MLB Winter Meetings

So we all knew Dave Dombrowski had some work to do at the Winter Meetings. On his list was a closer, shortstop, and help at catcher. Because of trades made in the past few years, the farm system's talent has dwindled down. There are still some really good young players down there like Rick Porcello, Ryan Perry, Wilkin Ramirez, Jeff Larish, Cale Iorg, and Casper Wells, but the quantity may not be there anymore.

Dombrowski's first move was acquiring Gerald Laird from Texas for a couple of pitching prospects. He gave up a couple of good arms, but needed a veteran catcher to pair up with Dusty Ryan. Laird is good defensively, and works well with the pitching staff. Next Dombrowski added shortstop Adam Everett by way of free agency. Ramon Santiago and Everett will battle for the starting job, with the backup getting considerable playing time. Finally Dombrowski last night traded reserve outfielder Matt Joyce for 14 game winner Edwin Jackson. Jackson has a golden arm, but last year was his only good one so far in the big leagues. Joyce has potential, and a ton of power, but when was he going to play on this team? Jackson is immediately put into the 4th spot of the rotation, and while Dombrowski has yet to find a closer, this move could lead to the Tigers being less dependable on their bullpen.

So where do the Tigers go from here? Right now Fernando Rodney is slated to be the closer. I'm scared just thinking about that. They could make a trade for George Sherrill of Baltimore, or Matt Capps of Pittsburgh, but they can't deplete their farm system. That leaves free agents like Trevor Hoffman, Brandon Lyon, Chad Cordero, and Brian Fuentes as possible targets. Fuentes would be the obvious choice, but he might creep out of the Tigers price range.

Dombrowski has made minor moves this year, unlike last year, but last year proved that too many all star type players might be a bad thing, and every team needs role players. Let Laird, Everett, Santiago, and Inge be those types of players, and get back to winning baseball.