It’s that time of year again, the MLB Winter Meeting where the majority of the wheeling and dealing takes place amongst the Major League general managers.
So far this offseason, the Detroit Tigers seem to be right in the thick of things in terms of the possibility of them going out and making some big time moves heading into the 2012 season.
But with the Winter Meetings here let’s take a look at some of the new surrounding the Tigers as we head into what may shape up to be a pretty active week.
- James Schmehl of MLive.com writes that the Tigers aren’t ruling out the possibility of using one of their young arms (Turner, Oliver, etc) in the rotation next year. If the Tigers were to go out and sign a veteran pitcher to fill that rotation spot, the club would prefer to offer them a one year contract. The Tigers have been rumored to be interested in free agent lefty Mark Buehrle who is seeking a three year deal with a no trade clause. Tigers beat writer Chris Iott told us early Monday that the team probably wouldn’t offer Buehrle a no trade clause as part of a deal which seems to coincide with Schmehl’s report.
- Speaking of Buehrle, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports writes that the Tigers aren’t currently pursuing Buehrle.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweeted that the Tigers (among other teams) are interested in Mets infielder Daniel Murphy. In return the Mets are also reportedly interested in Tigers outfielder Andy Dirks who they like as a center fielder.
- The Tigers announced Monday that they’ve outrighted the contract of first baseman Ryan Streiby to Triple-A Toledo. This means that the Tigers currently have 39 players on their 40 man roster.
- The Yankees, Tigers, Marlins, and Nationals have been the most active in scouting Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes. It’s believed that the Tigers’ interest would increase if Cespedes can lead off for them right away. It’s also believed that the the going rate for Cespedes will cost as much as $60 million dollars which is twice what the Reds gave Aroldis Chapman.
- Now speaking of outfielders and lead off guys, the Tigers have been linked to outfielder Coco Crisp the last several days. If they can’t get Chapman or are unimpressed by him, the Tigers could sign Crisp as a lead off hitter.
Ref: ESPN, MLBTradeRumors, FOX Sports, New York Post, Mlive.com, Twitter, athleticsforlife.net (image)