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Over the past week or so, there has been a certain amount of buzz surrounding the Detroit Tigers‘ possible interest in adding another starting pitcher. While it is certainly fun to dream about the prospect of Philadelphia Phillies ace Cole Hamels in the Olde English D, a more realistic option might be his current teammate, Aaron Harang.
Signed to a one-year, $5 million deal over the offseason, Harang continues to get the job done at the tender age of 37. As a matter of fact, it would have been nice if the Tigers would have had him at the start of the 2015 campaign.
Sure, Harang has stubbed his toe a bit in the month of June and his record isn’t exactly pretty at 4-8, but he still has a more than respectable 3.24 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. Despite having the second highest fly ball rate among qualified starters in the National League at 47.5 percent, Harang’s 7.2 percent HR/FB shows that he has been quite efficient at keeping most of those flies in the ballpark. Pitching in front of the Tigers’ vastly improved defense at spacious Comerica Park could only bode well for the veteran right-hander.
Of course, there are higher profile “rental pitchers” rumored to be on the market right now in Johnny Cueto and Scott Kazmir, who may cost less to acquire than Hamels, but the Tigers may still be hesitant to part ways with the prospects that it would take to acquire them. The Tigers’ farm system is not exactly in top-notch shape, and they may not want to deplete it any further.
If the asking price on Harang is reasonable, he would definitely be worth considering. The Tigers would indeed be wise to keep him in the back of their mind at the very least.
Brad Faber is a Senior Writer and Sabermetrics Columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Brad_Faber, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on LinkedIn or Google.
