The Detroit Deal

Once more into the breach, my friends! I have returned, better than ever.

The new and improved, off season RCR with come to you on a regular schedule, too. Every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday there will be a new blog. And since it's the off season, I'll be expanding my range of subjects to include all of baseball, not just the Indians, at least until Spring Training.

Now let's get things going...

A lot has been made about Detroit's deal for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis. It's been referred to as a blockbuster deal. Like many Tribe fans, more than a few expletives slipped out of my mouth when I first read about it. As the days past, I became more and more anxious for the Indians to make a move of their own, something to counter what Detroit had done.

But with time comes perspective. And that Detroit deal is all flash and little substance.

Fun fact: Detroit had the second best offense in the AL last year behind only the Yankees.

Going into the off season, the Tigers had three needs: 1) a shortstop, 2) rebuild their bullpen, and 3) upgrade their rotation.

They traded for Edgar Renteria, sending Jair Jurrgens to Atlanta (more on that in a minute). Point one taken care of.

But as of now, they haven't addressed either one of their other two needs. Their blockbuster trade, in fact, simply improved an area that wasn't a problem and probably made another area worse.

Andrew Miller, who Detroit sent to Florida, has a much higher ceiling that Dontrelle Willis. He's yet to even play a complete season in the minors. Willis' numbers have declined since he became a name in 2003 -- and let's not forget that he was pulled from Florida's rotation in the post-season. Add to that the fact that he will now be in the AL, facing guys named Ortiz, Ramirez, Rodriguez, Guerro, Martinez, Thome, et al, and there's every reason to believe that Detroit's rotation has actually been DOWNGRADED by this trade.

Even worse, they used two guys last year as their 6th and 7th starters: Chad Durbin, who they let go, and Jair Jurrgens, who they traded. They also sent a boatload of additional minor league pitchers to Florida. Let's not forget that Kenny Rogers was on the DL twice last year -- what are they going to do if any one of their starters goes down this year? Or is ineffective, as Bonderman and Robertson were in the second half of last year? We know how important it is to have major league ready guys waiting in the wings.

Their bullpen hasn't improved, either. They picked up the option on closer Todd Jones, who belongs to the Borowski/Wickman school of closing. They also lost Joel Zumaya to injury yet again and have no idea when he'll be back next season. They've yet to add anyone who would could be considered an upgrade from what they had last year.

Yes, the Tigers now have the best offense in baseball. But offense isn't everything. Really, Detroit has become the New York Yankees of the AL Central.

Fortunately, the Indians are the Red Sox.

Upcoming RCR:

Thursday: The Mitchell Report aka Did I need more proof that Clemens is a jackass?
Sunday: The Indians: Why not making a big trade might not be a bad thing
Tuesday: The extreme of parity