06/09/2026 6:40p EDT Minnesota Twins at Detroit Tigers

[chasfh]

1 hour ago, Sports_Freak said:

Don't be silly. There are teams with outfielders being blocked at the ML level. Are you saying trades don't ever happen? Seriously? Defending Harris has gone to a whole new level. His trading ability is extremely underwhelming. Just stop and admit that he's unable to swing trades to improve the Tiger roster. Fact!!

Ok, then who is the starting center fielder is who blocked that Harris is missing by not trading for him, and who should we be trading for him?

[Sports_Freak]

53 minutes ago, NorthWoods said:

IF only Freak was the Tigers GM, our troubles would be over.

No, I would build a roster with 6 utility players and allow my manager to play players at multiple positions. Build a team of Zack McKinstrys, playing all over the field. SMH

[Sports_Freak]

3 minutes ago, chasfh said:

Ok, then who is the starting center fielder is who blocked that Harris is missing by not trading for him, and who should we be trading for him?

I'm not a GM. Meadows went down LAST SEASON and Harris was very, very lucky Javy was good out there. If not, we would be in the same boat as right now, no real centerfielder. Just a few utility type players to cover a very important position. And it isnt like Meadows injuries are a surprise, he's been injured more than hes been available. 

I agree with Harris not looking for a young and blocked player for centerfield. We have our centerfielder of the future, almost ready in Toledo. All I'm saying is he should have at least tried to bring in somebody better than a .200 hitter with limited ability in CF once Javy went down. But it is what it is, he couldn't find anyone on the waiver wire. 😅😅

[chasfh]

9 minutes ago, Sports_Freak said:

I'm not a GM. Meadows went down LAST SEASON and Harris was very, very lucky Javy was good out there. If not, we would be in the same boat as right now, no real centerfielder. Just a few utility type players to cover a very important position. And it isnt like Meadows injuries are a surprise, he's been injured more than hes been available. 

I agree with Harris not looking for a young and blocked player for centerfield. We have our centerfielder of the future, almost ready in Toledo. All I'm saying is he should have at least tried to bring in somebody better than a .200 hitter with limited ability in CF once Javy went down. But it is what it is, he couldn't find anyone on the waiver wire. 😅😅

So, no one?

[Sports_Freak]

2 minutes ago, chasfh said:

So, no one?

Like I said, I'm not a GM with access to multiple scouting reports or a team of scouts giving me advice. But many, many teams make trades every season. And like Lee said, Harris made his one big move this season, acquiring Zach Short. Time for him to rest, it must be a very difficult job...

[chasfh]

1 minute ago, Sports_Freak said:

Like I said, I'm not a GM with access to multiple scouting reports or a team of scouts giving me advice. But many, many teams make trades every season. And like Lee said, Harris made his one big move this season, acquiring Zach Short. Time for him to rest, it must be a very difficult job...

No, come on, I’m being serious. You know MTF, we do this kind of thing all the time, where we propose trades. We all do it, so join the fun. Who are the blocked center fielders you see out there we could have gotten, and who could we have traded to get them? None of us have insider information but we still take a swing at it. You clearly feel very strongly about it so you must have some idea?

[Sports_Freak]

1 minute ago, chasfh said:

No, come on, I’m being serious. You know MTF, we do this kind of thing all the time, where we propose trades. We all do it, so join the fun. Who are the blocked center fielders you see out there we could have gotten, and who could we have traded to get them? None of us have insider information but we still take a swing at it. You clearly feel very strongly about it so you must have some idea?

I dont follow the minor leagues enough to know which players are ready or even available. All I'm saying is it shouldn't be that hard to replace these 3 guys who fill in at CF. Are you happy with their production?

 

[Tiger337]

Just now, Sports_Freak said:

I dont follow the minor leagues enough to know which players are ready or even available. All I'm saying is it shouldn't be that hard to replace these 3 guys who fill in at CF. Are you happy with their production?

 

You want production too?  Any good CF who can also produce offensively is not going to be blocked.  The question is whether there was a good field no hit guy available.  

[RatkoVarda]

why didn't Harris give up assets to acquire a 4th string CF? is an easy question to answer

Edited 2 hours ago by RatkoVarda

[Sports_Freak]

6 minutes ago, Tiger337 said:

You want production too?  Any good CF who can also produce offensively is not going to be blocked.  The question is whether there was a good field no hit guy available.  

Yeah, I agree. Its not really the young player we need(ed). Its more like the player who loses his job to the up and coming young player. Like a rental, just until Clark is ready. But is it really that hard to find a .250 hitter? Kinda sad that even a weak hitter would be an upgrade.

[NorthWoods]

As has been reported here, many outlets claim the Dodgers have an entire OF blocked in the minors.  

