The Detroit Tigers got off to a better start in the shortened 2020 campaign than almost anyone could have anticipated, going 9-5 out of the gate.
What's happened since then has been nothing short of a nosedive. They've lost seven straight games (including three more to division rival Cleveland, making it 20 consecutive defeats at the hands of the Tribe), and don't look anything like the team that was raising eyebrows across the league in the early goings of the season.
Of course, injuries aren't helping anything. Earlier in the week, the team got the news that 1B C.J. Cron would be undergoing season-ending knee surgery. Additionally, pitchers Ivan Nova and and Buck Farmer have gone on the shelf, along with UTIL Harold Castro.
So how is GM Al Avila feeling about the injuries combined with a lengthy losing skid? It wasn't too long ago that it was considered reasonable that the upstart Tigers could look to bolster their lineup in an attempt to make a playoff run, but now such an idea seems far-fetched.
“Right now it would be hard to call us buyers or sellers,” general manager Al Avila said on Monday.
“We’re in a position where we are still trying to win as many games as we can. We would love to be in the playoffs this year and we’re going to make an effort to get there.
“But at the same time, we can’t lose sight of the future. We can’t be short-sighted. We have to make sure what we do today help us as we move forward.”
What about the prospects of a contending team looking to deepen their pitching depth? Could the Tigers receive interest in the underperforming Matthew Boyd, or perhaps Daniel Norris or Ivan Nova?
“I find it hard to believe that in the environment we are in guys are going to be making a lot of trades and picking up high-salaried guys,” Avila said. “I don’t know. It seems unlikely. But if a club needs to add a player and a team has a pending free agent, maybe you can make a deal.
“Also, maybe there will be prospect-for-prospect deals, though they would have to be traded off the 60-man player pool. It’s still early.”
The Tigers will have the chance to get back into the win column tonight when they continue their series against the Chicago White Sox on the South Side.
– – Quotes via Chris McKoskey of The Detroit News Link – –
