Majors: Organization Reports: Detroit Tigers: 2009

Difficult Debut
Nov. 16, 2009
Andrew Oliver may never forget his professional debut—no matter how much he'd like to. Oliver, the lefthander from Oklahoma State taken by the Tigers in the second round of this year's draft, began his career in the Arizona Fall League. Oliver's college experience, plus his fine performance with Team USA in the summer of 2008, suggested he could handle a stint in the AFL. [...] Continue Reading »

Learning Experience
Oct. 19, 2009
While the Tigers were fighting for their playoff lives in the final weeks of September, a crop of young Tigers met in Lakeland to begin taking steps toward becoming future Tigers.

And the emphasis is on the word "young," as Detroit welcomed 44 of its youngest players to its instructional league program. [...] Continue Reading »

Home Cooking
Oct. 2, 2009
After making a difficult decision to choose Michigan over Michigan State, Daniel Fields ended up signing with his hometown Tigers instead. [...] Continue Reading »

Tigers Final Report
Sep. 17, 2009
Alex Avila was the top Tigers minor league player. [...] Continue Reading »

Proving He's Back
Sep. 3, 2009
Disaster seemed to waste little time striking Casey Crosby in his first pro season.

But an arm injury that forced the lefthander to have Tommy John surgery in November 2007 has proven to be little more than a speed bump in Crosby's career. [...] Continue Reading »

Extended Look
Aug. 26, 2009
In spring training, Mark Sorensen was deemed to not be among the 12 pitchers worthy of a spot on the low Class A West Michigan staff.

By the end of July, though, the righthander was chosen as the best pitcher on the Whitecaps staff—and the top choice to receive a promotion to high Class A Lakeland. [...] Continue Reading »

Healthy And Hitting
Aug. 6, 2009
The Tigers weren't certain how shortstop Brent Dlugach would perform after he had missed most of the past two seasons because of injury. But the 26-year-old's fine play with Triple-A Toledo this season has raised his profile within the system. [...] Continue Reading »

Outfield Could Take Strieby To Majors
Jul. 24, 2009
Ryan Strieby has demolished the pitching in the Double-A Eastern League, but a move from first base to left field could be his fastest route to the major leagues. [...] Continue Reading »

Tigers Midseason Report
Jul. 13, 2009
Matt Forman selects midseason award winners for the Tigers system, designating prospects in the Best Player, Biggest Leap Forward and Biggest Disappointment categories. [...] Continue Reading »

Sticking With Power
Jun. 12, 2009
It's no secret the organization has an affinity for pitchers with great velocity. So with the ninth overall selection, the Tigers took righthander Jacob Turner, who is 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, out of Westminster Christian Academy in St. Louis. [...] Continue Reading »

Tigers' Wilkin Ramirez finds Triple-A more to his liking
Jun. 11, 2009
Wilkin Ramirez, a 23-year-old left fielder born in Bani, Dominican Republic, was back in Triple-A Toledo, which has treated him far more kindly the second time around. [...] Continue Reading »

Latin Influx
May. 29, 2009
The Tigers haven't ranked among the top spenders in Latin America in recent years, but the organization still has signed an intriguing mix of young, relatively unheralded prospects from the region. [...] Continue Reading »

Tigers' Hoffman Cuts Walk Rate In '09
May. 14, 2009
A second stint at West Michigan has yielded much better results for Tigers lefthander Matt Hoffman. [...] Continue Reading »

Stellar Start
May. 5, 2009
Lefthander Lucas French entered the year 31-39, 4.00 in five minor league seasons. He didn't appear in Baseball America's ranking of the Tigers' top 30 prospects. He wasn't widely known within the industry—but that may change. [...] Continue Reading »

Welcome To The Show
Apr. 16, 2009
Five days before the regular season began, Tigers manager Jim Leyland told Rick Porcello and Ryan Perry—friends, spring roommates and fellow hard-throwing righthanders—that they had made the Opening Day roster. [...] Continue Reading »

Power Options
Mar. 20, 2009
Offense isn't really a question in Detroit, but some of the Tigers' bench options aren't exciting. However, Jeff Larish could provide some pop at different positions or if someone goes down. [...] Continue Reading »

Porcello Continues Fast-Track Ascent
Mar. 3, 2009
Rick Porcello's rapid rise through the Tigers farm system should continue in 2009. [...] Continue Reading »

Sidearming Rise
Feb. 19, 2009
Tigers sidearming righthander Rudy Darrow has an outside chance of making the big league club. [...] Continue Reading »

Power Lunch
Feb. 10, 2009
At this time last year, outfielder Casper Wells had played only 13 games above short-season ball. He had shown flashes of his potential but was not a well-known prospect.

Now? [...] Continue Reading »

A Path Of His Own
Jan. 22, 2009
Tyler Stohr attended four pre-draft workouts last year. The last of them—in Mesa, Ariz., with the Cubs—was different than the others.

In addition to throwing for scouts, he was given a rare look inside the team's draft room. There was a reason for that: His father, Keith, was the Cubs' area scout in northern Florida. [...] Continue Reading »

Back On Track
Jan. 6, 2009
Brent Dlugach appeared to be the Tigers' top shortstop prospect at the end of spring training in 2007. He impressed Detroit manager Jim Leyland with his smooth defensive play and looked like a confident hitter during big league camp.

Since then, however, he has played in only 29 regular season games. [...] Continue Reading »

Pirates Treasure
Dec. 29, 2008
Lefthander Kyle Bloom, the Tigers' Rule 5 pick from the Pirates, impressed the Tigers with his performance in Hawaii Winter Baseball. [...] Continue Reading »