The Tigers aren’t interested in Gary Matthews Jr., according to MLB.com’s Jason Beck. The team recently lost Carlos Guillen, Brandon Inge and Magglio Ordonez to the disabled list, but GM Dave Dombrowski won't pursue Matthews, who opted out of his deal with the Reds after hitting .313/.359/.490 at Triple A Louisville.
Free agents like Jermaine Dye are available, in theory, but Dombrowski told reporters that he doesn’t have interest in waiting for an idle hitter to prepare to face MLB pitching. Dombrowksi could attempt to acquire a player via trade, but ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick hears that the team will not trade for an impact bat, since the lineup has so many holes (Twitter link).
The Tigers are just three games out of the AL Central lead, but their lineup is unquestionably thin. Will Rhymes, Don Kelly and Danny Worth all started last night, but that trio and the rest of the Tigers went hitless against Matt Garza.
Well… I guess there’s next year? I hate saying that with us only being out by 3 games.
Next team to DFA the Former PED’d GMJ: Tthe Newark Bears.
??
Dear Tigers: Buck is saddened.
Gary Matthews may be a nice pick up for the Long Island Ducks or Newark Bears!
Who actually is interested in Matthews at this point?
Finally, some good news.
Thanks for conceding now, DD. Wouldn’t want any false hope.
Why is the name “Gary Matthews Jr.” and any of the 30 MLB teams even in the same sentence?
Because there is a lull in the Willy Taveras free agency front?
I think it would be foolish to trade away any young talent for a 2 month rental. There are just too many holes to fill right now & with all the payroll coming off next season we are in much better position to reload & go for it then.
And I would rather have any random minor league outfielder you care to name than GMJ
Worst Tigers lineup ever, and that includes 2003. But it seems entirely fixable for them to contend now. It sucks only being 4 back and feeling like the season is over; fans would appreciate the effort, even if they fall short. But I already feel like Dumbo’s dragged his feet too long. A deal should have been made the second Inge got hurt for a replacement 3B. At the very least, one should have been made immediately upon losing Ordonez. (Losing Guillen was a non-factor, in my opinion.) You snooze, you lose, which the Tigers have done many times of late, and will continue to if these are the lineups that will get trotted out there for the rest of the year.
Acquiring Dunn, S. Drew, J. Bautista and/or Brett Myers might cost the Tigers in the long run, but it would be enough to allow them to contend this year, and that’s all that matters to me, because whatever, the world might end in November or something anyway.
Actually, DD is probably doing the right thing for once…First, you have to drag your feet especially when trying to replace a piece of your team. If other teams know you have a need for a thrid baseman, that just drives the price up, something the Tigers cannot afford. So not making a deal right after injuries is smart.Second, even with a replacement 3B, RF or 2B, are the Tigers contenders…if you say yes, you dont know a lot about baseball. The tigers have too many holes and question marks. But the future looks decent, so why trade any potential for the future now to keep the Tigers in a race they cannot win?In a couple years – you could be looking at:ROTATION: Verlander, Porcello, Turner, Oliver, Scherzer (Bonderman, Galarraga)PEN: Valverde, Coke, Galarraga, Perry, Weinhardt, SchlerethLINEUP: Jackson(CF), Boesch(RF), Cabrera(1B), Avila(C), Sizemore(3B – i like him better here), leaving a few holes (SS, LF, DH, 2B) that can be filled by utility guys, FA pickups, trade, etc.UTILITY: Inge, Raburn, Kelly, LairdPotential fills: Worth, Dlugach, Wells, Strieby, Thomas, Ciriaco, Rhymes, Larish – and although I dont think the last two players have much of a chance, you never know….Looks pretty promising to me, so you go on with your world ending theory while the rest of the world plans for the future…if your right than it wont matter at the time, but if everyone else is right….thats a different story, see you at the off-ramp of the expressway, maybe i will give you a few bucks…lol
I completely see your points, and part of me says, yeah, just give up and wait until next year. But this team is only 4 games out in a humorously weak division.