So I'm now going to propose a trade, we'll see if it's approved:

Skubal, & Javy to the Dodgers.   So we get some salary relief too.

Tigers get all 4 OF prospects.   DePaula, Hope, Quintero & Sirota.

Rotation is Valdez - Melton - Montero - Flaherty - Verlander - with Mize/Madden/Jobe still in reserve.

Mize still available to trade for 40HR RH hitting 3B.

 

Edited 2 hours ago by NorthWoods

[Sports_Freak]

18 minutes ago, chasfh said:

No, come on, I’m being serious. You know MTF, we do this kind of thing all the time, where we propose trades. We all do it, so join the fun. Who are the blocked center fielders you see out there we could have gotten, and who could we have traded to get them? None of us have insider information but we still take a swing at it. You clearly feel very strongly about it so you must have some idea?

And even further, fans have been speculating a haul we could get for Skubal since last trade deadline. My attitude is it makes interesting reading but if Harris can't even make minor deals, people expect him to make a blockbuster trade? I don't see it happening, even if it makes good reading.

[Sports_Freak]

5 minutes ago, NorthWoods said:

As has been reported here, many outlets claim the Dodgers have an entire OF blocked in the minors.  

So I'm now going to propose a trade, we'll see if it's approved:

Skubal, & Javy to the Dodgers.   So we get some salary relief too.

Tigers get all 4 OF prospects.   DePaula, Hope, Quintero & Sirota.

Rotation is Valdez - Melton - Montero - Flaherty - Verlander - with Mize/Madden/Jobe still in reserve.

Mize still available to trade for 40HR RH hitting 3B.

 

And then the Tigers would have outfielders blocked. But we could use a player for CF until Clark is ready. Maybe a stud for RF too? But losing Skubal, even the thought of it, sickens me. I hope we extend him.

[NorthWoods]

1 minute ago, Sports_Freak said:

And then the Tigers would have outfielders blocked. But we could use a player for CF until Clark is ready. Maybe a stud for RF too? But losing Skubal, even the thought of it, sickens me. I hope we extend him.

Not me, win or lose we need to trade him.   If anyone gives him $400M it'll be a Zimmerman, Miggy's last, JAvy level contractual bungle.  He's injury prone with probably 2 good years left at best.

[chasfh]

36 minutes ago, Sports_Freak said:

I dont follow the minor leagues enough to know which players are ready or even available. All I'm saying is it shouldn't be that hard to replace these 3 guys who fill in at CF. Are you happy with their production?

 

No, I'm not, but then, our top two CFs are hurt, and our CF of the future is in AAA, so I didn't expect much out of them, anyway. But that's fine, I'll back down. I only wanted to confirm how seriously we should take you, anyway.

I'm going to go out on a limb and conclude there was never any magic solution any GM could have abra-cadabraed in exchange for a bag of balls that would have fixed our situation with above-average CF production for just long enough until Max Clark puts him out of a job.

[TigerNation]

2 hours ago, Sports_Freak said:

April/May trades are very common. I was just reading this article;

https://www.si.com/mlb/dodgers/onsi/dodgers-made-4-april-trades-how-are-they-working-out

3 players designated for assignment and one a RP who hasn't made the majors.

Not a single major league starter, try again.

[Tigermojo]

I don't know who could have predicted that everyone except Greene, Dingler and Torres would be significantly worse than previous years. McKinstry, Perez and Jones provided good value last year. Vierling provided value the year before. Why wouldn't a GM stick with them? Every team needs those cost controlled bench players to be successful. 

That's the problem though. They are bench players forced into starting roles so their weaknesses have been more exposed. I don't think opposing GMs are lining up to bail the Tigers out of their predicament. They are going to ask for the moon because the Tigers are in a desperate situation. I don't think it's realistic to expect a trade at this point. They tried to fill gaps with their own guys whose track records they liked. It just hasn't worked out for the best.

[Sports_Freak]

11 minutes ago, TigerNation said:

3 players designated for assignment and one a RP who hasn't made the majors.

Not a single major league starter, try again.

But they were trades. No trades happen in April or May? 100% wrong.

[gehringer_2]

2 hours ago, Tiger337 said:

The Tigers did make a trade this year.  They acquired Zack Short for cash considerations or a PTBNL.  And all you ungrateful bastards did was complain that he wasn't good enough.  

Actually in defense of Freak,  this is the exact counter argument. Harris was able to score a cheap no hit decent glove SS, but I certainly could not have told you Zach Short was available. So who's to say he couldn't have found a decent glove CF with a similar career profile as Zach? They certainly must exist - just like Zach does,  even if they have no visibility to a Tiger fan.

