2017 Season Preview: Detroit Tigers

Major Additions: Alex Avila, Omar Infante, Mikie Mahtook

Major Losses: Cameron Maybin, Erick Aybar, Jarrod Saltalamacchia

Strengths: Rotation, Offensive Core

Weaknesses: Bullpen, Overall Depth

Potential Breakout Stars: Steven Moya, Matt Boyd, Victor Alcantara, Mikie Mahtook

The middle of the Tigers lineup is among the most fearsome in baseball, all centered around future first ballot Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera. Victor Martinez may be 38 years old, but after slashing .289/.351/.476 with 27 home runs last season, he doesn't look like he's going anywhere any time soon. J.D. Martinez, Ian Kinsler, and Justin Upton all return as big bats as well, giving the Tigers five hitters not only capable of posting big numbers, but expected to, even in the pitchers' park the Tigers play in. Even Nick Castellanos had a breakout season last year, slashing .285/.331/.496 with 18 home runs as a 24 year old. A trio of young outfielders, Steven Moya, Mikie Mahtook, and JaCoby Jones, all have immense potential, and at least one of them is bound to break out in 2017. On the mound, Justin Verlander and Michael Fulmer were excellent last season, and Jordan Zimmermann will hope to bounce back from a rough first season in the AL (4.87 ERA, 1.37 WHIP) to get back to what he is capable of. The last two spots come down to two young guys and two veterans. Daniel Norris and Matt Boyd were solid last season, but Anibal Sanchez and Mike Pelfrey both have well over 200 starts to their names. Whichever two they pick, it's nice having two other capable starters in the inevitable case of injury. In the bullpen, 35 year old Francisco Rodriguez is entering his 17th major league season, but he is showing no signs of slowing down. On the flip side, 26 year old Bruce Rondon hopefully has his off-the-field issues behind him, and he may very well be ready to fulfill his immense potential. Last season, he put up a 2.97 ERA, a 0.96 WHIP, and a 45/12 strikeout to walk ratio over 36.1 innings, and hopefully he'll be around for a full season this year. However, he doesn't have much of a track record to run off, and aside from Rodriguez, there isn't much of a track record anywhere in the bullpen. Alex Wilson is coming off a couple of nice seasons, but Mark Lowe has been incredibly inconsistent throughout his career, Justin Wilson has pitched just two full seasons, Kyle Ryan has just one, as does Blaine Hardy. Nobody else has ever pitched a full season, though Drew VerHagen, Buck Farmer, and Daniel Stumpf do have some MLB experience. This bullpen worries me, but if Victor Alcantara thrives in his conversion to relief, that could change things. Overall, unless some unexpected players step up, the middle of this lineup will have to hit its way to victory and hope the bullpen doesn't blow the leads maintained by Verlander, Fulmer, and Zimmermann.