Tigers 2016 Season Preview
Ready to check out our 2016 Detroit Tigers predictions? Detroit saw their reign as AL Central champs come to a crashing halt. With their poor 2015 season, Detroit went out and spent the money in the offseason as they added key parts to try and bolster this team.
MLB Tigers Predictions & Handicapping Insight
With the exception of last season, it hasn’t been hard to find the Detroit Tigers in the standings.
Detroit is typically atop the AL Central or right there fighting for it, however they come in off a horrific year, one of their worst in a while. The Tigers finished last in the AL Central thanks to a lot of injuries and an inconsistent bullpen.
Detroit went out and spent the money and now has the foundation to make it back to the top of the AL Central.
2016 MLB Team Previews
- Tigers American League Central Future Odds: +375
- Tigers NL Pennant Future Odds: 12/1
- Tigers 2016 World Series Future Odds: 25/1
Key Additions
Justin Upton, Jordan Zimmermann, Francisco Rodriguez, Mike Pelfrey, Justin Wilson, Mark Lowe
The Tigers are that team that will notice a problem and go fix it asap. That was the case this past offseason as after finishing in last, Detroit knew what needed to be fixed.
Their two biggest acquisitions are what they lacked last season. Justin Upton and Jordan Zimmerman bolster the outfield and starting rotation, making this team extremely dangerous.
Mike Pelfrey will also be a huge key for them as added the depth to the rotation that was lacking a 3-5 starter.
Key Losses
Alex Avila, Rajai Davis, Alfredo Simon
The losses for Detroit aren’t monumental, but they certainly hurt this team in terms of depth.
Simon was a solid starter for Detroit last year, but with Pelfrey coming in this has the potential to be cancelled out.
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Davis the same way. He was a crucial part to this team, but with Upton coming in, the upgrade is tremendous. Detroit lost some good players, but what they signed and got in return is far more tremendous and a huge upgrade.
2016 Tigers Predictions – Projected Lineup
- Ian Kinsler
- Justin Upton
- Miguel Cabrera
- Victor Martinez
- J.D. Martinez
- Nick Castellanos
- James McCann
- Anthony Gose
- Jose Iglesias
Any lineup with Miguel Cabrera in the middle of it is going to be dangerous, no doubt about that.
When you build a fort around him, goodness this lineup is dangerous. That’s the case here with 1-6 being extremely dangerous and deep. The Tigers get a little bit of everything here. They get speed, power, and precision.
Even the bottom of the lineup isn’t all that bad. Gose offered a solid option last year in the leadoff spot as he can get on base and move runners. Iglesias is projected to be a solid option, but injuries have plagued him. He is back and at 100% and offers the Tigers almost 3 straight leadoff hitters in their line up with Gose, him, and Kinsler going 8-9-1.
2016 Tigers Predictions – Projected Rotation
- Justin Verlander
- Jordan Zimmermann
- Anibal Sanchez
- Mike Pelfrey
- Daniel Norris
The Tigers rotation has a lot of potential.
There is no doubt the 1 and 2 starters in Verlander and Zimmerman will be lock down, almost as locked down as you can get.
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Anibal Sanchez has very inconsistent, but when he’s on he can pitch like a #1 or #2.
The bottom with Pelfrey and Norris is very questionable. Both have shown throughout their careers they can compete, but they’ll have a lot of pressure on them. Detroit has never had a complete rotation and these two could be the missing pieces.
2016 Tigers Predictions – Projected Bullpen
1.Francisco Rodriguez
2.Mark Lowe
3.Justin Wilson
This has been an outgoing problem for the Tigers in the past.
Detroit has struggled over the past few years building and solidifying a solid bullpen and this year looks to be no different. The Tigers will have a lot of unproven arms out there and already have sustained a few injuries that will cause them to have a lack of depth.
Their offense is impressive, but a team can only go as far as their bullpen. With this Detroit team, no lead is safe.
2016 Tigers Predictions
There is no question this Detroit team will be back.
The Tigers offense and starting rotation are the best they’ve been in quite some time.
The key still is that bullpen. If Brad Ausmus can figure out a way to make it successful and the Tigers can get some stability in the back of their pen, this team will be so dangerous. If not, things could get ugly for them for a 2nd straight year.
What do you think of our 2016 DetroitTigers predictions? Comments are welcome below.
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