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Detroit Tigers Clips Friday, November 20, 2015

Detroit Free Press Fenech: Why Price, J.D. Martinez made my MVP ballot (Fenech) Tigers beef up scouting, analytics departments (Fenech)

The Detroit News Tigers beef up scouting and analytics staffs (McCosky)

MLive.com 3 players are most likely to add to 40-man roster, protect from Rule 5 (Iott) Detroit Tigers' 11th, J.D. Martinez 15th in AL Most Valuable Player voting (Iott)

MLB.com Tigers face roster decisions for (Beck) Tigers expand front-office scouting, analytics (Beck)

Oakland Press Tigers announce moves to beef up scouting, analytics departments (Mowery)

CBSDetroit.com Buy A Piece Of At The 2015 Detroit Tigers Garage Sale (Staff)

Daily Transactions

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Fenech: Why Price, J.D. Martinez made my MVP ballot November 20, 2015 By Anthony Fenech/ Detroit Free Press

Baseball’s awards season finished Thursday night with the announcements of each league’s MVP and, in the end, there were no surprises. In the , Nationals rightfielder Bryce Harper ran away with it. In the , Blue Jays Josh Donaldson won ahead of Angels centerfielder . Harper put together one of the best offensive seasons in history, and Donaldson was the offensive and defensive rock of a team that came a couple of wins short of the . But the method to which both were voted as winners has become anything but predictable these days, with any number of traditional and advanced statistics to evaluate candidates. And for the first time in my baseball writing career, I was tasked with voting on a Baseball Writers Association of America award, and I was thankful that the decision at the top was not as hard-pressed as in the past. Donaldson was my top choice because of the impact he made on a playoff team. He and Trout were neck-and-neck in the numbers — Donaldson a bit ahead in many of the metrics I value most — but his presence in the lineup and at the hot corner of the AL East champs was unmistakable. He was the MVP. After the clear-cut choices at the top, it was easy to slot Royals centerfielder third. Still somewhat of an underrated player, Cain amazed with his defense in centerfield and broke out in a big way offensively, serving as the top player in Kansas City’s championship . Cain’s selection was my first weighed heavily with the eye test. In the Tigers’ 17 games against the Royals in 2015, he simply stood out. From there, the ballot became tougher. And after watching the first half of the season in Detroit and seeing what he did for the Blue Jays in the second half — 9-1, 2.30 ERA — I felt he was deserving of the No. 4 spot. It was hard to distinguish Price from Astros left-hander Dallas Keuchel, who won the AL on Wednesday night — both had impressive numbers — but the expectations placed on Price after the trade deadline were enormous, and he answered the bell in a big way. Between Price and Keuchel was Orioles third baseman , whose season was outstanding. Machado, 22, .286 with 35 home runs, 86 RBIs and 20 stolen bases while playing great defense. Even though the Orioles faded down the stretch, I could not keep Machado out of my top five. At No. 7, I put Tigers rightfielder J.D. Martinez. With Victor Martinez’s bum knee and Miguel Cabrera out of the lineup for a chunk of the season, Martinez carried the Tigers from mid-May. He improved immensely on defense, and with the way he swung out of an early-season slump and the hustle he brought daily, it was a wonder how far the team would have fallen without him. Martinez’s vote was the toughest and no doubt influenced by watching him play daily. He ranked eighth in the league in WAR at 5.0, according to FanGraphs. Martinez was followed on my ballot by Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre — the likely Hall of Famer was banged up a bit this season but still the biggest factor in the Rangers’ playoff run — and designated hitter , whose offensive output kept the Mariners from being a 100-loss team. But the easiest pick on my ballot likely will be the most criticized, placing Blue Jays Russell Martin into the final spot. Martin didn’t rank among the league leaders in WAR and wasn’t a stalwart offensively, but there is no coincidence that just like when he joined the Pirates two years ago, they became a winner. He isn’t a sexy name like teammates Jose Bautista or Edwin Encarnacion, but Martin plays the most important position, and ushered an average Blue Jays pitching staff to their first division title since 1987. Looking at the players in the AL and their impact, I could not place 10 more important players this year. Martin is a winning catcher, and was recognized as such on my ballot. 2

Games played factored into my criteria (eliminating Cabrera) and so, too, did the performance of each player’s individual team (Donaldson played in higher-intensity games down the stretch than Trout) and the eye-test was heavily weighed. From Donaldson to Martin, it was a lengthy process, weighing the pros and cons of each player, talking with many players and coaches and writers, it was overwhelming at times and it was fun, my first BBWAA awards vote.

