The Detroit Tigers have lost 11 of their last 12 games. Will manager Brad Ausmus pay the price?
On May 1, the Detroit Tigers were 14-10, within striking distance of the Chicago White Sox in the AL Central. Since then, they have dropped 11 of their last 12 games and own a worrisome 15-21 record. They now sit in fourth place in the division, 8.5 games out of the top spot.
Undoubtedly, the Tigers are one of the most disappointing clubs in baseball at the moment, and questions about manager Brad Ausmus‘ job security have grown louder. The former big league catcher is in his third season as the team’s skipper, and he recently offered the Detroit Free Press a frank perspective on the situation:
"“I understand that when you have a payroll like ours, the manager’s the guy that’s in the cross hairs. That’s fine. I knew when I took this job that I probably was gonna end up getting fired before I walked away from it. Not this job in particular but just managing in general. How many managers walk away from a job?”"
That’s fair enough, but Ausmus’ words do sound like those of a manager who recognizes that his days at the helm could very well be numbered. You can debate how much of the squad’s present nosedive is the manager’s fault, but most should agree that many things have gone wrong for the Tigers on the field so far this year.
Detroit’s offense has been middle-of-the-pack, which is rather underwhelming considering some of the names in the lineup. Their 150 runs scored rank 17th in MLB, and their .713 OPS as a unit is good for 18th. Until Miguel Cabrera‘s sixth-inning home run against the Baltimore Orioles yesterday, the Tigers had been held scoreless for 17 frames.
The team boasts the top two batting averages in the American League in Victor Martinez (.363) and Nick Castellanos (.347), but putting runs on the board consistently has been a challenge. A few key bats have underachieved, contributing to the offensive slowdown.
Detroit Tigers
A season after breaking out to the tune of 38 home runs and 102 RBIs, right fielder J.D. Martinez is slashing .230/.312/.385 with a modest five homers and 15 RBIs. Fellow outfielder Justin Upton has been a bigger disappointment, as he sports a paltry .208/.243/.306 line after inking a six-year, $132.75 million deal over the winter.
On the mound, the Tigers have been even worse. Their starters have managed a 4.62 ERA (19th in the league) and that’s in spite of Jordan Zimmermann‘s brilliant 1.50 ERA through his first seven outings in a Detroit uniform. Justin Verlander appears to be getting on track (1 ER in last 15 IP), but Anibal Sanchez (5.91 ERA) and Mike Pelfrey (5.80 ERA) have been nothing short of awful.
In the bullpen, closer Francisco Rodriguez has been shaky despite blowing just one save in nine chances. As a group, Tigers relievers hold a 25th-ranked 4.42 ERA, thanks in part to the bloated numbers of righties Drew VerHagen (6.88 ERA in 17 IP) and Mark Lowe (8.76 ERA, 12.1 IP).
The Tigers probably won’t play this poorly for the remainder of the campaign, but their swoon over the past two weeks has cost them a definite opportunity. Though the White Sox’s surprisingly hot start has vaulted them into a comfortable lead at the top of the division, the reigning World Series champion Kansas City Royals have come out of the gate slow at two games under .500.
With one of the worst teams in the baseball also in the division, the 9-26 Minnesota Twins, Detroit should easily be in the thick of the playoff picture right now. Yet they presently find themselves 5.5 games back and needing to leap over six other teams in the Wild Card race.
There’s still plenty of time to get that done, but recent performances haven’t been encouraging. It’s difficult to hold Ausmus responsible for everything, but the Tigers’ struggles under the current manager aren’t exactly a new phenomenon either. He steered the team to a 90-72 record in 2014, looking like one of the bright upcoming skippers in the league. However, that record plummeted to 74-87 last year and the trend has continued in the early part of 2016.
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Should the Tigers show Ausmus the door, and if so, how soon? Share your thoughts in the comments below.