FanPost

What they need is you

The trade deadline of 2018 is bearing down on all of baseball. The kickoff to this event is the prized Manny Machado looking like the first to come off the boards. After that... it looks like O's will continue to roll as they shop Zach Britton. These guys will be some of the first to go this year because they are some of the best talent out there. With Astros acquiring Justin Verlander last year and Cubs acquiring Aroldis Chapman the year before, every team is going to be looking for that one more piece that will put them over the top and ultimately lead the team to a World Series crown like the Astros and the Cubs did the last two years.

This brings us to teams like the Tigers who are looking to sell. However, unlike the O's, their pieces are not as coveted. With that said, that does not mean Tigers do not have anything other teams may want. Problem now is timing and prospect price tag. However, with the price of Britton still going to good, that should give some hope that a team could still over pay for a Tiger too, even if his performance is down right now. Of course, I am talking about Michael Fulmer. While Fulmer has not been great, his overall numbers are not horrible. Add in that he did come off an injury last year, his velocity is still up, and he is controlled cheaply for another 4 years after 2018 can lead to interest from many clubs. Sure there will be some gamble on the buyer, but that gamble has always existed on the other side too and most would still bet taking Fulmer over a prospect. With other big market teams looking to make big slashes, we could see a bit of a buyers war even if there are more sellers. Fulmer could get caught in this and could net Tigers a pretty package.

Looking at other players Tigers have, Nick Castellanos could be another caught up in the bidding wars. Many can say what they want about Nick's defense, but he was actually better in his new position than Machado is his position. Yeah Nick does not have quite the Machado bat, but its not anything to complain about either. With a solid .305 BA/ .359 OBP and power to go with that (15 HR) teams can be sure they are still getting a difference maker. The other bonuses in getting Nick? He is financially cheaper, has another year of control, and Tigers will not be asking the return in prospects the O's look to get back in the Machado deal.

Beyond Nick and Mike, Tigers have some spare parts I am sure they are willing to trade for probably a pretty modest return. Francisco Liriano could be a decent lefty out of a contending team and add a little depth. He could also step in as a spot starter if needed as added depth. Mike Fiers on the other hand has been showing solid #4 starter numbers and could add depth, protection, and experience for a younger team. Then there are guys like Jose Iglesias that can add a stud defender with a pretty decent bat so far.

Beyond these guys though it definitely gets murkier and most likely nothing going to happen... unless a team wants a Blaine Hardy or Alex Wilson thrown in another deal just to add some depth. Tigers do have a few other bigger deals that could happen with the right team, but because those values are down so much it almost seems unlikely in guys like Shane Greene, Matthew Boyd, and Leonys Martin... but there are still 13 days left till trade deadline and you never know what could happen in that short time. Another potential block buster Tigers could make is their only all-star on the team too. Joe Jimenez could be at such a peak value right now perhaps Tigers should question what could they get in return for a BP pitcher? Then there is always the desperate team at waiver wire too that realized maybe they do need to make a deal and Jordan Zimmermann could look like a last minute steal if he continues to pitch and the price is right.

With all this said though, the question is who do Tigers actually need? We keep hearing how Tigers are stock piling pitching. We saw Tigers add the top pitcher in the 2018 draft with the first pick in Casey Mize. Tigers acquired another top pitcher in the deal that sent the one and only Verlander away last season for a Franklin Perez. We have also seen a first round 9th pick overall from 2016 look like he could have the highest ceiling (also lowest floor) of all three in Matt Manning. And that is just the top 3 guys in the system. After that there are plenty of mid rotation types in Alex Faedo, Beau Burrows, and Kyle Funkhouser. With these, there also seems to be a number of nice looking relievers coming up in guys like Zac Houston, Bryan Garcia, Jason Foley, and Sandy Baez. But there is one thing I will always strongly believe in baseball, you can never have too much pitching. One thing also all these guys have in common is they are all righties too. Sure Tigers have guys like Soto, Alexander, and Hall, but these guys are not your top of the line lefties. The closest thing Tigers have in that department is a the injury prone Daniel Norris who's service clock continues to count down. Matthew Boyd has also looked decent until recently too... but both of these guys make you wonder if their value lies more in what they could net Tigers down the line to better align with their current prospects being a little more experienced?

The other thought is also while Tigers arms look solid, they are lacking quite a bit on the offensive side. There are some potential pieces starting to look promising though. Daz Cameron looks like he could be somewhat of a multi-tool OF. Isaac Paredes is looking like he could be a high end IF. Question for him is where does he ultimately stick though? He is playing SS, but he might be better suited for 3B or 2B. 2B might make the most sense with Candelario at 3B, unless by the time Parades is up Tigers have decided to use Cabrera in more of a full-time DH type... which does seem possible. Still, Lugo has not blown away anyone at 2B... and Parades could look like a big bat with a solid glove at 2B too. Perhaps that could also be the case if Rey Rivera continue to hit and shows he wants to claim 1B anyways. Then there are guys like Stewart who are not great at defense, but should be okay if they are covered by someone like Cameron or even Hill some day. There are always the fill-ins too like Gerber or Robinson... but these guys don't often do more than fill in for a time period until the better guy is acquired.

The last spot to be filled, and probably one of the most important spots in my mind is the catcher. Tigers picked up a gifted defender Jake Rogers last year. While he has not hit for average he has also showed some nice power too. Basically things that are pretty nice to have with a catcher anyways... not everyone needs to be an BA guy... especially since he does draw some walks too. Still, I have always been a firm believer that the catcher position should not be regulated to just one player. I think catchers should be on more of a rotation and wouldn't mind Tigers getting a compliment player to Rogers.

This leads me into what I believe Tigers need in their system with the crop of prospects they have. That starts with another catcher. Preferably one that bats lefty, but also is solid defender too. After that, I think Tigers need to find themselves a defensive wizard at SS with some upside with the bat. I would also like to see the big bat in the OF to go with what they already have. Lastly, I would like to see an influx of lefties to mix in with Tigers current righty hoard. Of course, there is nothing that says Tigers need to get this all this year. There is also nothing saying that Parker Meadows could be that OF bat and just soars through the system. Or another guy emerges in other roles. Still, these are the 4 areas I would like to see Tigers work on.

Sure that is easier said then done, but you never know who might just be desperate enough to unload the right guy. I also believe that this is why its important to keep trading guys for younger upside players. Perhaps a Sergio Alcantara or Jose Kind end up being that SS. Or perhaps Elvin Rodriguez or Wilkel Hernandez become Tigers best starters of all on the team? Of course, more often than not these guys don't make it, but the more upper talent a team can get the better its chances are of finding that Altuve that might rise to stardom. And even then if that does not happen, perhaps the Tigers use these guys as chips down the road to acquire the next Miguel Cabrera with the team just needing that one more player. The rebuild started in earnest last trade deadline, now its time to gamble with those that should be gambled and stay firm with those that they know they can stay firm with. Let's just hope the Machado move will spark a sellers market and allow Tigers to get the future that much closer to the ultimate goal.

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