There’s only one game to cover with Toledo and West Michigan getting washed out and Lakeland having a normal day off.

Harrisburg 9 Toledo 11
Audy Ciriaco continues to hit well since his return from the disabled list picking up a homer, a single, and a walk. Cale Iorg went 3 for 3 with 2 doubles. Wilkin Ramirez had 2 doubles. Jon Kibler allowed 4 runs on 7 hits and 3 walks in 7 innings. Luis Marte allowed a run on 2 hits and a walk while striking out the side. Anthony Shawler made this a close game by allowing 4 runs in his inning of work.

Toledo – DNP

Binghamton 2 Erie 4
Jon Kibler lasted only 4 innings, allowing 2 runs on 2 solo homers to go along with 2 walks and 4 K’s. Zach Simons pitched 3 innings allowing just one baserunner with 5 strikeouts. Brendan Wise got the 2 inning save. Michael Bertram doubled and singled. Cesar Nicolas homered. Cale Iorg picked up 2 hits and is hitting 324/395/471 in his last 10 games.

Dayton 4 Lakeland 3
Brent Wyatt had 3 singles. Kody Kaiser tripled. Rawley Bishop hit his 4th home run. Luke Putkonen allowed 3 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks in 6 innings with 5 K’s.

West Michigan 6 Great Lakes 8
Jacob Turner made his return from the disabled list. He left with 2 outs and 2 on in the 4th inning. Both those runners would score and his final line read 3.2 innings, 3 hits, 1 walk, 3 K’s, 1 HR, 4 R, 2 ER. He evidently battled command as he became fatigued in the 3rd inning with 31 of his 64 pitches going for strikes. Michael Rockett homered and doubled. Jamie Johnson and Mike Gosse each had 2 hits. Jordan Lennerton drew 3 walks.

Things have been very quiet here at DTW lately. While it wasn’t my intention for things to go dark here, when it’s a one person gig sometimes life gets in the way. Fortunately life will be out of the way this coming week so my winter meetings coverage should be pretty robust and very timely. In the mean time I’ll use this post as a way of catching up on everything that got neglected.

Polanco signs with the Phillies

The biggest new I failed to cover was the end of Placido Polanco’s career as a Tiger. This was a likely outcome after the Tigers declined to offer arbitration. With no draft pick attached the Phillies moved quickly and handed Polanco a 3 year, $18 million deal to play third base.

The deal was aggressive and it may have been an indication that the Phillies would have signed Polanco regardless of his arbitration situation. We’ll never know of course one way or the other. My guess though is that if the Phillies didn’t care about the pick, they probably could have signed him prior to the Tigers decision when there wouldn’t have been as much competition for his services. Beck has more on the negotiation and Tigers decision.

As for the deal itself, using WAR and Polanco’s past stats would indicate the Phillies got a steal just on the surface. Polanco has been at least a 3 WAR player the last 3 years which means he’s been worth about $12-14 million a season. But part of that value comes in the fact that Polanco played a premium position. He’ll lose some value moving to 3rd base. He’ll also age. He’s also playing a position he hasn’t played regularly since he was a Phillie last time around. I think Polanco will look like a bargain this year, but look pretty expensive at the end of the contract.

Brian Peterson & Cale Iorg interviews

Mark Anderson at TigsTown has been busy. Over the last week he’s conducted interviews with Cale Iorg and Brian Peterson. Everybody knows Iorg as the Tigers shortstop prospect where there has been a huge disagreement between tools and results. Iorg does seem to be a pretty sharp guy though who has dealt with the adversity well and isn’t afraid of hard work. When Anderson asked about his offseason Iorg’s response was:

I want to work out a lot, to try to get stronger and stuff. I just want to do a lot of hitting stuff. I can obviously work with my Dad. My Dad knows my swing better than anybody out there, so work with him and just really try to get my work in – get good work in. It’s not all about how many times I go, or how many swings I get when I get there; it’s just being consistent with what I do when I’m there. My whole off-season is to prepare for spring training. Whether I go to big league camp again, I don’t know yet, but if I do, then I want to be prepared to play like people have said I can play.

