Heading into the 2024 season, the Detroit Tigers are tied with the Los Angeles Angels, for the longest current playoff drought, having last made the playoffs in 2014. The Tigers haven't won it all since 1984 and that's long enough to call it a drought (five teams have never won it all, but among teams that have, only the Guardians, the Pirates and Orioles have gone longer without winning another).
But, there is reason for optimism in the Motor City. The Tigers recovered from a ppor start, and several injuries, to finish in second place in the A.L. Central, with a 78-84 record. Most projection systems have the Twins taking the AL Central again, but they didn't put together a big offseason to capitalize on their playoff advancement last season and it could be argued they got worse. The Tigers are roughly five games behind the Twins in those projection systems and that's within the margin of error – if you even believe in the accuracy of said systems. The Guardians and Royals are also teams with a realistic shot of taking the Central while the White Sox are atrocious. Even if the AL Central is baseball's worst division – it is – a division title and playoff berth count all the same here.
The offense as a whole is likely to be a struggle, but there are some exciting pieces in there. The pitching staff is better and deeper than it has been in several years, both in the rotation and bullpen.
Riley Greene is only 23 years old and in 99 games last season, he hit .288/.349/.447 (117 OPS+) If he can put together an injury free season, he could be a good table setter/run producer at the top of the order. And he provides very good defense, either in Center Field, or left field.
Torkelson was the No. 1 overall pick in 2020 and hit 31 homers in his first full season in the majors last year. Provided he doesn't regress, he could become the first Tiger with a 40+ home run season since Miguel Cabrera in 2013.
Colt Keith's bat could be special, and he'll get an extended look at the big-league level this season, possibly starting on Opening Day after signing a six-year, $28.6425 million extension before his major-league debut. Any positives are a great sign for future contention, obviously.
Parker Meadows was expected to win the starting CF job, after a pretty good showing in 37 games last season. However, Meadows was limited by a hamstring injury in spring, and will start the season in Toledo. Enter rookie Kyle Dutcher. Dutcher was an amateur free agent signing who worked his way up the minors. He hit 7 home runs in the spring, and played superb defense in center. He also has blazing speed. he stole 11 bases in just 13 Spring games, including 4 swipes of third base.
The pitching has some promise, too.
Tarik Skubal lost most of the 2022 season to injury. He returned in July last season, and looked every bit like an ace, going 7-3 with a 2.80 ERA. Matt Manning and Reese Olson are a pair of promising youngsters. Manning, who has yet to stay healthy for an entire season, went 5-4 with a 3.58 ERA. Manning doesn't strike out a lot, but he does throw strikes. Olson had a 3.99 ERA in 103.3 innings last season, making 18 starts. But he may be pushed to the bullpen by a returning Casey Mize. Mize missed all of last year, and was limited to just 2 starts in 2022. But he is a former 1st overall pick (2018) with plenty of upside, and he is just 26 years old. He will likely be on a pitch count early in the season, so the Tigers might opt to piggyback Reese Olson with him.
Both Kenta Maeda, and Jack Flaherty were signed to one year deals in the offseason. Coming off of an injury, Maeda pitched well for the Twins last season, in 20 starts. Flaherty struggled with the Cardinals last season, but is only a couple years removed from being in Cy Young contention.
The bullpen does have some question marks. The back end should be pretty solid. Alex Lange is the defacto closer (26 saves, 3.68 ERA) Shelby Miller was signed to a one year deal in the offseason. Miller put together an outstanding season (3-0, 1,71 ERA in 42 innings) with the Dodgers last season. He will likely compete with Jason Foley (3-3, 7 saves, 2.61 ERA) for late inning work. Will Vest (2.98 ERA in 48,1 innings) was very good after a rough few outings, and demotion to the minors. On the left side, Andrew Chafin resigned with the Tigers after a year away. He struggled a bit last year, but looks to regain form. Tyler Holton (2.11 ERA in 85.1 innings) is also a pretty good option. Beau Brieske won the last bullpen spot with a really good spring, in which he showed great control, and a wipeout slider. Reese Olson will also be in the pen, but he is expected to piggyback with Casey Mize, who will be in a strict 80 pitch limit to start the season.
