Grading Scott Harris and the Detroit Tigers front office at the season’s midway point
By Bill Felber
Acquired or traded
The trade market was a major source of activity for Harris, and also major stumbling block. In his first season, the new Tiger president brought in 11 major leaguers via dealings with other teams. Almost without exception, those acquisitions have proven to be at least short-term failures.
The one exception was the February 23 waived claim that plucked pitcher Tyler Holton away from the Arizona Diamondbacks. A minor league veteran, Holton has pitched in 25 games for Detroit, mostly in a multi-inning role, and he’s been very good at it. He’s carrying a 2.11 ERA that translates to a +1.1 WAA.
That’s the good news; now for the bad.
In January, Harris swung a trade with the Phillies that landed infielder Nick Maton, outfielder Matt Vierling and Donny Sands in exchange for Kody Clemens and Gregory Soto. Not that Soto and Clemens have been dynamos in Philadelphia (their combined WAA is -0.9) but this was a deal that put a significant crimp in the Tigers.
Maton has gotten 239 plate appearances (that’s close to full-time duty) as a third baseman and second baseman. He’s batting .163 with a .576 OPS. That creates a -2.1 WAA. There probably hasn’t been a less productive regular infielder in the majors in 2023.
Vierling has been better, but, with a -0.2 WAA, still below par. On the plus side, he’s hitting a respectable .279 with seven homers but only 22 RBI.