Keys to victory
Tarik Skubal: The Tigers named left-hander Tarik Skubal, one of the most underrated pitchers in baseball, as the opening-day starter for the first time in his career. The 27year-old ranked as MLB’s No. 1 starting pitcher – worth 3.3 fWAR (via FanGraphs) – from his July 4 return from flexor tendon surgery through the Oct. 1 finale. Skubal needs to stay healthy for 30-plus starts as the young hitters continue to develop.
Javier Báez: The Tigers are stuck with Báez, paying him $98 million over the next four seasons. He has chased down-and-away sliders for his entire career, even when he was at his best in the late 2010s, so his freeswinging approach will never change. The reason for his downfall stems from struggles against fastballs because of poor swing mechanics as he ages. The 31-year-old hit just .177 against fourseam fastballs and .195 against four-seam fastballs inside the strike zone last season. He needs to fix his timing against fastballs. If that happens, Báez – an above-average defender at shortstop – will become one of the most valuable players on the Tigers roster.
A.J. Hinch’s chess: The Tigers don’t have a lot of everyday players on their roster, which means the manager will be tested with chess matches against the opposing manager. The everyday players: Báez, first baseman Spencer Torkelson, second baseman Colt Keith and outfielder Riley Greene. The Tigers will mix and match the rest of their lineup to create and exploit matchups to find wins in the margins.