MSU Red Cedar Message Board

add the entire bench with Porcello and Scherzer and i think we have something

Hey, on one of his 4 at bats, Raburn did not strike out. That's certainly a positive to build off of.

It's pretty remarkable to go 0-for-5 at 2b.....Inge, Santiago, Kelly, Raburn, and Santiago. But looking at Toledo, it might be worth giving Justin Henry a shot as he's now hitting .314. Still, he's a 27-year old utility guy who isn't likely to truly solve the issue. It might send a message, and given that it's Memorial Day, it would certainly seem time. The team has several needs, and given the talent and payroll, I'm expecting a trade. But if you're looking to deal in May, nothing is coming cheap. There just aren't MLB ready options in the Tigers system, which means fans are going to have to find some patience......

The Tigers have a pretty strong farm system, but not much of it is Major League ready and none of it is at 2B.

The real issue is the fact that Leyland didn't play Omar Infante or Matt Joyce and they traded them away without knowing their full value. Joyce I'm less pissed about because we actually got AJax from the Edwin Jackson trade (you could argue that we could have thrown in someone else though to make it work). If Leyland would have given Infante a chance to play as the utility player while we had Polanco, the Tigers would have very little holes. Another reason why Leyland needs to be fired. He has no idea how to judge players. Raburn gets chance after chance, Inge gets chance after chance. Infante and Joyce are thrown away for nothing.

Patience is not a problem when you know the proper intent is there. If we knew they were not happy with the shitty performances by Rugburn and others, it would be easier to hold back criticism.

But when you replace a .330 hitter at the #2 spot after a series sweep with arguably the worst hitter in baseball it not only shows complacency, but it shows confidence. Which is indefensible.

Lakeland has some good talent, Erie's got a few MLB players on it. All the rankings talk about the talent being far away from contributing but that the talent is there. Rankings are much more based on guys like Mike Trout and Bryce Harper than overall talent. The Tigers haven't had any high first round picks in a while so they aren't going to have guys like Trout or Harper.

As for organizational rankings importance. Ask Kansas City what all their great prospects have done for them over the years.

Yes thats f'ing inexcusable, and then they have a short fuse knowing full well that they were fully responsible for a 3 run uprising that completely changed the complexion of the game. And then that effer Tschida seemingly called Worth out at second on a overslide when he clearly got back and the prick was in great position to see it! Where is the accountability?

*sigh*

This team is a trainwreck. Hopefully AJax returns on Friday. Who gets the ticket to Toledo? Worth, Kelly, or Raburn?

My vote is for Raburn ... and it isn't out of the spite that most people would pick him (neither Worth or Kelly are hitting any better). Optioning him to Toledo would serve two purposes: it would put him AND the team on alert. Something NEEDS to change here. We've seen what Raburn can do ... the problem is that he just doesn't do it close to enough. I hate keeping Kelly on the team, but his versatility isn't too bad.

Just go with Worth at 2B. At least he can field the ball and was batting well at Toledo.

Does Raburn for sure have an option left? It seems like nobody knows for sure.

If he does have an option left he would absolutely get my vote. Right now he seems to be fighting it mentally as much as physically and I think he could benefit from playing in Toledo for a few weeks where the pressure wouldn't be quite so high.

I don't think they'll drop Kelly at this point because there's a chance somebody would claim him on waivers. After Worth there isn't really another infielder in the system that could fill in if somebody gets hurt, so I think they'll keep Kelly on the major league roster until they acquire somebody that could fill his role (which could happen if he doesn't pick it up within the next month or so).

Raburn has one option left and very little time (less than 2 weeks) before he becomes a 5 year player and the rules change.

Dave Dombrowski isn't calling me but if he did I would suggest:

Option Raburn to Toledo before 8June when Raburn gets his 5 years
Keep Worth up with the big club to play 2nd until the serious trade season starts
Keep Berry up because he adds speed and as an insurance policy for Jackson.

Then hope Raburn finds his stroke and is part of a trade package for a full time 2nd baseman

Raburn's transaction log. Looks to me that he has an option available (if he indeed has less than five years of service):

06/02/99 Drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 18th round of the 1999 amateur draft, but did not sign.
06/05/01 Drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 5th round of the 2001 amateur draft.
06/20/01 Signed contract.
01/20/03 Purchased contract from Single-A Lakeland.
03/15/04 Optioned to Double-A Erie.
09/12/04 Recalled from Double-A Erie.
01/31/05 Signed to one-year contract.
03/15/05 Optioned to Triple-A Toledo.
12/05/05 Outrighted to Triple-A Toledo.
01/10/07 Extended invitation to Major League camp.
07/06/07 Purchased contract from Triple-A Toledo.
02/26/08 Signed to one-year contract.
04/05/08 Optioned to Triple-A Toledo.
04/12/08 Recalled from Triple-A Toledo.
02/24/09 Signed to one-year contract.
04/01/09 Optioned to Triple-A Toledo.
04/22/09 Recalled from Triple-A Toledo.
03/02/10 Signed to one-year contract.
05/12/10 Optioned to Triple-A Toledo.
05/22/10 Recalled from Triple-A Toledo.
01/12/11 Signed to two-year contract.
05/22/12 Placed on the bereavement leave list
05/25/12 Activated from the bereavement leave list.