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Tigers beef up scouting, analytics departments November 20, 2015 By Anthony Fenech/ Detroit Free Press

The Detroit Tigers beefed up their baseball knowledge this afternoon. They announced the hiring of four major league scouts and four analytical staff members – including Jay Sartori as senior director of baseball operations – as they expand their front office efforts to adapt to both sides of the baseball spectrum. Sartori was with the Tigers at the general managers meetings last week in Boca Raton, Fla., and comes to the team from Apple, where he most recently managed the sports and entertainment section of the App Store. Before that, he served as an assistant GM of the Blue Jays from 2010-13. In addition to Sartori, the team named Andrew Koo baseball operations analyst and Chris Long will assist the department as an analytics consultant. On the scouting side, the Tigers added three major league scouts – Ray Crone, Joe Ferrone, Randy Johnson and Jimmy Rough. Former Cubs executive Oneri Fleita also joined the team as an international cross-checker. Additionally, Alan Avila – 's youngest son – will join the organization in the baseball operations department as assistant counsel and bullpen catcher Jeff Kunkel – a Michigan grad – will join their scouting department, serving as the area for the upper Midwest region. The hires point to an added emphasis on not only the analytical side of the game – Al Avila has prioritized that going forward – but also the scouting side of baseball.

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Tigers beef up scouting and analytics staffs November 20, 2015 By Chris McCosky/ The Detroit News

Detroit – As he promised, executive vice president and general Al Avila has beefed up the Tigers scouting and analytics staffs, as well as their international operations. The Tigers have hired four veterans scouts to their Major League bureau: Ray Crone, most recently with the Padres; Joe Ferrone, with the Tigers from 2003-2007 and most recently with the Brewers; Randy Johnson, the former Braves third baseman who scouted for the Tigers in the early 2000s and has been with the Padres; and Jimmy Rough, who had been an area scout with the Tigers. Also, , who had been serving as an area scout, has been named senior advisor. Jeff Kunkel, former Michigan captain who has been the team's bullpen catcher the last four seasons, has been hired as an area scout serving the upper Midwest region. Also hired as amateur scouts: Steve Hinton, national cross-checker; Jim Bretz, area scout for the Northeast region; RJ Burgess, area scout North Florida; Dave Dangler, area scout Northwest region; Oneri Fleita, area scout Mid-Atlantic region; Justin Henry, area scout Southeast region. Fleita, former scout with the Cubs, will also serve as the organization's international cross-checker. Jesus Garces will be the team's area scout in Venezuela. On the baseball operations side, Alan Avila, Al Avila's son, has been hired as assistant counsel. As was reported two weeks ago, Jay Sartori was hired as the team's Senior Director of Baseball Operations and Analytics. He added Andrew Koo to his staff as an analyst. Chris Long will assist the department as a consultant.

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3 players Detroit Tigers are most likely to add to 40-man roster, protect from Rule 5 draft November 20, 2015 By Chris Iott/ MLive.com

The Detroit Tigers absolutely will add right-handed pitching prospect Michael Fulmer to their 40-man roster to protect him from next month's Rule 5 draft. Who else will they protect before the midnight deadline Friday night? Two stand out above the crowd of Tigers players who are eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft, which will be held Dec. 10 in Nashville at the conclusion of the annual . But first, a refresher on how the Rule 5 draft works. • Players were signed when they were 19 or older and have played four years of are eligible to be selected by other teams in the Rule 5 draft, as are players who were signed when they were younger than that and have played five professional seasons. • Players who are on a team's 40-man roster before the deadline, which is 11:59 p.m. Friday, are not eligible to be selected. • If a player is selected in the Rule 5 draft, the team that drafts him pays $50,000 to the team he was drafted from. The team that selects the player must keep that player on their big-league 25-man roster for the entirety of the following season. That player must be on the active roster, that means not on the disabled list, for at least 90 days during that season. • If the team that selects that player wants to take him off its big-league roster, that player must be offered back to his original team for $25,000. If the original team declines to take the player back, that player must clear waivers before the selecting team can send him to the minors. There are other ways around some of these rules. For example, in December 2012 the Tigers got left-hander in the Rule 5 draft from the (the Mets actually drafted him and traded him to the Tigers for cash). The Tigers then worked out a trade for him during . That allowed the Tigers to send Lobstein to the minors that season. The Rays got catcher Curt Casali in return. With all that said, here are the three Tigers prospects most likely to be added to the 40-man roster prior to today's deadline: • Michael Fulmer, RHP: The Tigers obtained Fulmer from the in the trade that sent Yoenis Cespedes to the New York Mets at the trade deadline. Many observers believe Fulmer is the Tigers' top prospect, so he will be added to the 40-man roster. There is no doubt about that. Bet your house on this one. • Jairo Labourt, LHP: Labourt didn't post solid numbers in 2015 and has never pitched above the Single-A level. But the Tigers are not likely to leave him unprotected after trading for him just a few months ago. The Tigers obtained Labourt, along with and Matt Boyd, from the in exchange for David Price. • Robertson, RHP: It is not guaranteed that the Tigers will add three players to their roster prior to the deadline, but if they do, Robertson is a strong candidate to be one of them. He isn't listed among their top prospects and has just 15 games of experience above Single-A, but he has posted solid numbers the past two seasons and was one of the prospects the Tigers sent to the . Other Tigers prospects eligible for the Rule 5 draft include Edgar De La Rosa, Endrys Briceno and Josh Turley as well as /designated hitter Dean Green. The majority of the top prospects the Tigers have in their system were drafted in the past two seasons, so they don't have that many difficult choices to make when it comes to who they should leave unprotected for the Rule 5 draft.

