Tigers Will See New Training and Coaching Personnel in 2023; Likely other Changes to Come

 In light of the the Tigers abysmal 2022 season that saw a rash of injuries all season, along with dismal offensive production, the Tigers brass has decided to make several changes to its training and coaching staffs. Medical director Kevin Rand’s contract was not renewed, and Head Athletic Trainer Doug Teter was reassigned.  Additionally, Scott Coolbaugh and Mike Hessman, Hitting Coach and Assistant Hitting Coach respectively, will not return to the team.  Who fills these roles in the future remains to be seen.  Hopefully, new personnel who fill these vacancies will have a positive effect on the overall performance of the team. 

It became clear relatively early in the season that the primary causes of this team’s lackluster performance were injuries and lack of offensive production.  Injuries plagued the team beginning of spring training training.  The saga began when Riley Greene broke his foot, though legging out a triple.  Furthermore, the Tigers continued to lose several important pieces throughout the season that hindered their success.  Not only did the Tigers lose a majority of their starting pitching rotation, but they lost several important offensive players that included Javier Baez, Robbie Groessman, and Austin Meadows.  This predicament led the team to be shutout 22 times, rank last in runs and homeruns, and rank 29 of 30 teams in walks.  Obviously, if injuries are held to a minimum in 2023, this will help offensive numbers return to acceptable  levels.  Needless to say these aspects of a baseball team go hand in hand.  Therefore, changes in offensive coaches and training staffs were deemed necessary. 

In an effort to further address the issues the Tigers displayed last year, it is possible that the Tigers could add a game planning pitching coach, and create other on field coaching positions.  This would allow the players to undergo a philosophical change in the way they prepare for games, which could mean better results.  Many times, a change in voice means that players for some reason, are able to achieve better performance results.  Furthermore, it would not surprise me if there were many more changes in every Baseball Operations Department to change the culture of the entire organization.  Whether it means better results, only time will tell.

Red Wings Look to Improve in All Areas This Season

 Though the Detroit Red Wings haven’t made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in several years, they hope to make progress in that direction this season.  Many so-called experts feel that the team does not have a shot to make the postseason this year, however if their performance through 3 games is any indication, those individuals may be proven wrong.  In the season opener, Ville Husso shutout the Montreal Canadiens 3-0. In addition, the Red Wings added several pieces to improve both offense and defense.  If these new additions actually accomplish what they were meant to, this team could definitely exceed expectations.

One of the most prominent aspects of the game in which the Red Wings struggled last year was scoring.  Unfortunately, the Red Wings ranked near the bottom of the league in this category.  They only scored 230 goals in 2022, while giving up 312 goals.  The team gave up an average of 4 goals per game, while only scoring two goals a game.  It goes without saying that you won’t win many games with those kind of stats, and the Red Wings didn’t.  To alleviate these scoring woes, the team signed David Perron, who in 2021, scored 27 goals, had 30 assists, and 57 points for the St. Louis Blues.  In addition, this season he has 3 goals in 3 games for the Wings.  Scoring issues will further diminish, providing that guys like Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond can duplicate their 2021 season performances. Both had stellar seasons in scoring, assists, and, points.  If all of these players perform up to their expectations, this team may just find themselves in the playoff hunt.

The Red Wings also did not help their cause at the defensive end of the ice.  In 2021, they only killed off 73.8 percent of the penalties called against them.  This means the opposition scored on about 33 percent of  their power plays.  To put this in perspective, the Wings ranked last in the NHL in killing penalties.  However, though a small sample size, through 3 games this season, the team has yet to give up a Powerplay goal.  Conversely, they have been unable to score on their own poweplays.  Defensive play can also be bolstered when goaltenders perform well.  To improve at this position, the Red Wings signed goaltender Ville Husso, who had a 2.69 Goals Against Average with a .914 Save Percentage with the St. Louis Blues in 2021.  In 2 games in Detroit, he has accumulated a 2.50 Goals Against Average and has given up a total of 5 goals.  If these defensive trends continue, this team should be on track for a successful season.

When Steve Yzerman came to Detroit from having success with the Tampa Bay Lightning Hockey Club, expectations for this team were instantly heightened.  It was apparent that Wings fans put their full trust in Steve’s ability to turn this team’s fortunes around.  Despite a lack of success at the beginning of Yzerman’s tenure, with the hiring of Derek Lelonde, and a few new player acquisitions on both sides of the puck, it appears the Red Wings are headed for bigger and better things.

Tigers: Season in Review

            

It’s October, the Tigers made some upgrades to their team at the offensive and pitching positions, and all of this led to a playoff run...Oh wait, things did not go as planned, and the Tigers did not even sniff the playoffs.  So what went Wrong?  You name it, it happened.  Injuries, underperforming players, and, lack of plate discipline.  Yes, some players showed flashes of greatness, but lack of consistency plaqued this team all year.  Generally, however the bullpen remained pretty consistent all year.  If it wasn’t for the woeful performance of the rest of the team, this franchise may be in the playoffs right now.

Too often this season, the Tigers were unable to conquer the injury bug.  In fact, the Tigers went through 17 starting pitchers this season, that is the equivalent of 3 plus full starting rotations.  That alone could be the reason why the tigers struggled so horrendously this season.  However, it gets worse, highly touted prospect Riley Greene broke his foot in spring training, causing him to miss extended time.  Plus, valuable bullpen pieces missed time due to injury.  Not only were injuries a problem, but the Tigers ranked last in run production, next to last in On Base Percentage, and had one of lowest team batting averages in baseball.  Much of this is due to lack of plate discipline, which led to a plethora of strikeouts.   Obviously, none of this is a recipe for success in Major League Baseball.

A couple bright spots this year for the team this year were the bullpen, and some of the prospects that were called up this year.  For the bullpen’s sake, they executed their role adequately for this team to succeed.  They ranked 8th in MLB with a 3.48 ERA.  Furthermore, Gregory Soto racked up 30 saves for this 66 win ballclub, though it would benefit the team greatly for him to harness some of his erratic tendencies.  In a return after an injury, Matt Manning pitched in 12 games, accruing a 2-3 record and a 3.43 ERA, obviously fueling hope for a better future for this team.  Further bolstering that hope is Riley Greene who batted .253 with 95 hits and 46 RBI in 346 plate appearances.  He also pulled off several dazzling defensive plays, exhibiting his valuable defensive prowess.  On paper, it appears the Tigers future looks bright.

In order for this success to come to fruition, several things need to occur.  First, hitters need to practice better pitch selection; swing at strikes not balls.  In turn, pitchers must work harder, which increases their pitch count, making it more likely they will give hitters better pitches to hit.  If these things occur we will likely get more production from the third base, shortstop, and first base positions. If these strategies are implemented, there is a high likelihood that the overall success of the team will improve.