2006年會變的更好
DETROIT -- First came disappointment. Then came relief.
Losing out on Carl Pavano drew the former reaction from Tigers officials. Then
they saw the contracts other free agent starters signed -- four years and $36 m
illion for Derek Lowe, four years and $33 million for Russ Ortiz, three years a
nd $25.5 million for Eric Milton.
The Tigers didn't pursue anyone else with nearly as much gusto as Pavano becaus
e they didn't see them making that much of a difference on their staff. Yet eac
h of them will average more money per year than Detroit's entire rotation will
make this season.
For those still seeking a reason why the Tigers want to see through the plan wi
th their young pitching, that's a major one.
"The best way to have a good pitching staff is to develop your own, because the
se guys are expensive," pitching coach Bob Cluck said recently. "And Pavano's a
good example: A guy who's only had one good year commanded that kind of money.
And Lowe, who didn't really have a great year, commanded a huge amount of mone
y. Guys that are OK get a lot of dough. So if you can develop your own, that's
always the best way, because you've got 'em for years."
But it's next year that Cluck looks forward to most, something he's said as far
back as last summer. It's 2006 when Cluck sees the work paying off, when many
of the questions surrounding each of his starters come together, and a gifted b
ut inexperienced rotation turns into a formidable one. He saw it coming in Hous
ton in the early '90s, and he sees it coming here.
"This pitching staff is not ready to carry the team," Cluck said. "I think in 2
006, the rotation's going to be the strongest part of this club. I just think t
hat's a little early [to expect this year]. That doesn't mean we can't win. It
just depends on how the other players perform, the runs we score and the defens
e improves.
"It's going to take a little while for them to be as good as they're going to b
e. They're just maturing. You don't want it to sound like a negative thing, and
you don't want the pitching coach going into the season saying, 'Well, we can'
t win this year. Good luck.' It's not that at all. It's just that we're not rea
dy to carry the club yet."
The metamorphosis Cluck sees coming that will transform this rotation in 2006:
Consistency. Each part of the rotation had flashes of brilliance last year. Now
the challenge is to put it together.
For Jeremy Bonderman, that brilliance was an eight-start stretch at the end of
last season in which he tossed two complete-game shutouts and eight scoreless i
nnings in another outing. He struck out 14 White Sox last August 23, tying a si
ngle-game high among AL starters last season, and fanned eight or more in three
other performances as he mixed his splitter and fastball. He enters his third
Major League season at just 22 years old, but in Cluck's eyes needs just one mo
re year before he's ready to be a staff ace.
"If he pitched like he did the last eight starts or so, he'd be a Cy Young awar
d winner," Cluck said. "It's not fair to put those [expectations] on him, but t
hat's what he's capable of doing."
His late-season surge ranks opposite that of Nate Robertson, who had borderline
All-Star numbers (9-4, 4.11) at the break in his first full big-league season
but went 4-6 with a 5.79 ERA in the season's second half and was winless after
Aug. 30. He still led the team in victories and established himself as one of t
he most aggressive left-handers in the American League, but a surge in consiste
ncy and an ability to change speeds could help make him one of the most success
ful ones in 2005.
In terms of raw stuff, Wilfredo Ledezma is even more intimidating than Robertso
n, something opponents have had a chance to see from the harder-throwing southp
aw the past two summers. After stints as a starter the last two seasons, the in
nings limits come off Ledezma this season and the Tigers can slot him into the
fifth spot full-time. Keeping the ball down will be his key to doing the same t
o opponents when facing them the second time around.
Tigers officials from Cluck to president/general manager Dave Dombrowski see Bo
nderman, Robertson and Ledezma as future -- or in Bonderman's case, present --
front-line starters. For Mike Maroth and Jason Johnson, the future is now.
Maroth rebounded from 21 losses in 2003 to needing a win in his final start to
reach .500 in '04. He also made headlines coming out of the All-Star break with
a one-hit shutout of the Yankees. Detroit's abundance of young pitching and ch
ase for Pavano left him in trade rumors as the odd man out, but he's the closes
t the Tigers have to a consistent veteran. He works like Tom Glavine in his pri
me when he's able to use the inside half of the plate.
How odd, then, that the starter with the most questions is the oldest member of
the rotation. Jason Johnson had his moments of brilliance, too, notably shutti
ng out the Twins at the Metrodome the day before the All-Star break to hand Joh
an Santana his final loss of the season. But he also went winless after July 29
and struggled with blister problems early in the year, and his most effective
stuff didn't always translate into his best outings.
Johnson insists that he's poised for a better year through power yoga in the of
fseason, a solution to his blisters and a commitment to pare back his workouts
later in the year. If all those adjustments help, he could still end up becomin
g a No. 1 caliber starter in this, his contract year.
Johnson believes this group of starters could win 12-15 games apiece, something
Robertson echoed. If they do, they'll beat the clock on Cluck.
"Who knows? If Bonderman should pitch like he did the last eight starts, and Ro
bertson should pitch like he did during some of his stretches, and J.J. like he
did, and Maroth, sure we could win the division this year," Cluck said. "But i
t's not ready to be the thing that everybody looks at and says, 'Wow, look at t
hat rotation.' I think they're going to feel that way, baseball will feel that
way, in 2006."
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