There’s nothing better than a tight division race, and if there’s one area in which the majority of the American League Central clubs are most similar, it’s their bullpens. In 2020, Cleveland (fifth), Minnesota (sixth), Chicago (seventh) and Kansas City (eighth) all finished in the top two-thirds in the AL in bullpen ERA. The White
We have all done it. It might be in a bar aided by some brews, maybe some itchy Twitter thumbs, a live lament after a bad play, a private conversation we aren’t quite comfortable enough to make public. But if one has watched Detroit Tigers baseball long enough, we have all had the hot take…
This week is Detroit Tigers Prospects Week here at Motor City Bengals as we are discussing all things Tigers prospect-related as we roll into week two of spring training. If you look at our Top 20 Detroit Tigers prospects list, you will see it is heavy with pitchers, but the Tigers have do have some…
Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — Three years ago, Detroit Tigers owner Christopher Ilitch gazed into the stands at Joker Marchant Stadium while fielding questions about the future of the franchise. At the time, the franchise’s rebuild was in its earliest stage. His message then: “We’re really focused on, and my vision is to ensure,
After a barren winter, new Statcast numbers can feel like an absolute feast. The return of Cactus and Grapefruit League play has brought new opportunities to dive into performance and evaluate where players stand heading into the 2021 season. That is especially true of prospects, some of whom the public hasn’t seen since the end
As the weather begins to heat up, so goes the top young arms. Top pitching prospects Michael Kopech (White Sox), Garrett Crochet (White Sox), Shane McClanahan (Rays) and Deivi García (Yankees) all posted scoreless outings on Tuesday. Kopech made his Major League debut in 2018 before undergoing Tommy John surgery that September and missing the
With three runs in the bottom of the 8th, the Tigers came from behind for their 6th win of Spring Training against the Yankees. The game featured Willi Castro’s 3rd home run of the spring, as well as a Riley Greene double off the wall in left center field.
Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers secured a 6-5 victory against the New York Yankees on Tuesday at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla. The Tigers improved to 6-2 in Grapefruit League play. What happened Willi Castro put the Tigers ahead, 3-2, with a three-run home run — his third homer of
Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — The last two weeks were relatively complicated for Victor Reyes, to say the least. For more than 14 days, the 26-year-old outfielder waited for clearance to become a full participant with the Detroit Tigers in spring training. Visa and travel issues were at the center of his delay, and
LAKELAND, Fla. — Take your pick which Willi Castro highlight from Tuesday’s 6-5 win over the Yankees means more heading into the regular season. His three-run home run in the fourth inning off Yankees reliever Luis Cessa was his third homer of the spring, continuing his Grapefruit League hit spree after his late-season tear earned
Chris McCosky | The Detroit News Lakeland, Fla. — Remember those two throwing errors by shortstop Willi Castro last week? Yeah, we don’t either. Castro has a way of quickly erasing negatives. He did it with his bat and glove Tuesday — a plus-5 swing on just two plays — in the Tigers’ 6-5 spring win over the
Chris McCosky | The Detroit News Lakeland, Fla. — Fans milled about the concession stands creating a familiar but near-forgotten buzz as Tigers chairman and CEO Christopher Ilitch gave his annual spring training media chat Tuesday, appropriately distanced on the concourse at Joker Marchant Stadium. Ilitch couldn’t help but notice. “We’re not just playing baseball here,
We hear from Tigers pitcher Spencer Turnbull as he chats about his Spring Training worksheet. On the list? First Pitch Strikes. #TigersST
We hear from Tigers infielder Willi Castro as he talks about how his comfortability is increasing every day. #TigersST
Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press Show Caption Hide Caption AJ Hinch shares next step for Detroit Tigers: ‘We’ve got to push them’ Detroit Tigers manager AJ Hinch talks Tuesday, March 9, 2021, about his team after a day off from spring training. Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers are
Lynn Henning | The Detroit News Lakeland, Fla. — With a chilled breeze working to out-duel a bright sun and pure-blue sky, this was one of those Florida mornings in March Jim Leyland had known so many years in Lakeland since he first arrived for Tigers spring camp in 1964. He was dressed fittingly: sunglasses riding on the
LAKELAND, Fla. — The last time Tigers owner Christopher Ilitch visited Tigertown for Spring Training, Ron Gardenhire was the manager, prospect Riley Greene was putting on a show and trying to force his way into the lineup, and Joker Marchant Stadium was seating fans at full capacity. That was a couple weeks before the pandemic
Welcome to the Motor City Bengals version of the Top 20 Detroit Tigers Prospects. If you’ve been following this site then you may be thinking you’ve already seen our rankings. You are correct! Then we averaged the lists to come up with final rankings, and released detailed profiles of each player. But we never put…
Chris McCosky | The Detroit News Lakeland, Fla. — We should all have some of Victor Reyes’ inner calm. This is yet another pivotal spring training for the Tigers’ 26-year-old outfielder. On paper, his spot on the roster is fairly secure. His spot in the starting lineup, not so much. The Tigers brought in two veteran
The Detroit Tigers farm system was in a very different place in May of 2019 as the MLB draft approached. Matt Manning and Casey Mize reigned supreme as the only two top 100 prospects in the system. Tarik Skubal was just beginning the monster season that would see him vault up into their lofty company.