FanPost

Tigers' Window of Contention Has Closed

The "win-now" days of contention are over for the Detroit Tigers. This "window," as they call it, has stayed open for a long while. Over the last few years, there were many times when national coverage had a pessimistic view of the team, stating obstacles that would be too great to overcome. Yet time after time, the Tigers came in as the favorites and left as the AL Central champions. As the 2015 season draws near, it is the first time in a long time that the Tigers are not seen as favorites, and it is all but certain that they will not leave 2015 as champions. The window of contention is closed, locked, and sealed.

This year there are too many obstacles to be overcome. Sure, this group of players has overcome obstacles before. The problem is that so many of those obstacles remain while new issues have surfaced. One perfect example of this is the team’s dedication to injury prone players. They have won in years with injuries to major contributors such as Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, Anibal Sanchez, and Justin Verlander. But this issue remains as Cabrera and Victor still have yet to make their 2015 spring training debut, and we can all expect the inevitable Anibal Sanchez stint on the disabled list. The Tigers’ physical instability has been a major factor in years past, and it will continue to play a part this year.

To make matters worse, the Tigers are held down by long-term contracts to aging and degrading players. The team of "Last Year’s All Stars" continues to grow older, increasing their injury risk while steadily lowering in production. Pitchers Joe Nathan and Justin Verlander have already shown major signs of decline, and Victor Martinez and Ian Kinsler are sure to be right behind. And if Miguel can’t bounce back from his most recent surgery? Add him to the list. The huge contracts which have been promised to these players are crippling to the Tigers ability to effectively spend their payroll, and what used to be the future production decline has now become what is seen in the present.

To make matters worse, the Tigers don’t have any relief coming their way. They have been consistently ranked as one of the worst farm systems in the league, meaning there is not any cheap young talent on the rise. Having a poor system is a bad mark for both the present and the future.

To make matters worse, the Tigers are a team with holes… and lots of them. To name a few: they have a catcher that can’t hit, a third baseman that can’t field, half of a rotation, an atrocious bullpen staff, and an uncertain plan for playing time in center field. Each of these take their toll on the team’s success, but the greatest may be the rotation. What once was the Tigers’ pride and joy have now been disassembled and trashed.

To make matters worse, the Tigers have a bullpen that ranks about as low as their farm system. Though this has been the result year after year, Detroit’s front office continues to bring the same names into the same dumpster fire over and over again. It is no different in 2015, without any major additions coming to help. Do you really think Tom Gorzelanny can fix a bullpen? Didn’t think so.

The Tigers have been the favorites before, and every season they find a way to make it close. They have squeaked by for the last three years, proving that the preseason favoritism was overrating the Tigers’ ability. Be fooled no longer: the Tigers are not a contending team and need to prepare for the rebuild. Sure, they've been lucky so far. But some day, that luck is going to run out, and 2015 is going to be that season.

Is it just me, or are the rest of you Tigers’ fans sick of those arguments against our beloved team?

I’m tired of the Tigers being called the "New Phillies" when the talent on this roster doesn’t compare to the position the Phillies were in not too long ago. Did the Phillies have arguably the greatest hitter of this generation? Did the Phillies have a well balanced attack of a league leading offense? Many would argue that the Tigers’ run production has the ability to be much better this year… and that’s after two offseasons where the front office strategy seems to be to add speed and defense (ie Gose, Cespedes, Davis, Kinsler, Romine, etc.). That has formed a well balanced attack from the offense and defense side, which is unlike any of the previous division winning teams.

And the rotation? Well it’s no doubt weaker than it has been in the past, but that doesn’t mean it is weak. There are plenty of other teams that would love to have a rotation with Price, Verlander, and Sanchez leading the way. Greene has good upside, and Simon has potential as he enters only his second full season as a starter (but after all… he’s supposed to be a fifth starter, not an ace). This rotation isn’t in position to break the strikeout record, but they should provide the support that the team needs to be a serious contender in 2015.

I’m optimistic. The 2015 season has the makings of an enjoyable ride to the end, and a good chance for a deep playoff run. This isn’t a team without holes -- which I crudely typed above this dose of optimism -- but there isn’t a team in the league without holes and question marks. There isn’t a team in the league who doesn’t have questions to answer. That’s baseball, and that’s what makes it great. It is the element of the unknown, and that is why they play 162 games. Embrace it.

So I've had enough of hearing how awful the Tigers have become and how they are falling off a cliff. That claim is not based on facts and simply isn’t true. The Tigers have a roster that is loaded with talent; veteran talent as well as young talent. They have invested in players who we want to be the face of our franchise for years to come, and I’d have it no other way. Hold onto your hats and enjoy the ride, the Tigers are still competitive, and that window of contention is open just as wide as it has been in the past.

Our Tigers are contenders.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of the <em>Bless You Boys</em> writing staff.