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Detroit Tigers' Miguel Cabrera 11th, J.D. Martinez 15th in AL Most Valuable Player voting November 20, 2015 By Chris Iott/ MLive.com

A Detroit Tigers player did not win the American League Most Valuable Player award for the fourth time in five seasons. But three Tigers players received some votes. Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera finished 11th in the AL MVP voting, while J.D. Martinez placed 15th. Ian Kinsler received one eighth-place vote and finished tied for 21st. The results of the balloting, conducted by the Baseball Writers Association of America, were announced Thursday evening. Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson took home the AL MVP award, while outfielder Mike Trout finished second. Bryce Harper of the was the unanimous choice as National League Most Valuable Player. Cabrera appeared on 11 of the 30 votes cast by writers, two from each AL city. Cabrera received one third-place vote and appeared in the top five on just two ballots. Martinez appeared on eight ballots. Voters listed their top 10 choices for Most Valuable Player in order. The two voters from the Detroit chapter of the BBWAA voted as follows: Anthony Fenech, Detroit Free Press: 1. Donaldson; 2. Trout; 3. Lorenzo Cain; 4. David Price; 5. Manny Machado; 6. Dallas Keuchel; 7. Martinez; 8. Adrian Beltre; 9. Nelson Cruz. 10. Russell Martin Chris McCosky, Detroit News: 1. Donaldson; 2. Trout; 3. Cain; 4. Cruz; 5. Machado; 6. Keuchel; 7. Jose Bautista; 8. Edwin Encarnacion; 9. Beltre. 10. Martinez Trout was the 2014 AL Most Valuable Player. That ended a streak of three consecutive season that saw Tigers players win the award. was the MVP in 2011. Cabrera was the MVP in 2012 and 2013.

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Tigers face roster decisions for Rule 5 Draft November 20, 2015 By Jason Beck/ MLB.com

DETROIT -- While the Tigers continue their search for Major League pitching to add to their roster, they have some decisions to make on their pitching prospects ahead of next month's Rule 5 Draft. The Rule 5 Draft allows teams to select players out of other farm systems who aren't on their Major League club's 40-man rosters by Friday at 11:59 p.m. ET. The Tigers used it during their rebuild a decade ago to bring in young players such as and , and they added Kyle Lobstein a few years ago in similar fashion. Players who are drafted for $50,000 must either spend the entire season on a team's active roster (there are some exceptions for DL stints) or be offered back to their previous club for $25,000. Only players who have spent five seasons in the Minors -- or four if the player was drafted out of college or similar age -- are eligible. That caveat greatly reduces the number of players the Tigers have to ponder protecting. The vast majority of players on MLB.com's Tigers Top 30 Prospects list joined the organization within the last few years and aren't eligible yet. Then there's the basic thought process: Regardless of which Minor Leaguers the club doesn't want to lose, how many could actually stick on another Major League club next year? Detroit has 35 players on its 40-man roster, including just-acquired Francisco Rodriguez and arbitration- eligible relievers Neftali Feliz and Al Alburquerque. With the Tigers hoping to add two starting pitchers, another reliever and an outfielder this offseason, there isn't much wiggle room, even if the team non-tenders Feliz in a couple weeks. Here's a short list of prospects who would be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft if the Tigers don't add them to the roster by Friday: Michael Fulmer, RHP: This will be the easiest decision the Tigers face all offseason. Fulmer, acquired from the Mets in the Yoenis Cespedes trade, tops Detroit's prospect rankings after winning Eastern League of the Year honors. The 22-year-old and his power fastball are expected to join big league camp and compete for either the fifth starter spot or a bullpen role. Jairo Labourt, LHP: The third prospect from Toronto in the David Price trade, Labourt had a statistically rough season in the Advanced (3-12, 5.12 ERA) after dominating low Class A ball a year ago, but the 21-year-old pitched in the All-Star Futures Game a few weeks before he was traded. His struggles came in part from focusing on throwing strikes and lowering his walk total. The Tigers' No. 11 prospect has a sinking fastball and slider, as well as a big frame. He's the kind of lefty swingman a rebuilding team sometimes tries to hide at the back of its bullpen to get him into the organization. Endrys Briceno, RHP: The lanky 23-year-old is the Tigers' 15th-ranked prospect, but he just returned to action this summer after having surgery in 2014. He has yet to pitch above the Class A Advanced level. Edgar De La Rosa, RHP: The Tigers' No. 21 prospect was not taken in last year's Rule 5 Draft, and he seemingly would clear this year after pitching in just 16 games between Double-A Erie and the Rookie Gulf Coast League, walking 20 batters over 19 2/3 innings. At 6-foot-8 with a mid-90s fastball, he's an intriguing arm, but he is not near ready. Josh Turley, LHP: Would a left-hander with a get a look from a big league club? The 25-year-old pitched well enough in the Erie rotation to take the 25th spot on the Tigers' Top Prospects list and possibly warrant consideration as an insurance starter for Detroit. Still, it's a jump. Montreal Robertson, RHP: He didn't make the Top Prospects list, but he did make the Arizona Fall League, where he pitched well for Scottsdale. The big 25-year-old had arguably his best season as a pro between Lakeland and Erie.

