Results tagged ‘ Don Kelly ’
The odd man out
The Tigers announced today that Andy Dirks has been recalled from Triple-A Toledo and have subsequently designated Don Kelly for assignment. A lot of people had suspected that Ryan Raburn was going to be the player to move, but in the end, Kelly was the odd man out.
Neither Kelly nor Raburn have provided the Tigers with any real offensive production, although Kelly did provide a lot more value to the team, in terms of defensive abilities. On the year, Raburn has posted a line of .172/.225/.258, whereas Kelly was .175/.267/.243. Unfortunately, Kelly is a left-handed batter, which took away much of his value.
When the emergence of Quintin Berry, Andy Dirks returning from his rehab assignment, and a productive Brennan Boesch, the Tigers found themselves with three better outfielders who all hit left handed. Simply put, Kelly’s services were no longer necessary.
Even though Raburn has struggled mightily this year, he bats right handed and plays both second base and the outfield. Having that option on the bench provides more flexibility and options for manager Jim Leyland, and he’s always spoken about the importance of having players who can play more than one position.
It’ll be interesting to see where Kelly ends up landing, whether he gets claimed through waivers, or if he’ll end up back in Toledo. I’ve yet to hear anything bad about him, so I wish him the best in all of his future endeavors. Thanks for everything, especially for providing us with this memorable moment.
Rest: It does a body good
Not a whole lot of news for the Tigers today, as they get a much needed night off.
Before the season began, fans expected certain people to help lead the way for the Tigers. I’m pretty sure they weren’t expecting to have to count on Danny Worth, Don Kelly and Quintin Berry to lead the way.
For those of you who haven’t been keeping up with the Tigers, multiple injuries have cost us dearly. Andy Dirks was recently placed on the 15-day disabled list with tendinitis in his right Achilles. Austin Jackson is still trying to get back into playing condition, after suffering an abdominal strain. Catchers Gerald Laird and Alex Avila are both dealing with hamstring issues, and Doug Fister is still trying to recover from a left-side strain.
I’m no medical expert, but a day off might just be what the doctor ordered.
Keep your eye on the ball. No, not literally!
Today the Tigers caught an unfortunate break, when Miguel Cabrera took a one hopper right in the eye. You can click HERE to watch the video, and see it for yourself. Hunter Pence scorched a ball that took a tricky hop, giving Cabrera minimal time to react.
Although you can see that Cabrera was bleeding after the play, it appears that the cut was caused from the direct impact off his sunglasses. I would imagine that this isn’t going to be a serious injury, at least in terms of missing any significant playing time, but I do think the Tigers are going to have to take a longer look as to how much playing time Cabrera should have at third base.
I stand by my previous comments that I think Cabrera will be fine overall at third base, but I still find it hard to believe he’ll play more than half of the year at third. So in the meantime, the state of Michigan will be holding their breath as we wait for the results of the precautionary X-rays.
If the injury proves to be serious, I’d imagine a rotation with Don Kelly and Brandon Inge would be most likely, but let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.
Who’s on first, but what’s on second?
So if you wanted to ask me who the Detroit Tigers second baseman will be on opening day, I could give you at least four different options that make sense. The Tigers have quite the rotation system in order for second base, and I’m not sure how good of a thing that is.
I can’t think of too many major league teams that are still actively unsure of their situation at second base, but the Tigers have more options than a kid in a candy store. Sure, the options aren’t necessarily that of an all-star caliber, but they all certainly provide a lot of good things to the table.
You have Ramon Santiago, the switch hitter. Santiago has been consistent, and it was rumored that he turned down a starting position offer from a few teams in order to come back to Detroit. There’s been questions about his durability (not his talent), otherwise he would certainly would have been able to find more offers as a free agent. Although Santiago offers the least amount of offensive power out of the group, he may very well be the most consistent offensive producer.
Another strong possibility for the opening day starter goes to left-handed hitting Don Kelly. Kelly has proven to be the true super-utility player, doing everything from pitching to catching in 2011 for Detroit. It wouldn’t necessarily shock me if Kelly gets slotted in on opening day (assuming Boston pitches the right-handed Josh Beckett), but only if Kelly can put up solid offensive numbers during Spring Training.
Then there’s Ryan Raburn. Simply put, unless opening day comes after July 31st, I don’t think Raburn is going to be nearly good enough offensively or defensively to give him the nod. Truth be told, it also wouldn’t shock me to see Raburn get traded prior to opening day. Despite his defensive limitations, he provides a strong right-handed bat which a lot of teams may be interested in, especially for such a low cost.
Every offseason usually provides some sort of story that has captured the attention of Detroit fans. I can’t think of a better example of that than with the story of Brandon Inge attempting to become the second baseman for Detroit. I’ve gone on record many times saying I love the fact that Inge is willing to do whatever he has to do to get playing time. I don’t get the people crying and complaining about the fact Inge is doing everything he can to get playing time. If you’re a coach, you want 25 people on your team with that competitive drive. After the Tigers signed Prince Fielder and decided to move Miguel Cabrera to third base, Inge found himself without a position.
He approached Tigers manager Jim Leyland and General Manager Dave Dombrowski and said he wanted a chance to be the second baseman. Since then, Dombrowski has made comments saying Inge looks like a natural who has been playing the position for over a decade. This says a lot about the athleticism of Brandon Inge, and if he can put up any sort of offensive numbers, I think it’s safe to say he’ll get a good share of playing time at second. Also take into consideration that the Tigers would have to eat six million dollars to cut him, it has to make you believe that they’re going to be at least willing to give him a shot.
For what it’s worth, I got my money on Inge. Who do you think will get the nod?
Bye Bye Brandon
Word from Tigers beat reporter Jason Beck is that the Tigers have just announced that the Tigers will be placing Brandon Inge on the 15-day disabled list with mono. In the meantime, the Tigers will be calling up catcher Omir Santos from Toledo, who will likely be sent back down once (and if) Magglio Ordonez makes his return to the Tigers which could be as soon as next week Monday. In all likelihood, it would appear that Danny Worth and Don Kelly will split the extra playing time at third base until Inge returns.
What’s a Penny Worth?
Today with no doubt will be a big game for the Detroit Tigers and Brad Penny. After having two disappointing starts, there are a lot of questions as to whether or not he’s still a pitcher worth keeping around. I’m curious to see how he handles a rather difficult Texas lineup, but hopefully he can at least put together a quality start.
And as promised, here’s the current 2011 Tigers PPA% updated through 4/11/2011
(Sorted by number of PA)
Miguel Cabrera:. 512
Austin Jackson: .262
Victor Martinez: .262
Will Rhymes: .316
Jhonny Peralta: .429
Brandon Inge: .273
Brennan Boesch: .424
Alex Avila: .355
Magglio Ordonez: .346
Ryan Raburn: .375
Don Kelly: .250
Ramon Santiago: .400
Casper Wells: .333
Brad Jeffers
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