AGRI Biz

Sabermetricians like to compare MLB players to "replacement players." But sometimes it's a hard to grasp the concept. How exactly do they quantify "replacement level?"Detroiters need look no further than that Tigers bullpen for the perfect example: Brad Thomas.Thomas is the epitome of replacement-level talent in Major League Baseball.Here's a working definition of replacement player from Big League Stew: "A replacement player is defined as someone who is below average ...

Mariners 11, Tigers 3 The Good: It only counts as one game in the standings. The Bad: No comeback this time. After giving up three runs in the third, it appeared that the Tigers were going to get right back in the game when they scored two in the fourth. But the comeback bid was stamped out by the M's answer of two runs in the bottom of the fourth ...

I know I sound like an old man when I say it, but the Detroit Tigers starters need to go deeper into games to give the bullpen a break. Five times the starter has lasted only five innings, and twice the starter has lasted six innings. Starting pitching has not yet recorded an out in the seventh inning. I understand that baseball has changed. Gone are the days ...

The Tigers are eager to put the memory of last year’s near playoff miss far behind them, and early indications show that this team has the players to do just that. Many initially thought the Tigers wouldn't be in a position to compete this season when the team made some trades and cut payroll in the offseason, but things are looking up. Here are five (alliterative) reasons that the American League Central ...

The Tigers have a pitching conundrum on their hands. Two rotation spots remain for three players: Jeremy Bonderman, Dontrelle Willis, and Nate Robertson. All three have had impressive moments in the spring, but all three carry scars of a couple seasons of ineffectiveness. The question of which two to take has racked my brain the past two weeks, but I think Zac summed it up best a ...

Yesterday I made my guess at which hitters will be named to the Tiger's opening day roster -- I'll finish up with the pitchers today. The locks: Justin Verlander (R) Rick Porcello (R) Ryan Perry (R) Jose Valverde (L) Not too much needs to be said about these guys. We know what Verlander brings to the table, Porcello, looking to build on his rookie success, has had a ...

We're not quite halfway through the spring campaign yet, but I can already see that Jim Leyland and Dave Dombrowski will have some tough decisions to make before naming the 25 guys they'll take back to Detroit to begin the season. We're probably looking at thirteen hitters on the opening day roster (12 pitchers), so let's try to figure out who it will be. The locks: Gerald Laird ...

Word got out the other day that Major League Baseball's "special committee for onfield matters" has discussed a "radical floating realignment" idea. While I believe that competitive imbalance issues in baseball are widely overstated (more on that later), I understand the need for new, revolutionary ideas. One idea struck me as I read the story: Why do we need divisions, anyway? Why not just eliminate the division ...

I try not to get too carried away with spring training stats. Usually at least one veteran will slump heavily only to perform as expected in the regular season, and at least one minor leaguer will get hot only to be assigned to a farm club where he fails to impress. But that doesn't mean I ignore spring stats—I'm a stats geek at heart. Today—as usual—I checked up ...