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Tigers expand front-office scouting, analytics November 20, 2015 By Jason Beck/ MLB.com

DETROIT -- The Tigers officially joined the trend of clubs expanding the organizational depth off the field. With the announcement of three new Major League scouts, nine amateur scouting appointments and three analytics additions, first-year Al Avila continued the organizational restructuring he had discussed since he taking the job in August. The moves help the Tigers catch up with other organizations on a number of fronts, not just with analytics, but with in-depth scouting. Former Blue Jays assistant general manager Jay Sartori was officially named senior director of baseball operations and analytics after joining club officials at the General Managers Meetings last week. Sartori spent two years with Apple managing the sports and entertainment categories of its App Store. Before that, he spent three years with the Blue Jays handling arbitration, contract and rules dealings. Sartori's previous work includes a year as Nationals director of baseball operations and more time in 's Commissioner's Office working in labor negotiations. Also joining the Tigers' analytics department is Andrew Koo, who was named a baseball operations analyst. His previous work includes contributions for Baseball Prospectus. Chris Long, a consultant for the NBA's Houston Rockets and other MLB clubs, will work with the Tigers in a similar position. The hires are part of baseball operations director Sam Menzin's work to build out an analytics department that not long ago consisted of himself. On the baseball operations side, Alan Avila has been hired as an assistant counsel. He's the youngest son of Al Avila and brother of catcher . On the scouting side, the Tigers brought back Randy Johnson to the organization as a Major League scout, promoted Jimmy Rough from their amateur scouting ranks, and hired Ray Crone and Joe Ferrone to the same positions. Johnson, not to be confused with the Hall of Fame pitcher who once no-hit the Tigers, worked for Detroit from 1996-2002 under former general managers and . He most recently worked with the Padres as Minor League field coordinator. The quartet bulk up a Major League scouting staff that includes Jim Olander, Jeff Wetherby and Bruce Tanner. The additional manpower will allow each scout to look deeper into an organization with fewer teams to cover. One of those hires fills the void left by 's promotion to vice president of player development. Former Major League general manager Murray Cook, most recently an area scout for the Tigers, will move back to Major League scouting as a senior adviser. Jeff Kunkel, who served as the Tigers' bullpen catcher for the past few years, will break into the scouting side as an amateur area scout covering the upper Midwest, including Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, northern Indiana and northern Illinois. Former Tigers Minor Leaguer Justin Henry was named an area scout covering the Southeast. Jim Bretz, RJ Burgess and Dave Dangler were also named area scouts. Steve Hinton was named a national crosschecker. Oneri Fleita joins the Tigers as a Mid-Atlantic area scout as well as international crosschecker. Jesus Garces was named as an area scout for Venezuela.

