Hello BGeeks,The next positional analysis for the Tigers is the corner infielders. Typically with the 1B and 3B positions teams are looking for guys with some pop in their bat and tend to worry less about the defense. For the Tigers they meet this criterion at first, but not at third.
In one of the better moves of the last decade the Tigers obtained what may turn out to be their first baseman for the next 10 years. They got Chris Shelton in the rule 5 draft from the Pirates, who really dropped the ball on this one. Shelton can flat out rake. He started out as a catcher and made the move to first last season. Amazingly he played decent defensively following the transition. He is not spectacular defensively at first, but should continue to improve in his second year at the position. According to reports he put a lot of work in the off-season on improving defensively. Shelton is also currently listed as the Tiger’s third catcher. But what really makes Shelton potentially a special player is his hitting ability.
Last year “Red Pop,” one of Shelton’s many nicknames, hit .299 in 388 ABs. He also had 18 Homers and 59 RBIs. Red Pop puts the bat on the ball and does not strike out a lot. Shelton earned the starting first base position outplaying Carlos Pena. Expect Shelton to hit above .300 with about 25 HRs and potentially 100 RBIs. Because of his play the Tigers will likely either trade or release the underachieving Pena. Carlos has power, but does not hit for average and just never puts it together. If this happens the back-up at 1B will be Dmitri Young, who will be discussed further during the DH analysis.
The Tiger’s starting third baseman again this year is Brandon Inge, a converted catcher. It is interesting that the starting corner infielders are both converted catchers. Brandon played 73 games at third in 2004 before completely making the transition in 2005 with 160 starts. Defensively, Inge has struggled at times (23 errors) making the difficult positional change, but he did improve over the course of the year. Entering his second full season as the regular third baseman should enable Inge, a good athlete, to improve. Brandon is not a typically third baseman as he is not a power hitter only hitting 16 HRs with 72 RBIs last year. He started the season really hot with the bat and then cooled off. His average ended up at .261 after hitting .287 in 2004. His batting has improved significantly since making the move from catcher. As a catcher he hit .180, .202 and .203. Lifetime he is a .238 hitter. Inge would be an awesome super utility player, but has been asked to be the starting third baseman in Detroit. So his back-up Omar Infante will fill that role. While not a typically third sacker Inge fits well with the Tigers offense that already gets power from other positions. Brandon should hit in the .270-.275 neighborhood with around 15 HRs and 65-70 RBIs. Brandon is solid, but not spectacular.
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Go Tigers!!!
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