Detroit Tigers: First Half Report Card

The All-Star game is next Tuesday, and so next Thursday major league baseball teams officially commence the second half of the season.

For the Detroit Tigers, however, the second half of their season commences tonight, with a three-game set against the Twins, their final series before the break.

This series may not make or break the Tiger’s season, but it may go a long way toward shaping what transpires in the weeks that follow.

The White Sox got off to a slow start but had a stellar June and may end up being the team to beat, assuming the players continue to play good baseball despite Ozzie Guillen’s managing style.

In addition to beating Chicago, Detroit also has to show they can beat Minnesota if they hope to be in the hunt for a playoff berth come September.

The wildcard team will likely come, again, from the East, so the Tigers will have to win the division outright in order to play in October.

Their first half report card is as follows:

Hitting: B  

The Tigers offense could have ranked higher had they gotten better starting pitching but they played from behind too often. While they have shown the ability to overcome deficits, they didn’t get consistent production from the bottom-third of their lineup.

Ordonez has rebounded nicely after last year, hitting for more power and keeping his average above .300 while Cabrera continues to hit the cover off the ball to all fields.

Brennan Boesch has been a real surprise but he’ll have to continue to hit well the second half while playing in more games than he ever has before.

Boesch, who bats fifth in the lineup, behind Cabrera and Ordonez and ahead of Carlos Guillen, is making it tough for teams to pitch around him to get to Guillen. I see no reason why, in that number five slot, Boesch should slump for more than a couple of games.

Johnny Damon must have a strong second half. He is showing signs of breaking out of his recent slump and Austin Jackson will have to regain his early season form too.

Brandon Inge has been hitting well on his refurbished knees and Alex Avila has been coming around at the plate after an abysmal start.

Gerald Laird manages the pitching staff as well as anybody and throws out 30% of base stealers but he’s got to hit better than .180.

Starting pitching: C

Justin Verlander had his customary slow April but managed to get 10 wins before the break. Scherzer had a horrific first six weeks, was sent down to Triple-A to find his secondary and tertiary pitches, and has since returned to show brilliance, evening his record at 5-5 after a 1-4 start.

Bonderman has been so-so, but at least he’s been consistent and hasn’t yet been on the DL. Rick Porcello was hit by the sophomore bug and is in Toledo trying to get his head right.

Despite his perfect game (marred by Jim Joyce’s horrible call), Galarraga has had a roller-coaster season, at times pitching well (usually at home), while at other times (on the road) he looks out of sync.

Dontrelle Willis was sent packing after showing some early promise and then was sent packing again by Phoenix. It’s doubtful another team will take a chance on him given his mental state.

This team will go nowhere with only two pitchers—Galarraga will have to step it up, as will Bonderman. Porcello, too, will need to find his form from last season, or someone else from Triple-A.

If that doesn’t happen, one wonders if management will make a trade before the deadline—last I heard, Cliff Lee may be available from the Mariners. But I imagine they’ll be looking for power hitters and I can’t see Detroit parting with Boesch as part of a multi-player deal. Hopefully Lee won't end up back in the Central.

Bullpen: A-

Despite losing Zack Miner and Joel Zumaya for the remainder of the season, the bullpen has been a strength for this team regardless of Ryan Perry’s woes.

What can you say about Jose Valverde?

Well, he’s Anaheim-bound for the break, along with Cabrera. As a closer—unlike Fernando Rodney—he actually closes. I know Rodney’s record speaks for itself, but it never seemed easy for him. He rarely sent down the opposition without giving them a chance.

Eddie Bonine and Phil Coke have both been solid.

Defense: C-  

They’ll need to improve here if they hope to be playing meaningful games in September with a shot at a postseason. For a while they were last in the league in defense with most errors committed.

Manager: B-  

I think the world of Jim Leyland and hope he’s in Detroit for as long as he wants to be here. But if the Tigers are to go anywhere in the second half, he’ll somehow have to get this team to beat the Twins and the White Sox, along with the Royals. And he hasn’t been able to do that since he donned the olde English D.

Which is precisely why, as I wrote above, the series commencing tonight, against the Twins, is so important. It may not make or break the season, but it could go a long way toward convincing this team that they can play with the likes of the Twins and the Sox.