Now not as many people may know about Peterson. He is the organization’s Performance Enhancement Instructor and in his role he helps players with the mental side of the game. He’s been with the organization for seven years and he held a similar role with Dave Dombrowski’s Marlins teams as well. It appears that Dombrowski was an early mover in seeing the value in a role like this:

I think Dave has been very progressive. Theforiginal guy that started doing this type of work was Harvey Dorfman who the A’s used in the early 80’s. Dave Dombrowski hired Harvey with the Marlins in 1992 when we first started the Marlins organization. Dave has been really progressive in this area. He really believes in it and he knows that it helps players. I think he is one of the guys at the forefront in seeing that this type of position can really help the players.

Other stuff

• Joel Zumaya’s rehab is complete and he should be ready to go for spring training
• Danny Knobler wrote a really well reasoned analysis of the Tiger situation
• Jonathan Mayo took a look at the Tigers 2009 draft
• Lee Panas previews the winter meetings from the Tigers perspective
• Ernie Harwell makes a public appearance and steals the show

Things continue to go well for the Tigers’ Arizona contingent – excepting Scott Sizemore’s injury of course. Robbie Weinhardt’s rough 3 outing start is a thing of the past. Casper Wells continues to hit.  Andy Oliver, Thad Weber, and Scot Drucker are all seeing some success as the Peoria Javelinas lead the league.

Robbie Weinhardt

Weinhardt gave up 7 runs in his first 3 appearances, and none since. In his last 5 outings he’s thrown 10 scoreless innings. He’s allowed just 1 walk and 5 hits with 17 strike outs over that span. His 25 K’s lead the league. Those are remarkable numbers in an offense dominated league.

Casper Wells

Wells is leading the AFL in slugging at .750 and he’s 4th in on base percentage. He did have to leave yesterday’s game when trying to beat out a play at first. The Daily Fungo’s Mike McClary was in attendance and tweeted that Wells was able to limp off under his own power.

The Rest

In Oliver’s last 7 innings (4 games) he’s only allowed 1 unearned run, 3 walks, and 6 hits while fanning 8…Thad Weber has walked only 1 batter in 9 innings while fanning 10…Drucker has been up and down vacillating between good and bad outings. Today was a good one with 3 scoreless frames…Cale Iorg had a 2 game break out that saw him hit a homer and a double. But in 45 at-bats he has a .512 OPS and 16 strike outs.

The Tigers representatives in the Arizona Fall League now have a week under their belts. Since the opener most have handled the challenge quite well so far with your likely 2010 second baseman Scott Sizemore leading the way.

Scott Sizemore

All he’s done is homer 3 times, double twice, and walk twice in 18 plate appearances. That’s good enough for a 375/400/1.063 slash line and prompting Kevin Goldstein to say “there isn’t really a glaring weakness in his game.”

Casper Wells

Mark Anderson of TigsTown thinks that a big fall could put Wells in the mix for the outfield rotation in 2010. So far he has a 444/450/889 line in 19 plate appearances. He has fanned 8 times though so it appears he’s either hitting the ball hard or not at all.

Cale Iorg

So far Iorg seems to be picking up his AFL season where his Erie season ended, and that’s not necessarily a good thing. He has a 182/182/250 line so far but I guess the good news would be that he’s only fanned 4 times. In Kevin Goldstein’s BP 10 Pack he listed this scout’s comment on Iorg:

I like the tools and what he does with the glove… but he just can’t hit.

Andrew Oliver

After getting knocked around a little bit in his first outing he bounced back nicely fanning 3 and walking 1 in his next outing which lasted 2 innings. He followed that up with a 1 inning stint that saw him allow 2 hits, but no damage while notching another strikeout.

Robbie Weinhardt

Weinhardt also improved with his second outing, but that was really the only way for him to go. But he still allowed 2 runs in 1.1 innings. Weinhardt has allowed 7 runs in 3 AFL innings on 9 hits and 3 walks. For someone who allowed just 8 earned runs in 30 AA innings this year this is certainly uncharacteristic.