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Tigers announce moves to beef up scouting, analytics departments November 20, 2015 By Matthew Mowery/ Oakland Press

DETROIT >> The Detroit Tigers have talked about their intentions to beef up not only their analytics department, but also reinforce their scouting departments, and general manager Al Avila made public several appointments in those areas Thursday. Most notably, Avila hired his own son, Alan, as assistant counsel for the baseball operations department, where he’ll work under former Blue Jays assistant GM Jay Sartori, the new senior director of the baseball ops and analytics departments. Former bullpen catcher Jeff Kunkel also moves into a scouting role, covering the upper Midwest. A look at Thursday’s announced appointments: MAJOR LEAGUE SCOUTING Ray Crone, Joe Ferrone, Randy Johnson and Jimmy Rough hired as major league scouts. Murray Cook named senior advisor. AMATEUR SCOUTING Steve Hinton, named regional crosschecker. Jim Bretz, assigned as area scout Northeast region (eastern , New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania) R.J. Burgess, assigned as area scout for north Florida. Dave Dangler, assigned as area scout for Northwest region (western Canada, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming). Oneri Fleita (former Cubs VP of player development), assigned as area scout for Mid-Atlantic region (Washington D.C., Maryland, western Pennsylvania and Virginia). Justin Henry (former minor league utility man), assigned as area scout for Southeast region (Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi). Jeff Kunkel (former bullpen catcher), assigned as area scout in upper Midwest (Northern Illinois, Northern Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin). INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS Oneri Fleita (former Cubs VP of player development) hired as international crosschecker. Jesus Garces, hired as area scout for Venezuela. BASEBALL OPERATIONS Alan Avila (son of GM Al Avila) hired as assistant counsel, baseball operations. Jay Sartori (former Blue Jays assistant GM) hired as senior director of baseball operations and analytics. Andrew Koo, hired as baseball operations analyst. Chris Long (former quantitative analyst with the Padres), hired to assist analytics department as analytics consultant.

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Buy A Piece Of Comerica Park At The 2015 Detroit Tigers Garage Sale November 20, 2015 By CBSDetroit.com Staff/ CBSDetroit.com

DETROIT (CBS Detroit) – It’s your chance to purchase a piece of Comerica Park history. The 2015 Detroit Tigers Garage sale takes place Monday and Tuesday, Nov. 23-24. Some of the many items available for purchase include: • Various office chairs • replica plaques • Televisions • Various ballpark signage • Media guides • Lockers • Tiger Den chairs • Tiger Club chairs • Snow plow • Turnstiles • commemorative canvas • Accordion closet doors • Large display baseball bat • Highchairs • Pool tables • Authentic Champagne bottles from Tigers clubhouse celebrations • Commemorative plaques honoring special moments in Tigers history • Street pole banners • Chafing dishes • Logoed dishware • Glasses • Industrial kitchen cooking equipment • Select discounted retail items and Tigers merchandise, great for holiday shopping • Promotional items including bobbleheads, t-shirts and mini bats The sale runs from 1 p.m. – 7 p.m. on Monday and from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. on Tuesday. Fans may park for free in Lots 1 and 2, and enter the sale at Gate B by the Pepsi Porch. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Detroit Tigers Foundation. Cash and credit cards are accepted. All items are final sale and sold “as is.” There will be no refunds or exchanges, and quantities are limited.

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LAST UPDATED: FRI, NOVEMBER 20, 2015, 03:02 EST

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2015

TEAM PLAYER TRANSACTION

Chicago Cubs Jack Leathersich Acquired Off Waivers From from Mets, NY Mets

Cleveland Indians Shane Robinson Signed to a Minor League Contract

Houston Astros Robbie Grossman Released

Milwaukee Brewers Jonathan Villar Traded From from Astros, Houston (for RHP Cy Sneed)

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2015

TEAM PLAYER TRANSACTION

Chicago White Sox Scott Hairston Signed to a Minor League Contract

Los Angeles Angels Cliff Pennington Signed as Free Agent, ( 2016-2017)(two-year contract)

Los Angeles Angels Lucas Luetge Signed to a Minor League Contract

Milwaukee Brewers Jim Miller Signed to a Minor League Contract

Philadelphia Phillies Frank Herrmann Signed to a Minor League Contract

Philadelphia Phillies Emmanuel Burriss Signed to a Minor League Contract

Philadelphia Phillies Ryan Jackson Signed to a Minor League Contract

Washington Nationals David Carpenter Refused Minor League Assignment - Free Agent

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Washington Nationals David Carpenter Outrighted to Minors

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2015

TEAM PLAYER TRANSACTION

Milwaukee Brewers Hernan Perez Signed to a Minor League Contract

San Francisco Giants Brandon Crawford Signed, ( 2016-2021)(six-year extension, avoids arbitration)

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