MLB Free Agents 2012: Why Jose Reyes Should Be a Detroit Tiger

The Detroit Tigers ended their 2011 season with a historic third inning collapse and playoff elimination at the hands of the Texas Rangers.

The Tigers were bruised, battered and, lets face it, outmatched by the Rangers. 

But the 2011 season was not a disappointment.  The Tigers gave the city of Detroit something to cheer about and led a sports renaissance the likes of which the city has rarely seen.  The future looks bright for the Tigers in 2012 as well.

But that doesn't mean the Tigers can sit idle.  There are definitive improvements they need to make to their team if they hope to make the playoffs again and the free agent talent pool is deep.

Relief pitching, a back-up catcher, possibly a fifth starter, a second baseman, a third baseman and a lead-off hitter are all areas that the Tigers could address in some way. 

Notice that I did not mention the shortstop position as an area of need.  The Detroit Tigers have a pretty good shortstop already in Jhonny Peralta

In 2011, Peralta made his first All-Star team and had his best statistical season since 2008, when he played for the Cleveland Indians.  He was a big part of the Tigers success this year.  No question.

But there is a shortstop available via free agency in 2012 that almost any team would covet: Jose Reyes.  The Detroit Tigers should do there best to acquire him and here is why.

Jose Reyes would satisfy arguably the Tigers' greatest need: a legitimate lead-off hitter.  I'm not saying the Tigers should give up on Austin Jackson; he is too young and too talented.  Jackson can still be an everyday player; he is invaluable in center field. 

He just is not good enough to lead off.

Jose Reyes hits for much better average, better slugging percentage, better on-base percentage,  scores more runs and steals more bases.  Gee, that pretty much seals the deal doesn't it?

As for Peralta, he is actually a better fielding shortstop than Reyes.  He had seven errors last year to Reyes' 18.  But the benefits Reyes brings to the Tigers offensively far outweigh his defensive liability.  One of the major reasons the Tigers could not compete with the Rangers is they could not get timely hits or manufacture runs with consistency.

That starts with the lead-off hitter.

Besides, it is not like the Tigers would just ship Peralta off to the minors.  Peralta could be shifted over to third and fill the offensive black hole that is Brandon Inge.

Okay, the black hole would still appear from time to time, but we can live with that.

Some believe that Peralta would not support this move and would sulk, potentially disrupting team chemistry.  Apparently the Cleveland Indians tried this move and Peralta made his displeasure known.  He was eventually traded. 

But this is a different situation.  The move was made in Cleveland because the team was going into rebuilding mode.  They wanted to see their young players play.  But the move blindsided Peralta.

It's not exactly the way to treat a valuable veteran player.

The Tigers would not make the same mistake.  The fact is, the Tigers are not rebuilding; they would be restocking and making their team much better with Reyes.  A player like Peralta has to respect that. 

I'm sure they would also approach Peralta first and make sure they got his blessing.  Jim Leyland loves Peralta; I know they would give him that courtesy.

The Tigers also have the luxury of pointing out to Peralta that the best player on their team, Miguel Cabrera, was asked to change positions and did so without incident.  Not to mention prominent players like Alex Rodriguez and Michael Young have made the switch too.

Given these factors, I have to believe that Peralta would be a good soldier and sacrifice his position for the good of the team.

Lastly, the Tigers will have around $30 million in cap space free once the contracts of Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Guillen are off the books.  Possibly more, depending on Ramon Santiago and Brad Penny's futures with the Tigers.

That is more than enough to make a run at Jose Reyes.  He wants to sign with a winner and Detroit is close.  Given what he went through with Mets management last year, I would be very surprised if he wanted to resign.  So there is a real opportunity there. 

If the Tigers added a bat like Reyes to the line-up while retaining Peralta, signing a top tier second baseman would not be a priority. 

Heck, the Will Rhymes era could officially begin in Detroit!