong again Dougie...<<<<on Kentucky and Izzo
Doug if you can not give Izzo his props as one of the greats? You truly must not watch the games at all. Not a Sparty fan in any sport. I do know great coaches, and he is one of them. He does win a lot of BIG titles. About the same as these Tigers we love. Win Central and can't win it all. However you still think the Tigers are the best ever.

Izzo is now 9-1 against coach K .....tell me again how great Izzo is

 

[dougplayer]

Tigers open the season by opening a can of whup ass on the Twins.

you don't come into our house in down town Detroit on opening day and not ecpect a beat down!! word

 

[dougplayer]

we all know how Duke gets the calls. we all remember the bad call against chris weber..in the fab 5 days.
so lets just agree sparty got a beat down. Izzo was in over his head.. move on.
Wisconsin..champs! I got it marked down in pen!!

 

[Sgt Brutus]

Go tribe

 

[dougplayer]

dam left Christ tillman on my bench. got so much going on..... last break I give you this year!

 

[da55bums]

That's how to use Nathan, 1 out saves. Can't say Ausmus hasn't learned anything.

 

[Fountain City Blues]

Royals look good. Moose had an oppo shot... might be the first of his career.

 

[da55bums]

MOOOSE...he can bunt, he can HR, he stays in the 2 hole