Scot Drucker

Drucker isn’t really viewed as a prospect, but he has done well with this opportunity so far. He’s allowed just 1 run on 2 hits in 5 innings despite just striking out 2.

The Arizona Fall League started today. The Tigers had quite a few representatives in today’s effort, a game that saw the opposition hang 17 runs on the board.

I guess the bad news first, the Tigers had 3 pitchers in today’s game. Scot Drucker started and allowed a run in 2 innings. It was downhill from there. Andy Oliver drew a tough assignment for his first professional action and he was tagged for 4 runs due to 2 hits, including a homer, and 2 walks in his inning of work. Robbie Weinhardt got knocked around for 5 runs on 6 hits, a walk, a wild pitch, and a hit by pitch in 1.2 innings.

Offensively things were a little better. Scott Sizemore had an 0 for 4, but Casper Wells doubled and singled and Cale Iorg went 1 for 3.

Winter Leagues: Arizona Fall League: Statistics | MLB.com: Events

UPDATE: Take 75 North weighs in on the game and Fire Jim Leyland looks at Oliver’s pitch f/x data.

Louisville 3 Toledo 2
Wilkin Ramirez and Wil Rhymes each had 2 hits. Nate Robertson started and went 6.2 innings, he allowed 3 hits, no runs, 2 walks, and he fanned 9 – and it only took him 68 pitches to do it. Jeremy Bonderman didn’t fare as well allowing 2 runs on 2 hits and a walk in 1 inning.

Erie 5 Reading 8
Michael Bertram was a single short of the cycle. Casper Wells had 3 hits including 2 doubles. Jared Gayhart got another start and lasted 4 innings with 5 K’s, 2 walks, 4 hits, and 1 run.

Lakeland 4 Daytona 6
Devin Thomas and Jeramy Laster each had 2 doubles. Lauren Gagnier allowed 2 homers and 4 runs on 8 hits, 2 walks, and 5 K’s in 5 innings. Austin Wood pitched a scoreless inning with a strike out.

West Michigan 3 Lansing 4
Billy Nowlin homered for 1 of his 3 hits. Ben Guez and Luis Salas each had 2 hits, and Salas added 2 walks. Luke Putkonen fanned 8 in 6 shutout innings allowing 2 walks and 4 hits. Jade Todd was lit up for 4 runs in 2.1 innings.

Oneonta 1 Staten Island 4
Jamie Johnson doubled and walked. Alexis Espinoza doubled an singled. Mark Newman pitched 4 shutout innings with 4 hits, no walks and 2 K’s.

GCL Tigers 1 GCL Blue Jays 4
Brett Anderson went 2 for 4. Rayni Guichardo pitched 6 shutout innings and fanned 5 against 3 walks and 3 hits. Melvin Mercedes picked up his 15th save with a scoreless inning.

Minors Notes

The Tigers preliminary Arizona Fall League roster was announced. Robbie Weinhardt, Cody Satterwhite, Thad Weber, Ryan Strieby, Cale Iorg, and Scott Sizemore will represent the Tigers. Take 75 North breaks down the selections.

Also of note, Jeff Larish is done for the year as his wrist required surgery. Larish did pretty much nothing at the plate the latter part of the year and at least with an injury there is some explanation.

It’s that time of year when trade rumor talk is through the roof. Combined with the Tigers recent struggles, I know this is top of mind stuff for many. I don’t do a lot of trade speculation here, mostly because I’m too lazy to conjure up potential deals. However, I do know this is a hot topic so please use this space to discuss things. Below are a couple of my thoughts on who the Tigers shouldn’t give up, as well as some links to current-ish rumors.

The Keepers

I’m not big on the term untouchable, but there are a few guys in the Tigers system that I would be very reluctant to part with. This isn’t necessarily because they are through the roof prospects, but because of the impending role they may play in the near future. Rick Porcello would definitely fit into this category. And with most any move involving prospects, that’s where I’m going to turn most of my focus.

Scott Sizemore: Sizemore makes the list because he has hit so well this year at both AA and AAA that he appears to be pretty much major league ready. He also plays a position where the incumbent is aging and not signed for next year. In other words there is a high likelihood he will be the Tigers starting second baseman next year.