My main issue with waiting for next year is that, while a creative GM, DD isn’t great at filling surrounding his stars with the right role-players. Also, getting big-name FAs to commit to Detroit will be harder than it would be for, say, Theo Epstein and some other GMs; very possible the Tigers end up down the road with second-tier FAs, like David DeJesus instead of Carl Crawford (or whatever). I also don’t really buy Sizemore, Avila or Boesch as long-term solutions, although I can see them being adequate role-players, and jesus, if Laird, Raburn and Inge are utility guys going forward, it’s already game over. So I have no real hope that upcoming years will be any different than the last few.
I’m not trying to say that we should sell the farm (literally) to win now. But honestly, a few pieces here and there and this team is fine right now. I think EITHER Oliver or Turner could be traded for a major impact bat to replace Maggs, as long as the impact bat is under control for a few years (like a sign-and-trade for Dunn). Surely a stopgap veteran 2B/3B Ty Wigginton would come pretty cheap in terms of prospects, and would help immensely, as he would mean finally being able to never play Don Kelly again. Just getting two impact bats right now would put them back exactly where they were before Maggs and Inge were hurt.
This is the lineup they could have tomorrow, which is every bit as good as it was just two weeks ago: Jackson (CF), Damon (LF), Dunn (DH), Cabrera (1B), Boesch/Raburn (RF), Wigginton (3B), Avila (C), Sizemore (2B), Santiago/Worth (SS). Guillen can play some 2B and DH occasionally when he returns, but he’s lunchmeat at this point. And when Inge and Ordonez return, Boesch and Sizemore hit the bench (Wigginton to 2B) — not a bad bench.
Personally, I’d rather have Dunn here for the next 4 years than Andy Oliver, in the same way that I was happy to give up Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin for Miguel Cabrera (the horrible Willis extension notwithstanding). Dunn is a perfect fit for the Detroit Tigers — a lefty bat with a killer OBP to hit in front or behind of Cabrera.
Boston and Anaheim have had way, way more injuries this year than Detroit, though, and they haven’t quit yet, so it would be a little sad to give up when we’re actually closer in the standings than those two teams are.
By no means am I saying give up, but I also dont want to give up what little farm players we have for a CHANCE to make the playoffs and get SMOKED by the Yankees or Rays…This is the same mentality that lost us players that are still making significant contributions to their new ballclubs…Maybin and Miller excluded – that deal was an anomaly – If we could get Wiggington and Dunn and only lose a couple of players, I would do it. I could stand to lose Turner or Oliver but not both of em. I could see the Tigs giving up on Ramirez, Larish, Sizemore, Dlugach or Ni but no more than a couple of them to get these players you speak of.
I think Raburn and Inge will be utility guys for sure in the future – they both have average bats and can play multiple positions, the only reason i put kelly and laird in there is because there really wasnt much else at catcher, in hindsight i would say worth has a better chance of remaining with the team than kelly does….
DD is making the right choices , I could see Damon , bonderman , galaraga and laird being traded for some fringe guys and some major leagers to help plug holes for the time being. I know they are 4 games out but they are fielding a AAA lineup everyday. Let Streiby play left and see what he has. If he doesn’t hack it , you know you need to be aggresive in the market for a LF in the off season. The rotation looks pretty legit for 2012 , if crosby can come back to the promise he showed they could be looking at dynasty. It’s terrible the way it ended up with injuries but I believe any trades would have impacted the long term.
What trade value does Laird have? If you can trade him, more power to ya.
Actually I heard a few trade rumors involving Laird – Philly was willing to offer up 2 authentic philly cheesesteaks. Also, the Yankees were going to give up a shoebox full of autographed Drew Henson rookie cards. To date neither offer was accepted, but I think the Tigers are close!! LOL
I’d take the Philly cheesesteaks if I were Dombrowski.
Not a ton of value but Larid is still a solid defensive catcher. He has the highest percantage of throwing out runners in the last 3 years. Teams with weak defensive catchers could be looking to have him on the 40 man towards the end of the season to come in late and catch. Tigers might as well get something for him as I doubt he will come back next season.
Dombrowki says we’re not conceding, y’all! Hallelujah!
Dude don’t kid your-self , he is just telling the press and the fans what they want to hear.
The sarcasm went over your head, I guess.
The sarcasm went over your head, I guess.