By Jeff Moss
July 25, 2012
DetroitSportsRag@gmail.com
There are a lot of reasons that I am not thrilled with the Tigers acquisition of Omar Infante and Anibal Sanchez in exchange for Jacob Turner, Rob Brantly and Brian Flynn.
For one, I am steadfast against dealing top prospects for three month rentals when said acquisition isn’t a superstar.
Secondly, adding ANOTHER positional player with plate discipline issues isn’t exactly a recipe for sustained offensive success.
Between Delmon Young, Brennan Boesch and Infante, the three have combined for a total of 1,068 plate appearances in 2012. They have taken a base on balls a GRAND TOTAL of 36 times.
1,068 plate appearances.
36 walks.
Seriously, one-third of the Tigers everyday lineup earn a BB ONLY 3.3% of the time. That is a frightening statistic and you wonder why the Tigers offense seems to be either feast or famine?
Look, I could probably get elected President of the Omar Infante Fan Club based on my past history with the utility player. Hell, I was one of the FEW Tigers fan irate when Dave Dombrowski swapped him for Jacque Jones in the first place.
But, this isn’t the same Omar Infante who was putting up .350 OBP’s regularly a few years ago. No, this is an Omar Infante who only has an on-base percentage slightly better than the man he is replacing …. RAMON SANTIAGO.
And while Infante’s power numbers are far superior to Santiago as reflected in the 2010 All-Star’s slugging percentage, it is extremely dangerous to add another bat to a lineup that already has two players who view taking pitches like it is some sort of flesh-eating virus.
Is Infante better than what we’ve had this season? Yes. Was it worth giving up two quality trade chips for Omar and a RENTAL PITCHER who has a 5.63 ERA over the last two months?
I am dubious to say the least.
(And let me say this to all the Tigers fans who want to convince themselves this was a good trade. It doesn’t matter if you think Jacob Turner is going to suck or develop into the Rick Porcello, Jr. It is irrelevant that the organization already has a young left-handed catcher in the big leagues. The fact is, PEOPLE IN BASEBALL viewed them as valuable commodities and that is all that matters. Sorry, the market is a little more important than our perceived prejudices against Dombrowski’s draft record. Also, the same people who bag on DD for his awful draft record are celebrating the favorable swap in picks in the deal.)
When I play poker or bet the horses I always attempt to consider value when making a wager. Even if I think a given horse has the best chance of winning a race, if I believe his odds should be 5 to 2 and instead he is 4 to 5 on the board, I will pass because there is no value in such a bet.
I am just utilizing that same philosophy when evaluating this deal.
So, when you take into consideration the value of having Infante in the lineup over Santiago, the fact that Dombrowski considers Sanchez a rental who will only be here for three months and the current 15 to 1 odds that the Tigers will win the World Series, well, I am not thrilled with our pot odds.
Any deal that can only be considered good if you win a championship THAT season or is based on your belief and hope that all of the prospects you are sending the other way will stink is precarious at best.
And do not misconstrue my not liking THIS particular trade for the reasons I stated above as some sort of protest against dealing young players.
I have been saying for months that Dombrowski should trade Turner for the best package he can get. Fuck, I still think he should be on the phone with Kevin Towers offering Nick Castellanos and Brennan Boesch for Justin Upton.
I would just like to trade prospects away for a better return than an average second baseman who we once discarded for a lousy Jacque Jones and three months of a guy who hasn’t been very good in June and July. In the NATIONAL LEAGUE.
And the taste in my mouth isn’t any better considering Dombrowski refused to deal Turner at the apex of his value for Gio Gonzalez or Matt Garza over the winter or the fact that the Marlins just sent Hanley Ramirez to Los Angeles for two nondescript pitchers, a couple of Dodger Dogs and the prostitute Larry David took to Chavez Ravine so he could legally drive in the Carpool Lane.
And I still maintain that second base wasn’t even as big an issue for the Tigers as the woeful productivity they have received in the #5 hole this year thanks to Delmon Young’s garbage season.
Young’s .292 OBP, .401 Slugging Percentage and .693 OPS wouldn’t be good for a reserve middle infielder let alone a Designated Hitter who is an abortion in the field and who also has the privilege of batting behind Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder.
If the Tigers do not plan on upgrading this slot in the order (and they claim they are done making trades) then there is an easy way to remedy the Delmon Young situation and it has nothing to do with siccing Lt. Aldo Raine, Sgt. Donny Donowtiz and Shosanna Dreyfus on his ass.
The Tigers second best outfielder, Andy Dirks, should be making his return to the team’s major league roster as soon as this Friday. And Dirks picked up in AAA just where he left off when he got hurt two months ago …. hitting the crap out of the ball.
When Dirks returns to Detroit, he should be in the lineup EVERY SINGLE FUCKING DAY. No ifs, ands or cigarette butts about it. Dude had a better OPS than PRINCE when he strained his Achilles.
It appears that Boesch has finally got his head out of his ass and we all know how streaky Scott Boras’s newest client can be. His OPS of 1.108 in July is indicative of someone that should not be removed from the lineup.
Then you have Young. Here are his splits against right-handed pitching:
.290 OBP
.356 Slugging Percentage
.282 wOBA
.646 OPS
Against RHP, the dude is basically Don Kelly. No joke. This wouldn’t be a huge problem if most people on Earth weren’t born right-handed!!!!!
It is absolutely criminal that Jim Leyland continues to write this loser’s name after Fielder’s in the batting order against RHP day after day. Our mathematically challenged “skipper” continues to offer Prince less protection than the prophylactics from Bob Sacamano’s condom factory in New Jersey.
I mean, we know Leyland doesn’t use computers to figure out all of these “geeky stats,” but you can tell by the pitch selection afforded Prince Fielder that opposing managers do.
And Delmon isn’t bashing the ball against LHP like it is a homeless heeb either, but at least his .297/.495/.792 is somewhat passable.
It appears that Cancer Stick is the last person on Earth to notice that this former #1 overall bust of a selection is nothing more than a platoon player. And when Dirks returns to Detroit, DY should ONLY start against LHP and as a late inning pinch-hitter.
Young can start against southpaws and Quintin Berry versus righties. It is pretty simple which is why I have zero faith that Leyland will do the right thing.
Of course, this all could have been averted if Dombrowski stuck to his oriignal offseason plan of making an offer to Yoenis Cespedes instead of granting Young arbitration in the first place.
But who would want a guy who is almost single handedly carrying the Athletics offense with the following numbers anyway?
.356/.525/.882
I mean, could you imagine THAT monster following Fielder in the lineup? Every single time I get an update that Cespedes has hit ANOTHER homer, I want to drown myself in the Bay of Pigs.
Sooooooo, to summarize, Dombrowski picked Young over Cespedes and he refused to package Jacob Turner in a deal for Gio Gonzalez or Matt Garza this past winter.
On this website and for the public record, I vehemently argued that the Tigers should have dealt Turner last offseason and argued for Cespedes over Delmon Young.
You might want to consider those facts when you mock me for my position on the Sanchez/Infante deal.
[UPDATED at 8:00pm. Jim Leyland was quoted today as saying the following: “One thing for sure, Dirks and Berry both can’t play. I’m sure you’ve all got that figured out.” No, you ignoramus. We don’t have that “figured out.” Someone please put me out of my misery. Just lock me up in a cell with “The Joker” and let him have access to the Internet and a Gander Mountain.]