AL Central standings will impact Detroit Tigers’ approach to Aug. 1 trade deadline

Coming out of the All-Star break, the Detroit Tigers have a 39-50 record and sit 5½ games behind the Cleveland Guardians for first place in the American League Central. There are fewer than 20 days until the Aug. 1 trade deadline.

Buyers? Sellers? Stand pat?

The on-field performance will dictate what happens.

“As far as the standings, yes, it’s going to impact our decision,” Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris said Thursday on 97.1 The Ticket (WXYT-FM). “If we get hot out of the break, it’s going to change our approach to the trade deadline. We’re going to be responsive to the way the team is playing heading into the deadline, and we’re going to try to make the best decision we can for the organization.”

THREE UP, THREE DOWN: Stock watch… Jason Foley deserves a new role, Matt Vierling flying under radar

The Tigers would be 17 games back in the AL East (Tampa Bay Rays), 12 games back in the AL West (Texas Rangers), 21 games back in the National League East (Atlanta Braves), 10 games back in the NL Central (Cincinnati Reds) and 12 games back in the NL West (Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks).

But none of that matters because the Tigers still have a chance to win the AL Central.

They’re behind the Guardians (45-45) and Minnesota Twins (45-46), but they’re ahead of the Chicago White Sox (38-54) and Kansas City Royals (26-65). Harris said he is “really proud of our defense and our pitching” and thinks those departments have “taken a step forward” this season.

The Tigers’ offense has the fourth-worst run differential among the five teams in the division, at minus-86 runs.

“I think our at-bat quality is getting better,” Harris said. “Injuries have crippled our lineup. It’s really tough to lose someone like Riley Greene in the middle of our order. … It allowed us not only to bank on some real production in the middle of our order but also push some of our other hitters down to different roles that they’re more comfortable filling. I think the last month or so has exposed some of our players in that they’ve been pushed into roles that they weren’t necessarily prepared for.”

JEFF SEIDEL: Top 2 Tigers picks no strangers, thanks to lessons learned on Team USA

The Tigers posted a 16-11 record in May, in part because of Greene’s production. The 22-year-old hit .365 with three home runs and a 1.008 on-base-plus-slugging percentage before suffering a stress reaction in his left fibula.

Greene landed on the injured list May 31.

The Tigers went 13-21 in 34 games, from May 31 through July 7, without Greene in the lineup.

Greene returned from the injured list July 8 and played two games before the All-Star break. He went 4-for-7 (.571) with one home run, two walks and two strikeouts against the Toronto Blue Jays.

“That’s been really challenging for us from an offensive side of the ball,” Harris said, “but I think getting Riley back, getting Akil Baddoo back, getting most of our lineup back, hopefully we can recapture some of that consistent at-bat quality and performance that we saw in May.”

Shortstop Javier Báez, making $25 million this season, needs to improve his performance, specifically on offense, if the Tigers want to move up in the standings. He is hitting .225 with six home runs, 13 walks and 81 strikeouts in 85 games.

NEWCOMER: Why swing adjustments in high school foreshadow Max Clark’s future with Tigers

Harris has evaluated Báez’s work behind the scenes.

The former All-Star has been working well in collaboration with hitting coaches Michael Brdar, Keith Beauregard and James Rowson. The hitting department, Harris said, is trying to help him “get his barrel in the zone a little bit quicker and help him handle all pitch types a little bit better.”

Báez is hitting .200 with one home run and a 26.1% swing-and-miss rate on four-seam fastballs inside the strike zone. All but two of the four-seamers put in play to the outfield have traveled to the opposite field.

“He wants to make those adjustments, and he wants to get the absolute most out of his ability,” Harris said. “I’ve been really pleased with the work. I’ve been pleased with the relationship that he has with the coaches. I think that is the first step to recapturing the performance that I personally saw when I was with the (Chicago) Cubs. The work is often a leading indicator to performance, and the work is good right now.”

The Tigers exit the All-Star break with a seven-game roadtrip, beginning Friday, against the Seattle Mariners and Kansas City Royals. When the Tigers return to Comerica Park on July 21, there will be just 11 days until the trade deadline.

Harris wouldn’t tip his hand about trading, or retaining, left-handed starter Eduardo Rodriguez, who can take advantage of an opt-out clause in his contract after the season and return to free agency.

Other trade candidates include right-handed starter Michael Lorenzen and right-handed reliever José Cisnero.

“I’m not going to answer the E-Rod question because I don’t think it’s fair to E-Rod,” Harris said, “but I totally understand the question.”

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.