Alex Avila: Avila is a catcher who is hitting a AA in only his second professional season. His defense is still evolving, but he has a very good caught stealing rate. Avila is likely to be ready by 2011 at the latest and the Tigers don’t have a long term option at catcher. His potential role on the team combined with the emerging talent makes him too valuable to part with.

And that’s it. Everyone else in the minors leagues would be fair game. I like Wilkin Ramirez, but as a corner outfielder the Tigers could more easily absorb his loss. Cale Iorg has failed to impress this year. I’d be a little reluctant to move him, just because they may be selling low.

The news-ish stuff

Dave Dombrowski spoke to the media yesterday, and while he said quite a bit he didn’t really tip his hand at all. What was interesting is that he spoke of the depth in the Tigers farm system. I do think there is some depth, but there is a lack of top end talent.

Specifically Dombrowski said that he could name 10 relievers who could be ready to help the team in the next year. Off the top of my head I have Casey Fien, Zach Simons, Robbie Weinhardt, Cody Satterwhite, Josh Rainwater, Brett Jensen, Clay Rapada, Luis Marte (don’t know if you get to count him since he’s a starter right now), Brett Jacobson, Jared Gayhart, Scott Green. To expect all of them to be ready within a year I think is a litte far-fetched, but hey, it’s his job to talk up his system.

Dombrowski also apparently had a phone conversation with JP Ricciardi about someone not named Roy Halladay. Speaking of Halladay, there’s lot of buzz around him, but most of it is centered on the Phillies.

Some Tigers specific news involves includes scouts from the Washington Nationals attending AA Erie games potentially scouting some of those relievers, or Deik Scram, or Casper Wells, or Cale Iorg.

Troy Glaus is available and Rosenthal and Morosi list the Tigers as a potential suitor (ick).

Feel free to add other rumors or breaking news in the comments. With it being the weekend I won’t be tethered to a computer, but if something happens I will get info up as quickly as possible.

Rick Porcello - cr Roger DeWitt

It’s another one of those rites of the offseason, the Baseball America top 10 list. The list itself is available to anyone, but for additional information (like scouting reports) you need to be a subscriber.

As for the list, here it is:

1. Rick Porcello, rhp
2. Ryan Perry, rhp
3. Cale Iorg, ss
4. Casey Crosby, lhp
5. Jeff Larish, 1b/3b
6. Wilkin Ramirez, of
7. Scott Sizemore, 2b
8. Cody Satterwhite, rhp
9. Dusty Ryan, c
10. Guillermo Moscoso, rhp

Usually when the list comes out I look back to the previous year’s list to see who stayed and who left. Hopefully the list changes because guys graduate and lose prospect status. In the Tigers case there are only 4 players carrying over from the ’08 last. As for the other 6? Only one graduated and that was Matt Joyce.

Yorman Bazardo and Francisco Cruceta flamed out. Danny Worth and Mike Hollimon had their development hindered due to injuries. Brandon Hamilton struggled in West Michigan, and while he’s still a prospect he’s no longer in the top 10.

Ryan Perry - cr Roger DeWitt

The flip side of guys losing status is that some other earned their way into the top 10. Wilkin Ramirez built on a strong spring training and exploded for AA Erie. Guillermo Moscoso had an outstanding season, and Dusty Ryan played himself into the Tigers 09 plans. And Ryan Perry and Cody Satterwhite were new draftees who cracked the top 10.

So it’s not that the Tigers system is without talent – guys who stand a decent chance to play at the big league level. What it lacks is enough players who could excel at the big league level.

Dave Dombrowski held court with reporters today and he revealed a glimpse into this winter’s agenda.

The main points:

• Edgar Renteria’s option will not be picked up
• The Tigers are looking outside the organization to fill the closer role
• The Tigers don’t expect to be a major player in the free agent market
• Detroit does not expect to cut payroll significantly
• Dombrowski likes Cale Iorg thinking he’s going to be an All Star very soon.

