The Youngbloodz

First off: Bravo, Miguel Cabrera. He literally apologized to everyone he could think of, and is committed to getting treatment for his alcohol abuse. The team loves him, the organization loves him, and the fans should love him. If we hear one more slam against Cabrera from self-proclaimed Tigers fans, s**t's gonna hit. Seriously. 

So now can we move on from this ordeal? Cabrera's back in action, and our team is as solid as ever. Bring on Spring Training. 

Ok, so our rotation is basically set: we have an All-Star ace (Verlander), a soon-to-be-All-Star ace (Scherzer), a kid who is hopefully coming out of his sophomore slump and is returning to glory (Porcello), a question mark (Coke) and an even bigger question mark (Penny). Our rotation is pretty much set, and we will profile the Fab Five soon. In addition, we have a pretty solid bullpen, and we will profile their eccentricities in good time. For now, though, we will take a look at the two up-and-comers who (besides playing in the massacre exhibition game today, another useful forum to asses their talents)  make our usually bland farm system suddenly so exciting! 

#43    Andrew Oliver

2010 BIG LEAGUE STATS

W/L: 0-4   ERA: 7.36  WHIP: 1.77 

So he didn't have the best stint last year, but remember, he's 23 years old. Andy Oliver could be a great Pitcher of the Future. Or, better yet, he could be excellent trade bait. But you know what? We at April in the D kind of want him around. He has the potential to be the next big thing out of our farm system, specifically in the Justin Verlander mold. He's not bad looking. He's not married, unlike 95% of the other Tigers. The veteran Tigers seem to like and respect him. Club chemistry may not be theeee most important thing, but it definitely doesn't hurt. So, if Coke can't handle being a starter or Porcello blows up or Penny just sucks in general, we would have no problem giving this rookie a chance. All that being said, we have even more confidence in this next guy...

#50        Jacob Turner

2010 Big League Stats:

NONE

There's no doubt about it: we need to hold on to this kid. Jim Leyland himself said that he doesn't "want to get carried away with anything, [but] Turner looks really good." In our opinion, Leyland gets carried away with a lot of things, but we think he's right about this one. He's only 19 years old and in his second year of Major League ball, so people probably shouldn't go crazy and think he'll be at the Big Show to start the year. No. He needs to work on his control and decrease his walks, yes. But, when if someone on our pitching staff gets injured, he would be a great choice for a call-up. We think that Turner is the kid we need to hold on to. It would be a mistake to give up this gem. 

Yes, it is important to take care of the Tiger Cubs in the system, especially these two. It will be an exciting part of Spring Training to see how well these guys perform. We're rooting for you both!