I think it's more likely Harris just thought he didn't need to because he had Perez and Vierling. I probably might have made the same call, but as it has played out I think we have all been disappointed in Vierlings play in CF. And Wenceel is just having a terrrible, no-good, very bad season altogether.

Edited 1 hour ago by gehringer_2

[Tiger337]

Just now, gehringer_2 said:

Actually in defense of Freak,  this is the exact counter argument. Harris was able to score a cheap no hit decent glove SS, but I certainly could not have told you Zach Short was available. So who's to say he couldn't have found a decent glove CF with a similar career profile as Zach? They certainly must exist - just like Zach does,  even if they have no visibility to a Tiger fan.

I think it's more likely Harris just thought he didn't need to because he had Perez and Vierling. I probably might have made the same call, but as it has played out I think we have all been disappointed in Vierlings play in CF. And Wenceel is just have a terrrible, no-good, very bad season altogether.

I had the same thought, but if they did get a good glove no hit center fielder, everybody would have complained about the no hit part.  

[Sports_Freak]

26 minutes ago, chasfh said:

No, I'm not, but then, our top two CFs are hurt, and our CF of the future is in AAA, so I didn't expect much out of them, anyway. But that's fine, I'll back down. I only wanted to confirm how seriously we should take you, anyway.

I'm going to go out on a limb and conclude there was never any magic solution any GM could have abra-cadabraed in exchange for a bag of balls that would have fixed our situation with above-average CF production for just long enough until Max Clark puts him out of a job.

Meadows has/had a history of injuries. Using Javy out there, and have him playing so well out there, was nothing short of amazing. But we had all off-season to improve our lineup that went into a major slump the last 6 to 7 weeks. And CF and RF were the 2 spots most in need to replace weak utility type players. But it's fine, our opinions have clashed since last year, and while I think Harris has done a very good job in some areas, my opinion is he is very weak and ineffective at trades. We can agree to disagree. Even if I'm right..😁

[Nate7474]

I haven’t dug into it much but do the stats actually bare out that Vierling has been bad in CF? I get the eye test says he’s limited but atleast according to Savant +2 in OAA in CF. 92% success rate against an expected 89%. Now is he hitting as well as he should, absolutely not. However, I would bet on that righting itself out more so then some journeyman or over the hill vet providing better production at the cost of a prospect or more money against an already really tight money situation. 

Perez I can’t defend, he’s been terrible and if we were healthy would not be on the team. 

[chasfh]

1 hour ago, gehringer_2 said:

Actually in defense of Freak,  this is the exact counter argument. Harris was able to score a cheap no hit decent glove SS, but I certainly could not have told you Zach Short was available. So who's to say he couldn't have found a decent glove CF with a similar career profile as Zach? They certainly must exist - just like Zach does,  even if they have no visibility to a Tiger fan.

I think it's more likely Harris just thought he didn't need to because he had Perez and Vierling. I probably might have made the same call, but as it has played out I think we have all been disappointed in Vierlings play in CF. And Wenceel is just having a terrrible, no-good, very bad season altogether.

Is that your benchmark? A CF who is the equivalent of Zack at short? Because I might counter that we already have that in CF now, and without giving anything up for it. I mean, sure, Harris didn’t do anything to make us feel alive, but them’s the breaks. 

Edited 32 minutes ago by chasfh

[SoCalTiger]

Sometimes you trade a stock because it was losing money or not growing only to miss out on the upside and the stock you buy does the same.

[gehringer_2]

32 minutes ago, chasfh said:

Is that your benchmark? A CF who is the equivalent of SS at short? Because I might counter that we already have that in CF now, and without giving anything up for it. Sue mean, sure, Harris didn’t do anything to make us feel alive, but them’s the breaks. 

If we had a CF whose OF play was on a par with Shorts SS play and hit just as badly, that would be an improvement over any day when Perez was out there -- obviously depends what it would have cost for that marginal improvement. Really, we should turn the argument around because the issue is really just  Perez - period. He's fielded poorly in RF and CF and he hasn't hit. I think if you look at his performance you can say two things, he certainly has hit below expectation, so you can say a GM can't go by anything other than what a guy has done, and on that score, Perez has simply disappointed. If you look under the covers a bit, what you see is that he has completely fallen off the cliff as a LHB. His LH OPS 2024/2025/2026 go 708/688/476. Mostly because his LD rate is minscule this season. As RHB he is still OK (with relatively few AB his RHB OPS is 785). Of course since you already have Vierling as a RH OF, you only really want Wenceel as LHB, and on that score, he has been simply terrible. The numbers say you are absolutely better off just playing Matt all the time (687 career OPS against RHP) and forgetting about the platoon. But who-know-who is filling out the line-up cards. 

Edited 10 minutes ago by gehringer_2