My thoughts:

• Declining the Renteria option was pretty much a no brainer. The Tigers can try and sign him for less and offer him arbitration.  If he declines and is signed somewhere else the Tigers get two draft picks.  If he accepts it probably is a decent stopgap.  Renteria is a decent bet to bounce back somewhat and not be a void in the lineup.  While there is a desire to upgrade the defense at short, with Inge and mystery catcher in the fold the Tigers can’t afford to go with a total defensive specialist at short.  They have that at third already now.  Renteria sounds like he’d like to be back.
• Dombrowski’s comments about Iorg were quite enthusiastic.  It could be he’s trying to up the trade value, or diminish the Tigers needs, but the remarks came on the same day that Iorg made the BA Top 20 list for the FSL. (Rick Porcello was number 1).  It makes one think the Tigers aren’t looking for a long term fix for 2009.
• Rodney got a lukewarm treatment from Dombrowski saying that he’d be the leading candidate on the current club, but he wanted more consistency.  But with the Tigers not making a splash that probably means no K-Rod or Fuentes which is fine.  The new closer will likely be an established set-up man who can be had for a cheaper price.  It might not satisfy the fan base, but is probably the best and only way to go given the payroll constraints and ridiculous sum that closers get.

In the end Dombrowski is looking for answers like the rest of us…

“Most years, when we go into spring training, I have a good feel for where we’ll finish,” he said.

“I’m so far off on this,” he said, shaking his head, his voice trailing off.

Links of note, or stuff I find interesting, or stuff I think you might find interesting

• Offseason Outlook: Detroit Tigers: MLB Rumors – MLBTradeRumors.com – Tim Dierkes continues his series by looking at the Tigers
• From a Uni Watch interview of NY Times’ Yankees beat writer Tyler Kepner: UW: Who is the most… – Bless You Boys – Shef is a wee bit particular about the cut of his uniform.
• THE BOOK–Playing The Percentages In Baseball – Team UZR numbers from MGL. The ones in the post are combined with 05-07 data, but just the 08 numbers are included in a comment. The Tigers are a couple runs below average.
• Ryan maturing beyond his experience | tigers.com: News – Getting to know Dusty Ryan
• BaseballAmerica.com: Majors: Organization Reports: Detroit Tigers: Tigers Final Report – BA rates Cale Iorg as the Tigers best position player. Wilken Ramirez and others may take some issue with that. Iorg had a decent season, but not the best. Porcello got the nod for top pitcher.
• Whitecaps promo video – In a season like this, this video is a nice reminder that baseball is supposed to be fun.
• Who are the best fielding pitchers – Hint: his name rhymes with country music legend Kenny Rogers
• Remembering Tiger Stadium – New blog about the corner.

Zach Miner starts again

The question of the 5th starter has been answered – for now. Zach Miner will take the spot formerly occupied by Eddie Bonine and before him Dontrelle Willis. Miner had some struggles with control out of the pen this year. But in two “stretch-out” starts for Toledo he has posted a 12:2 strike out to walk ratio in 8.1 innings. I’m in favor of giving Miner a shot, but I think there will be a pretty quick switch if he starts running every count full and walking people.

Is Tiger Stadium saved?

There have been deadline extenstions, and votes to keep some parts, and votes to knock the whole thing down. But now the Daily Fungo points to a news release on Carl Levin’s web site that there is $4 million earmarked for Corktown preservation and redevelopment. Presumably this is the money that the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy is hoping to obtain to save a portion of the stadium.

Injured middle infielders littered throughout the system

When the Tigers traded away their stud centerfield prospects middle infield became the organizational position of strength. Instead it’s become the organizational position of DL stays and ibuprofen. Edgar Renteria is battling a hamstring injury that he reagravated tonight.

Cale Iorg, the Tigers big time bonus pick from last year just hit the DL for Lakeland. His keystone partner Scott Sizemore has missed a big chunk of the season with a broken bone in his hand. Danny Worth, another draft pick from last year who has been a defensive whiz for Erie is now missing time. And high ceiling shortstop Audy Ciriaco just went on the DL for West Michigan.

And while they are health now, both Ramon Santiago and Mike Hollimon missed time this season due to separated shoulders.

