The promotional bit: Welcome to SB Nation FanPulse, a survey of fans across MLB. Each week, we send 30 polls to plugged in fans from each team. Detroit Tigers fans, sign up here to join FanPulse.
If you were to poll the Detroit Tigers fanbase — hey, we did that — the majority of fans would not be happy with how things are going. The team is well below .500 and headed for their third consecutive 90-loss season. They are still working on accumulating more minor league talent, and their current crop of prospects is still a year (or more) away from reaching the majors.
The “accumulating more minor league talent” part seems to be going quite well, though. The Tigers were widely praised for their work in the 2019 MLB draft, from the several power bats they drafted to higher upside picks in the middle rounds like Arkansas shortstop Jack Kenley and North Carolina righthander Austin Bergner.
And up top? The Tigers grabbed outfielder Riley Greene with their first round pick, a decision our fans overwhelmingly approved of following the draft.
While many fans around here were hoping Cal first baseman Andrew Vaughn would be available, the Chicago White Sox grabbed him with the third overall pick. After Miami took Vanderbilt outfielder J.J. Bleday fourth overall, the Tigers were left with either Greene or prep shortstop C.J. Abrams — or a cost-saving pick like TCU lefthander Nick Lodolo. The Tigers opted for Greene, arguably one of the highest upside picks in the entire draft, and signed him nearly on the spot.
Will Greene blossom into the star hitter he is projected to become? Or will he, like so many other draft picks, fall short of stardom? We’re still several years away from judging how Greene’s career progressed, but for now, it’s safe to say that general manager Al Avila and the Tigers front office made the right decision on draft night.
Are you confident in the direction of the Tigers right now?
51% Yes
49% No
For the first time in three weeks, Tigers fans approve — just barely — of the direction the team is heading in. There are a couple of reasons for this. A series win over the Baltimore Orioles and decent showings against the Atlanta Braves may have left a better taste in fans’ mouths heading into this poll. The hype surrounding Riley Greene also swayed a couple of votes. Confidence in the Tigers’ direction previously dipped to 48 and 45 percent over the past couple weeks.
Do you approve of the job Ron Gardenhire is doing as Tigers manager?
84% Yes
16% No
Confidence in Gardenhire has fallen a bit of late, dipping to 82 percent a couple of weeks ago and 84 percent this past week. Gardenhire’s approval had previously not fallen below 88 percent, and it has not dropped to the 70s at any point in 2019.
What do you think?
As always, remember that you can sign up for FanPulse here.