Rumor: Tigers Interested In Martin Prado
Jamey Carroll left them at the alter and now the Tigers are looking elsewhere.
According to Jon Morosi of Fox Sports, the Tigers are looking at Braves utility man, Martin Prado. The Tigers seem to be pretty desperate for a second baseman. With Carroll to the Twins and Hill re-upping with Arizona, the 2nd base market is pretty thin. The Tigers have a little wiggle room financially to make a move, and acquiring a player such as Prado is a pretty good idea for the defending AL Central Champions.
Prado had a weak year offensively in 2011. He put up a slash line .260/.302/.385 in 129 games with the Braves. Prado was an All-Star second baseman in 2010, but didn’t play one single game at 2nd in 2011. When the Braves acquired Dan Uggla, Prado was a man without a position. He started 91 games in left field and 34 at third base when he filled in for an injured Chipper Jones.
Prado is a good player. Just not in left field. You want power out of your corner outfielders, not free-swinging middle infield production. Prado as a second baseman is probably a three win player; especially, if you go by Bill James projections for Prado. James projects Prado to put up a slash line closer to his 2010 season. Prado’s line in 2010 was .307/.350/.464 which was good enough for nearly four and a half wins at second. James has him at .289/.339/.423 for his 2012 projection. If Prado would put up that line, he could easily be in the second tier of good second basemen in the AL.
Morosi claims that the Tigers would be willing to move Delmon Young to get a Prado. Young is a player that traditionalists would like, but stat nerds like myself do not. Young gets home runs and RBI, but that’s pretty much it. He doesn’t draw walks and his success is strictly based on hits, which is always a risky proposition. Plus, his horrible defense would get exposed in a large left field in Detroit. It would be very smart for the Tigers to move him for a player like Prado.
Both Young and Prado are in the arbitration stages of their contracts. Young would make a bit more in 2012, and would be a free agent after this year. Prado would be a free agent after 2013.
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