It must be something they are putting in the water at second base.

Toledo 3 Indianapolis 4
Matt Joyce homered and drove in 2. Brent Clevlen doubled, singled, and walked twice and is now sporting a 320/405/572 line. Chris Lambert allowed 3 runs on 5 hits, a walk, and 5 K’s in 6 innings.

Altoona 3 Erie 8
Max St. Pierre homered twice. Justin Justice, Ryan Roberson, Wil Rhymes, and Max Leon had 2 hit games. Josh Rainwater allowed 3 runs over 5 innings.

Altoona 6 Erie 5 (8 innings)
Danny Worth went 3 for 4. Justin Justice was 1 for 2 with a walk. Matt Righter allowed 5 runs on 5 hits, 2 walks, and 2 K’s in 4.2 innings. Anthony Tomey took the loss allowing 1 run in 3 innings.

Lakeland 10 Dunedin 7
Jeramy Laster, Cale Iorg, Lou Ott, and Pedro Cotto all went deep for Lakeland. James Skelton was 1 for 3 with 2 walks. Jordan Tata struggled allowing 3 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks in 3 innings with 3 K’s. Ramon Garcia allowed 3 runs, 1 earned, in 5 innings of relief work.

South Bend 5 West Michigan 1
Cory Middleton and Chris Carlson had the only 2 hits for the Caps. Carlson’s was a homer accounting for the only run. Brandon Hamilton allowed 2 runs on 3 hits, 3 walks, and 4 K’s in 4 innings. Matt Hoffman made an appearance in relief and allowed an unearned run while fanning 4 in 1.2 innings.

Toledo 8 Columbus 5
Dontrelle Willis made another rehab start and stuck around for 96 pitches this time. He only allowed 1 run but he walked 4 in 6 innings and fanned 4. Jeff Larish is trying to catch-up to Mike Hessman and he knocked 2 more homers. Mike Hollimon added his 9th dinger and Brent Clevlen his 6th.
Erie 0 Binghamton 2
Wilkin Ramirez had a rough night with 3 K’s in 3 at-bats. Andrew Kown went 4.2 innings allowing 2 runs on 4 hits, a walk and 4 K’s.
Erie 5 Binghamton 7
Danny Worth tripled and homered and Ryan Roberson added a homer and a single. Wil Rhymes and Justin Justice each had multi-hit games. Jon Connolly allowed 7 runs on 10 hits in 4 innings and owns a 7.07 ERA.

Dunedin 4 Lakeland 2
Ryan Strieby doubled, homered, and walked. James Skelton and Jeramy Laster each added 2 hits and a walk. Cale Iorg tripled and singled. Duane Below allowed 3 runs on 7 hits, no walks, and 5 K’s in 6 innings of work.

Lansing 5 West Michigan 3
Chris Carlson had 2 hits including a double. Ronnie Bourquin also doubled. All the runs allowed in this game were unearned coming on the heels of 3 errors. Lauren Gagnier allowed 1 unearned run on 4 hits, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts in 7 innings.

Toledo 3 Durham 9
It wasn’t a good night for Virgil Vasquez who allowed 6 runs on 3 homers in just 3 innings. Yorman Bazardo came on in relief and allowed 3 runs on 7 hits in 4.1 innings while fanning 5 and walking none. And in an odd night, Hessman, Larish, and Hollimon didn’t homer. But Erick Almonte did.

Erie – PPD

Dunedin 1 Lakeland 4
Rick Porcello went 5.2 innings allowing 1 run on 5 hits, a walk, and 5 K’s. Brennan Boesch had a 3 hit game while Cale Iorg and Scott Sizemore had 2 hit games. Jeramy Laster homered and singled.

Lansing 3 West Michigan 6
Joe Tucker had 3 hits. Audy Ciriaco and Justin Henry had 2 hits each. Alredo Figaro allowed 3 runs on 6 hitsand 3 walks while fanning 5.

Lansing 5 West Michigan 0
Only 3 hits for the Whitecaps in this half of the DH. Manny Miguelez didn’t make it out of the first inning surrendering 4 runs and only recording 2 outs.