I really do think the Tigers' rotation press conference prior to the season has the same energy as Aaron Rodgers sprinting out carrying the American flag and immediately tearing his achilles. The moment looks grand, the image looks cinematic, and then the reality hits. Seeing Justin Verlander, Tarik Skubal, Framber Valdez, Jack Flaherty and Casey Mize standing together, going 'we're gonna be the Tigers' rotation this year', looks nice, and sounds nice. But then the rubber hits the road and you realize just how far the image was from how things really work.
Let's go over how that rotation panned out. Tarik Skubal had great numbers, was traded to the Dodgers and is looking to compete like he never has before. Casey Mize did well enough despite an injury, got traded to the Padres and is still trying to regain his leverage. Jack Flaherty's season stunk of fatigue, and he's missed time since July recovering. Justin Verlander pitched 1 inning, gave up 5 earned runs, complained of discomfort and has been hurt ever since. The goal is to get him back for one last start in Detroit, which is more of a tribute measure than anything given the season's lost at this point, but considering how he held up in San Francisco last year, everyone was expecting so much more.
So the only person left from that press conference in March who's still on this team is Framber Valdez. And he's decided to deliver his most mediocre season to date, after a legendary run with Houston. He's got a 4 ERA, a 10-10 record, 121 Ks and a 1.363 WHIP. Without the Astros' offense behind him, he has been leveled. He still goes deep into games but the runs have piled up, and the spark has been diluted. Every so often you will get a classic Valdez quality start, but this was not the ideal first year for this contract.
The good news is that a halfway decent starting rotation sprouted out from where the other four spots lay vacant. Keider Montero and Troy Melton have had star making performances this year, with 8 and 9 wins apiece, ERAs in the mid-3s and 2.50 range, and the dominance that, ideally, Skubal and Mize would have kept giving. Jackson Jobe's healthy again, and he's got a 3.89 ERA and 34 Ks in 34 innings. Hopefully he'll be a lot stronger next year. Drew Anderson has been starting recently, and he's honestly not bad, with a 2.36 ERA and 43 Ks in 10 starts. Maybe not as immediately lauded as other returns from the eastern hemisphere this year [mostly thinking of Anthony Kay and Foster Griffin], but he's played a strong role in this rotation legging things out.
Beyond that, the Tigers evened out as a lower-tier team this year without a comfy rotation behind them, and without a really strong division of contact hitters. You're at least seeing Kevin McGonigle, Dillon Dingler, Max Clark and Riley Greene cementing themselves for the next stage, and all four of those guys did what they needed to this year. If a decent enough team can form around them and lead to less dissonance, and less waiting for 5 different people to start hitting, then the Tigers can muddle out of the basement. If not...the 2024 run may have been a fluke after all.
Coming Tomorrow- An under-the-radar, contact-friendly outfielder on a team where two different guys have over 100 RBIs.
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