Over the past few years, the lack of production from the bullpen has held the Detroit Tigers back, and Dave Dombrowski did nothing about it, however, the new GM, Al Avila, has a different mind set. On Wednesday November 18, one of Avila’s first winter moves was adding a significant piece to the pen, as the Tigers acquired former AL 3-time saves leader, Fransisco Rodriguez. In return, the Brew-Crew received Detroit’s #11 ranked prospect, infielder, Javier Betancourt. Despite the Tigers needing immediate bullpen help, and Milwaukee hinting at rebuild, this was not necessarily the greatest move to be made for either squad. However, most trades usually end up with at least one of the teams benefiting from the move, and that will be the Tigers in this case.
If it wasn’t for the huge contracts of Miggy, V-Mart, and Verlander, the Tigers would be in rebuild mode right now after their disastrous 2015 campaign. There was no question that the offense was still somewhat a powerhouse, as the lineup hit .270, while blasting out 151 homers, but the pitching was awful when it came to the late innings. In 2015, the Tigers’ pen had an ERA above 4, while the main issue was finding the right man to close games out. As the last few years in baseball have shown, the key to a great pen is to have a solid anchor in the 9th. So, with still a solid enough offense, Avila feels that bringing in K-rod will be the start to solidifying the pen for 2016, meaning that the Tigers will be striding towards winning the AL Central. K-rod has a career number of 386 saves, a career ERA of 2.69, and 1067 strikeouts, in just under 900 innings of work. He was given the nickname back in his time with the Angels as he averaged between 10.5-12.5 K/9. There is no doubt this was a good move to help the pen, as it will improve Detroit’s chances of winning in 2016, but it’s only worth going for if star pitchers like Rodriguez come at a cheap price. With aging players past their prime, and a weak group of current prospects, the Tigers are better of starting the rebuilding process this winter. But, on the other end of this trade, Milwaukee’s immediate future is brighter.
With three guys rated in the top 100 MLB prospect list, and a good size group of youngsters ready for the big leagues in 2016, the Brewers will be competing for a WS title sooner than the Tigers. Considering that K-rod is a free agent after the 2016 campaign, and the Brewers not being ready to compete until 2017, it wasn’t a bad idea trading Rodriguez. However, what Milwaukee received in return was next to nothing. Surely K-rod hasn’t gotten much praise since his days in Anaheim, but his value could have brought in a better trade package than an 11th ranked prospect among a weak talent farm system. With emerging stars on the cusp of an MLB debut, and a few signings away from being contenders in 2017, this K-rod move should worry Milwaukee fans. The front office’s first big move this winter was basically giving away one of the best closers in the game as a holiday gift, meaning that it could be the beginning to a chain of pointless moves that don’t help the team’s chances at a 2017 World Championship. Brew-Crew fans need to hold onto hope that the front office does it’s job by singing a few key starters, as well as a veteran infielder and outfielder, as Milwaukee is not far from the top.
