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Tigers Trade Walker For Maroth? |
Quietly and seemingly without much sense of loss, the Tigers' LH situational reliever
Jamie Walker departed a couple of weeks ago to free agency. Walker
signed a three year deal with the Baltimore Orioles, turning down the Tigers
offer of a two year deal. Jamie Walker did a great job in his role
with the Tigers, regularly getting that big "K" of an opposing team's big left
hand hitter. This typically gave Leyland the chance to parade Zumaya,
Rodney and Jones in to close the last three innings of Tiger victories. Dave Dombrowski could fill this critical role by utilizing 2006's "forgotten Tiger", Mike Maroth, for short situational relief. There are several reasons this makes sense: 1. Maroth is dependable. 2. He has excellent control. 3. He isn't a power pitcher, which a) lends itself to short stints through an opposing lineup, and b) when followed by the 103-mph Zumaya repertoire, makes the pitch speed differential an even bigger factor late in games. 4. He's a lefty. 5. He's a great teammate. We'll never forget two years ago, when during our visit to spring training in Lakeland, Maroth and his family stayed in the parking lot after the game for more than 2 hours, signing autographs and talking with fans. His interest was genuine, and a reflection on the type of person he really is (contrast that with visiting Dodger-at-the-time Juan Encarnacion, who snubbed all kids without so much as eye contact, or even a "no" when asked to sign a ball or glove. He even held his hand up to stop the team bus from leaving while he stood and talked with his little circle of self-absorbed friends. No wonder he's with a different team every year....). This assumes, of course, that Maroth's repaired left arm can withstand the rigors of pitching 60+ games per season. But in the absence of anyone else to take "The Cat's" place, why trade a winner like Mike Maroth for an unknown entity? |