Tiger Geist

Dave Dombrowski

– I don’t know Dombrowski’s career ambitions.  I assume he’s fine staying with Detroit for a long time.  But with the insight from Buster Olney that the Mets are looking for a strong front-man, I wonder if Dombrowski has an inkling for a bigger stage.  And I wonder if Detroit could make that move and require DD take some of his bloated contracts with him.  Trying to get out of the Yankees shadows, its a deal that Mets would be willing to pull off.  Not sure its something Detroit (or Dombrowski himself) would even think about.  I think about Al Davis ‘trading’ Jon Gruden to Tampa Bay for draft picks, but that was a different scenario — Davis and Gruden didn’t get along.  I don’t think thats an issue in Detroit.

Nate Robertson

– Excited for his first start, but it comes at a bad time for the roster.  The bullpen is down a man and it seems Detroit is intent on keeping it that way until Sept 1.  I had thought Detroit might be able to get away with a short pen until the Tampa series, but with three games left I’m not as sure they’ll be able to escape the series without making a move for an arm.  No one knows what they’ll get out of Robertson, and they had to use Lyon, Seay and Rodney last night.  They can’t all go four games in a row, and it seems this series might be close the entire way through.  For Robertson, its good to see how much he’s learned from his rough year, how much his injury might have affected him, and how much he might be able to contribute next season.  Good things can come out of this… right?  maybe?  And if Nate looks good in September (I imagine a decent start will give him another if Detroit moves to a 6 man rotation here and there, or just a spot start), it could be an audition for another team / league.

Robertson’ injury

– Looking back on all of the talk about demoting Robertson and his refusal or possible refusal earlier this year, I wonder if Robertson secretly knew he was hurting and he couldn’t start in Toledo.  Maybe he was hoping his elbow would clear up and wanted that to happen in Detroit.  For a while I thought he was being selfish (and, from a career standpoint, stupid) — if he went 8-3 in Toledo, he could have easily been promoted or traded to another team.  but with his recent ’success’ in rehab outings, maybe his injury has been affecting him for longer then we know.  Or maybe I’m simply pretending 2008 didn’t happen and hoping for the best.

Aubrey Huff

– Absolutely killing the team.  Its great that he’s seeing so many pitches, it would be better if he hit one.  I didn’t care what Detroit gave up to get him, but my fears on his inability to field apparently are shared by Jim Leyland.  What kills me isn’t that he isn’t hitting (that might improve), its that it requires Carlos Guillen to play left field.  And Carlos doesn’t look very good out there.  When you read this article about how Carlos’s shoulder wears down DURING THE GAME, its downright scary.  Guillen should be a DH only for the rest of the season; Huff, for some reason, is blocking him.

Rick Porcello

– Outstanding poise for someone his age.  He’s made his mistakes; he’s looked dominant.  He’s battled.  Everything you can ask for a 20 year old.  Actually, its what Detroit should be expecting from Jeremy Bonderman (and to a lesser extent, Nate Robertson).  Its also an interesting contrast to Dombrowski’s moves:  a brilliant draft move, a good contract.  Dombrowski seems to have a better eye for contracts on amateur talent then extending contracts for existing players.

Pitching competition

– Going into next spring (assuming their payroll works out), Detroit is looking at the following players as potential starters:  Verlander, Jackson, Robertson, Bonderman, Porcello, Miner, Galarraga.  In football, they say that increased competition makes for better players.  Going into last spring, even with all of the options, you never knew if the competition ‘truly’ existed — Jackson was ‘dumped’ by Tampa and may not have turned out; Bonderman was coming off injury; Porcello was barely 20 years old and it would be a gutsy call to bring him north; Galarraga spent most of his time getting ready for WBC play.  Now Detroit will have options, and Miner wants out of the bullpen.  And the pitchers now know they have to step up their game.