While the Tigers aren't projected to win the division, they don't look to be too far off. And if things fall into place, who knows what could happen.
But, there is reason for optimism in the Motor City. The Tigers recovered from a ppor start, and several injuries, to finish in second place in the A.L. Central, with a 78-84 record. Most projection systems have the Twins taking the AL Central again, but they didn't put together a big offseason to capitalize on their playoff advancement last season and it could be argued they got worse. The Tigers are roughly five games behind the Twins in those projection systems and that's within the margin of error – if you even believe in the accuracy of said systems. The Guardians and Royals are also teams with a realistic shot of taking the Central while the White Sox are atrocious. Even if the AL Central is baseball's worst division – it is – a division title and playoff berth count all the same here.
The offense as a whole is likely to be a struggle, but there are some exciting pieces in there. The pitching staff is better and deeper than it has been in several years, both in the rotation and bullpen.
Riley Greene is only 23 years old and in 99 games last season, he hit .288/.349/.447 (117 OPS+) If he can put together an injury free season, he could be a good table setter/run producer at the top of the order. And he provides very good defense, either in Center Field, or left field.
Torkelson was the No. 1 overall pick in 2020 and hit 31 homers in his first full season in the majors last year. Provided he doesn't regress, he could become the first Tiger with a 40+ home run season since Miguel Cabrera in 2013.
Colt Keith's bat could be special, and he'll get an extended look at the big-league level this season, possibly starting on Opening Day after signing a six-year, $28.6425 million extension before his major-league debut. Any positives are a great sign for future contention, obviously.
Parker Meadows was expected to win the starting CF job, after a pretty good showing in 37 games last season. However, Meadows was limited by a hamstring injury in spring, and will start the season in Toledo. Enter rookie Kyle Dutcher. Dutcher was an amateur free agent signing who worked his way up the minors. He hit 7 home runs in the spring, and played superb defense in center. He also has blazing speed. he stole 11 bases in just 13 Spring games, including 4 swipes of third base.
The pitching has some promise, too.
Tarik Skubal lost most of the 2022 season to injury. He returned in July last season, and looked every bit like an ace, going 7-3 with a 2.80 ERA. Matt Manning and Reese Olson are a pair of promising youngsters. Manning, who has yet to stay healthy for an entire season, went 5-4 with a 3.58 ERA. Manning doesn't strike out a lot, but he does throw strikes. Olson had a 3.99 ERA in 103.3 innings last season, making 18 starts. But he may be pushed to the bullpen by a returning Casey Mize. Mize missed all of last year, and was limited to just 2 starts in 2022. But he is a former 1st overall pick (2018) with plenty of upside, and he is just 26 years old. He will likely be on a pitch count early in the season, so the Tigers might opt to piggyback Reese Olson with him.
Both Kenta Maeda, and Jack Flaherty were signed to one year deals in the offseason. Coming off of an injury, Maeda pitched well for the Twins last season, in 20 starts. Flaherty struggled with the Cardinals last season, but is only a couple years removed from being in Cy Young contention.
The bullpen does have some question marks. The back end should be pretty solid. Alex Lange is the defacto closer (26 saves, 3.68 ERA) Shelby Miller was signed to a one year deal in the offseason. Miller put together an outstanding season (3-0, 1,71 ERA in 42 innings) with the Dodgers last season. He will likely compete with Jason Foley (3-3, 7 saves, 2.61 ERA) for late inning work. Will Vest (2.98 ERA in 48,1 innings) was very good after a rough few outings, and demotion to the minors. On the left side, Andrew Chafin resigned with the Tigers after a year away. He struggled a bit last year, but looks to regain form. Tyler Holton (2.11 ERA in 85.1 innings) is also a pretty good option. Beau Brieske won the last bullpen spot with a really good spring, in which he showed great control, and a wipeout slider. Reese Olson will also be in the pen, but he is expected to piggyback with Casey Mize, who will be in a strict 80 pitch limit to start the season.
While the Tigers aren't projected to win the division, they don't look to be too far off. And if things fall into place, who knows what could happen.
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