One of the Tigers biggest needs this off season is to fill the hole at second base. Aaron Hill was one of the names thrown and he’s now re-signed with the Diamondbacks and Jamey Carroll signed with the Twins. So there’s little surprise that Jon Paul Morosi broke a story that the Tigers were looking to deal Delmon Young for a second baseman. The guy who’s name is being thrown around is Martin Prado.
I know he had a decent post-season but I’ve never been high on Delmon Young. I think his stock is a little higher then when they picked him up and if he can be the cornerstone of a trade to get a good second baseman, I’d be all for it. Prado reminds me a little bit of Placido Polanco. Not a lot of strikeouts and while he has some extra base power, it’s mostly doubles. The downsides are, he’s coming off an off year and he’s probably due for a bigger pay check here soon because he’s entering his second year of arbitration.
Of course if the Tigers decide to stay with what they have, you’re probably looking at a Danny Worth/Wil Rhymes/Brandon Douglas/Ramon Santiago mish mash. Leyland already said that Ryan Raburn isn’t the answer at second base. Kelly Johnson is still out there though and if they wanted more of a bargain, there’s guys like Felipe Lopez, Aaron Miles, Adam Kennedy and Julio Lugo out there.
Prado’s on base percentage this past year was only .303, but prior years he’s looked really solid (.351 in ’10; .358 in ’09; .378 in ’08). He’s also just entering his prime years right now.
Young has more power but generally much poorer on base skills (.302 in ’11; .331 in ’10; ,305 in ’09; .331 in ’08). He’s also a liability in the outfield defensively.
I wouldn’t mind Prado’s high-contact/high OBP approach at all in front of the likes of Cabrera and Martinez. It’s worth looking into a bit more!
--Posted by Randy LeVasseur on November 15th, 2011 at 10:16 pm