Tigers player preview: Tyler Collins is gunning for a roster spot in 2015

"If you have the opportunity to play this game of life you need to appreciate every moment. a lot of people don't appreciate the moment until it's passed."
-Kanye West

In a 1-1 game with two out and two runners on base it felt like a moment out of balance. A near-ace pitcher was on the hill staring in at a rather anonymous pinch-hitter. The odds seemed stacked in favor of the veteran hurler. Certainly, it seemed, the rookie batter would shrink from the opportunity.

Anyone with an ounce of baseball sense could tell in many respects, even with over a week to go, the AL Central race was hanging in the balance on this sunlit Saturday afternoon in Kansas City. The Tigers had been battling the Royals on this day in a nip and tuck affair. They had just been gifted an amazing moment  as reserve infielder Hernan Perez alertly noticed from the dugout that a Royals' baserunner hadn't tagged up on third-base after a mind-numbing Detroit gaffe at second-base looked to have given the Royals the lead. Instead the next scene was of Max Scherzer appealing the play and the gift from the baseball gods was in the Tigers hands.

James Shields had been tough on the Tigers all day other than a Torii Hunter solo homer. But he allowed two runners to reach in the top of the 7th and with two out, up stepped little used Tigers rookie Tyler Collins. Collins had been given the proverbial cup of coffee in April after breaking camp on the 25-man roster. Now he was back as a September call-up.

Collins dug in. His moment ended quickly. He laced a first pitch line drive into centerfield to plate the go-ahead run. Collins was not fooled by Shields often beguiling change-up. The Tigers would plate one more in the inning and then hang on by their fingernails as Joba Chamberlain and Joe Nathan haphazardly steered the ship into port. By nearly anyone's estimation the Tigers had one of their three or four most dramatic victories for the 2014 campaign.

Collins had given the Tigers the lift when they needed it. Bench players don't often get meaningful samples. They get chances. In this case Collins had his moment in a year when the Tigers would hold a one game lead for at season's end for the division crown.

How many chances will Collins get in '15? That remains to be seen. His left-handedness in a righty-dominant organization surely helps his case for gaining a bench spot in the majors. If he does, it will be only if the Tigers decide on carrying a 5th outfielder and only one utility infielder.

Detroit's outfield looks fairly set. J.D. Martinez returns for a second year, Yoenis Cespedes has made it to Detroit, and the conventional wisdom is that a platoon in centerfield will evolve with Rajai Davis and new acquired Anthony Gose. The ability to pinch-hit from the left-side seems to be Collins best card to play right now. The ability to play more than one outfield spot helps around the margins as well.

Collins has showed some power the last two seasons in the minors. He knocked 21 homers in Double A Erie in 2013 as part of a 50 extra-base hit campaign with a nice ISO of .197. Then last year, between his stints in Detroit, he popped 18 homers in Toledo to go along with 17 doubles and two triples (ISO .160).

If the Tigers elect to carry an extra utility infielder then, barring injury, Collins will be biding his time in Toledo once again.

Contract Status

Collins has minor league options remaining and he is under club control through the 2021 season and arbitration eligible in 2018. He's cheap labor for the time being.

Stats and projections

The Tigers have a few right-handed bats that should likely be pinch-hit for regularly against tough righty relievers. Rajai Davis, Jose Iglesias, Nick Castellanos (until he proves you shouldn't hit for him),  Hernan Perez/Andrew Romine, and Bryan Holaday/James McCann. A left-handed bat on the bench who can run a little and provide at a dose of power could prove very useful over the course of the season. With Steven Moya looking like the type of power hitting prospect that should be getting intensive work and steady reps, it would appear that Collins is the kind of guy who is line for this type of role. If Collins could fake it at any infield position, he's probably be a shoe-in. But that isn't the case.

Unless GM Dave Dombrowski has a spring training acquisition in mind to bolster his bench (a distinct possibility) the lefty hitting Collins may get a few more moments like the one he shined in last Autumn in a high-stakes at-bat.