Doug Fister.....Ace?

When Doug Fister first came over from the Tigers for a package of Casper Wells, Charlie Furbush, Chance Ruffin and Francisco Martinez, it seemed at first glance that the Tigers may have paid a lot for a ground ball pitcher who could not strike anybody out and relied heavily on his home ball park for success. That recipe seemed dicey at best for the success of Doug Fister going forward as a member of the Tigers.

During the first couple of games that Doug Fister pitched for the Tigers, I was both surprised and encouraged by how effective Fister’s arsenal seemed to be. Fister features a both four seam fastball and a two seam fastball which he throws nearly as often and at virtually the same average velocity of 90 mph. The two seamer features a few additional inches of down and in run to right handers as opposed to his normal four seam fastball. The identical speed but different trajectories make things very difficult on opposing hitters. Furthermore, Fister features a range of off speed pitches including a very nice slow curve ball with 12-6 break at around 75 mph, a harder slider at around 86 mph with only moderate break, and a change up at around 83 mph with similar but slightly more downward movement as compared with his two seamer.

Would Calling Up Jacob Turner Be The Right Decision?

In truth, this is really a three-piece discussion with the first question being: how did we get to this point?;  the second question being: is Jacob Turner the best pitcher available to fill the role of 5th starter on the Tigers?; and the third question being: is he ready to get Major League hitters out?

Let's start with the first question: How did we get to this point?

Tigers Demote Furbush, Recall Worth

A tough day for Tigers rookie Charlie Furbush all around today. Making his second start of the season today Furbush got shelled by the Royals, allowing nine hits and a pair of walks in just two and two thirds innings of work. It's likely that the damage could've been lessened had shortstop Ramon Santiago not allowed what should've been the final out of the third inning to scoot between his legs - after which the Royals pounded out five more runs (all unearned of course) on top of the four they had put up earlier in the game.

Tonight the Tigers have announced that they've optioned him back to AAA and recalled utilityman Danny Worth. Much like the demotion of Royals pitcher Danny Duffy however, the move could quite possibly have been nothing more than the teams desire to keep Furbush on his regular schedule through the All-Star break.

Swapping Problems Isn't a Solution

When the Tigers announced that Phil Coke would be a member of the teams starting rotation following the 2010 season, I was skeptical. Coke had worked primarily as the stereotypical fastball/slider reliever during his time with the Yankees before mixing in his changeup last year when he was traded to Detroit and it was effective enough (1.40R/C - runs above average/100 pitches).

Still, the thought of moving someone who had worked largely with the platoon split - while showing a significant platoon split - to the rotation seemed risky. Coke posted a 32K/8BB ratio in 28.2 innings vs lefties last year, but had a 21K/18BB ratio in 36.0 innings vs righties, which should've let anyone paying attention know that he would struggle mightily in the rotation, where he can't be protected from seeing twice as many right handers as left handers.

Prospect Profile: Charlie Furbush

Charlie Furbush

Profile: 6'5" - 215lbs - TH:L - BT:L - 2011 Age: 25


Repertoire:

• FB 90-91: Good fade, gets ground balls in the minors, probably wont be quite as successful at the MLB level. (60-60)
• SL 80-82: More vertical bite than horizontal run, should be strong vs lend effective against the split. (55-60)
• CV 75-76: A bit too loopy for my taste, but should be effective vs lefties. (60-60)
• CH 82-83: Gets decent depth. I believe this will end up being his best off-speed offering. (60-65)

Tigers Complete Galarraga Trade, Acquire Two Minor League Pitchers From Diamondbacks

When the Tigers designated Armando Galarraga for assignment, it was pretty clear his time with the team was over. Obviously he wasn't going to clear waivers because he's the sort of pitcher who you could pencil in the #5 spot in about half the rotations in baseball. Someone would've made room for him.

Of course, his status as a capable back-end starter also gave him value as a trade target for any of the teams that would've placed a waiver claim. Despite my vehement opposition, Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski clearly felt as though the options he had internally, be it Andrew Oliver or Charlie Furbush, would be adequate in the event that one of his five opening day starters became injured or proved ineffective. And so Galarraga immediately became trade bait.