Exploring the Suitability of Detroit Tigers for Veteran First Baseman
The Detroit Tigers are coming into free agency after a great 2024 campaign, and they will be hoping to improve.
It was an amazing second half of the season for the Tigers last year, as they became one of the hottest teams in baseball and made it all the way to the playoffs.
With a very young core of talent, Detroit is well-positioned for success for years to come. However, this is a team that does need to make some improvements if they want to win a World Series.
One issue for the franchise last season was the lack of production from the lineup at times, and the offensive struggles of players at the corners of the infield. With a couple of good free agents at both of those positions, the Tigers could look to improve via free agency.
Recently, Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report floated that Detroit could be a landing spot for one of the most interesting free agents this offseason in Christian Walker.
“Arguably, the Tigers do need to add at least one impact bat this winter. However, unless they're planning on moving Spencer Torkelson—who has exclusively played first base at every level since late in the 2021 campaign—it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for them to target Walker. He might be as high as they're willing to go for a bat with their budget, though, so who knows?”
The Tigers pursuing Walker would be an indication that they are ready to give up on former first round pick Spencer Torkelson. While the young first baseman has shown some signs that he could be a good player in the league, there has been more bad than good and a lot of inconsistency in between.
For Detroit, they have to have the mindset to win-now. As a playoff team last year with the Cy Young award winner in Tarik Skubal, the Tigers can compete with the best of the best in the American League.
Adding Walker would be a nice upgrade at first base, as he is a gold-glove caliber player with a lot of power. This would check off a couple of boxes for the Tigers, and bring some veteran leadership.
While third base might be the position that they look to upgrade first, the other corner infield spot is a need for Detroit if they are going to try and win a title.
