State of the Tigers: Hinch, Harris talk team cuts, expectations
A couple of the coaches ducked back into the clubhouse for an extra layer of clothing Wednesday, but, one by one, the players tromped onto Guaranteed Rate Field for a 90-minute workout with maybe one extra layer under their practice jerseys.
“It’s not cold,” said Alex Lange, wearing only one short-sleeved layer.
The 35-degree temperatures didn’t feel too bad when the sun was out, but that Chicago wind made things uncomfortable in a hurry. Fortunately, the weather was a little better for the season opener between the Tigers and White Sox on Thursday.
Manager AJ Hinch and team president Scott Harris, smartly, ducked into the dugout and sat under space heaters to address the media. A multitude of topics were discussed in the 23-minute session — foremost among them was the difficulty of selecting the Opening Day roster and what it says about the health of this team and the organization.
“Over the last few days, in the three main position groups — rotation, bullpen and position players — we sent down players who made very compelling cases to be on this roster (against Chicago on Thursday),” Harris said. “And that’s a good thing. But it made for some very tough decisions.”
Among the final players cut were starting pitcher Matt Manning, relievers Beau Brieske and Miguel Diaz, infielder Ryan Kreidler and outfielder Justyn-Henry Malloy — players who had exceptional spring camps.
“There’s a group of players heading to (Triple-A) Toledo now with chips on their shoulders,” Harris said. “And by the way, they should have chips on their shoulders. They made compelling cases, they got a lot better in Lakeland, they pushed themselves and they pushed each other to get a lot better.
“But at the end of the day, we had more credible candidates for the roster than available roster spots. And stepping back and looking at the organization as a whole, it’s a tremendous sign of health
for us. Our hope is that the players heading to Toledo with chips on their shoulders channel that frustration into hitting the ground running, continue to compete, continue to improve and force our hands in the big leagues.”
Hinch even referenced those players in his team meeting on Tuesday.
“We know we’re going to need more than the 26 guys who are here,” Hinch said. “When I talked to the team (Tuesday), I said I wanted to congratulate them and I wanted to congratulate the guys who are pushing us, guys who are not in this clubhouse but are a part of this clubhouse.
“That goes deeper and deeper as our talent has gotten better and better.”
Opening Day is a false deadline in terms of the roster. As Harris said, it is a privilege for players to line up down the base line Thursday and be announced as part of the Opening Day lineup. That deserves to be observed and celebrated.
Then, the next 161 games happen.
“We have to be able to hold a second thought in our minds at the same time,” Harris said. “And that second thought is the concept of a false finish line. The spring-training competition went really well. Guys got a lot better. That is one phase of the competition. The next phase is a lot harder. That’s going out and facing the other big-league teams with a ton of talent.
“I really hope our guys don’t treat (the season opener) as the finish line. It’s not. It’s the starting blocks of a long grueling race.” No time to exhale. “I hope guys don’t take a breath and relax knowing they made the team because we all need to continue to get better,” Harris said. “There are a ton of guys in Toledo right now getting after it trying to force our hand to get up here. And that is a sign of health. It’s a good thing.”
Javy’s ingredient
One of the first guys on the chilly field Wednesday, wearing shorts, was 31-year-old shortstop Javier Báez. He was also one of the talking points.
“We expect Javy to be a good part of what we’re doing,” Hinch said. “He plays a premier position. He’s been there, he’s done it and he’s working his way through a difficult stretch in his career. The better version we can get out of every player is going to add something to this team. But the best version of Javy is as important as you can find.”
The best version of Báez starts with his defense. That’s the one area of his game that’s paramount to the Tigers’ success. The team is built around its pitching and, consequently, its defense. As far as Báez’s offensive contributions, well, suffice it to say, nobody really knows what to expect.
“His consistency on defense (this spring) has been incredible,” Hinch said. “And I know he’s working to find the cues he needs on offense to make better decisions and swing at pitches he can drive rather than just pitches he thinks he can hit.”
OK to be nervous
Colt Keith came out of the clubhouse early Wednesday, sat on the top step of the dugout and silently seemed to take in the expanse of Guaranteed Rate Field, where, on Thursday, he will make his big-league debut, almost two months after he signed a six-year, $28.6 million contract.
Not much he encountered this spring seemed to overwhelm him. But his eyes were wide open Wednesday. And his manager said that was a good thing.
“I hope he’s nervous,” Hinch said. “I hope he’s a little hyper. I hope he’s a little energized by the fact that he’s walking into a bigleague stadium for the first time. This is not a theory anymore. It’s not a dream. This is actually what’s happening.”
Hinch expects that once Keith gets over all the “firsts,” Keith will settle into his routine.
“I think he should soak it all in,” Hinch said. “Once he gets through a couple of firsts — the starting lineup, the national anthem, that first at-bat, first ground ball, first double-play, that first bad call behind the plate, everything will settle in and his routine will stay intact.
“We’re going to embrace the nervousness, but he just needs to be one of the guys that contributes to hopefully a win.”