Anthony Gose Poised to Breakout for Detroit Tigers?
It’s difficult to gauge whether strong play in spring training will translate to success throughout the MLB regular season. Detroit Tigers center fielder Anthony Gose appears to be poised for a breakout campaign given his current spring. After being traded from the Toronto Blue Jays for second baseman Devin Travis this offseason, Gose will fare better as a hitter than he did in Toronto.
Having a hot spring is certainly not a bad thing. Either way, it can help a player carry momentum into April and therefore increases the likelihood of them swinging a hot stick. But hitter’s see such a variance of pitcher’s, everything from Double-A to Major League caliber arms on a regular basis in the month of March, making it tough to buy into a lot of the hype.
Detroit Tigers
It’s tough to pinpoint who is for real and who is a pretender. Take for example in the spring of 2010, Josh Hamilton hit very well with a .373/.406/.610 slash line. He went onto win AL MVP that same season. That very preseason, former first round pick Tyler Colvin led all spring ball players in hits with 36, posted two home runs and 18 RBI while stringing together a fantastic line of .468/.468/.753. Perhaps the biggest red flag present was that Colvin did not walk once all spring, but struck out 16 times. His regular season went on to consist of a .254 BA with 20 HRs and 56 RBI.
There’s no method at all to the players I selected above. It’s merely a way to contrast results in the regular season based on preseason play. Hamilton was/is obviously a more complete player than Colvin, as well.
Gose currently leads all spring players with 13 hits and a ridiculous .520/.586/.880 slash line in 25 at-bats. He’s even managed to swipe four bases. The Tigers acquired him because they needed a defensively apt center fielder capable of replacing Austin Jackson. Only 24, Gose has an outside shot at being the Tigers’ Opening Day leadoff hitter if his spring success overflows into April and beyond.
Given his .234/.301/.332 line as a pro in 552 ABs, there’s reason to suggest this will not happen. Gose appears to lack the ability to steadily hit .280 and get on-base at the same consistency of an All-Star. 2015 looks to be his first full season that he’ll be handed an everyday starting role at position, however. Everyones definition of a breakout season can be relative for that reason.
He’s not going to be an All-Star, but with regular at-bats, Gose will have his best season yet as a pro. Good enough to possibly make Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos regret moving him, given his club’s current lack of depth in the outfield and that Devon Travis likely will not be ready to contribute yet at the big league level on a consistent basis (he’s yet to play Triple-A ball and is hitting only .259/.286/.296 this spring).
Anthony Gose won’t be a world beater this season, but if his strong spring continues that should translate into a hot April. Him hitting .260 with 80 runs scored and 30-plus stolen bases should be very realistic. Gose has the support of a stellar lineup behind him to succeed in some categories. If he can focus more on taking advantage of the deep gaps at Comerica Park and driving the ball into them, results should follow. This may be easier said than done, though, as Gose is a career .056 hitter in 19 career plate appearances at Comerica.
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