2024 Detroit Tigers Preview
2024 Detroit Tigers Preview Shawn Childs is a legend in the fantasy baseball world and his advice is invaluable. A member of the NFBC Hall of Fame, Shawn has several top-5 finishes in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship as well […]
2024 Detroit Tigers Preview
Shawn Childs is a legend in the fantasy baseball world and his advice is invaluable. A member of the NFBC Hall of Fame, Shawn has several top-5 finishes in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship as well as five NFBC auction championship titles under his belt. He also boasts several prominent in the high-stakes market and multiple huge DFS wins. Shawn’s process and evaluation are among the most thorough in the sport and his exclusive FPGscore metric is changing the game. This 2024 team preview and insight is courtesy of the brilliant mind of one of the sport’s best.
This 2024 Detroit Tigers Preview is courtesy of Shawn Childs. Read Shawn’s expert fantasy analysis at his Substack.
The Tigers extended their streak without a postseason appearance to nine seasons. On the positive side, they finished second in the AL Central for the first time since 2016. Other than a mini-playoff run from 2011 to 2014 (averaged 91.5 wins with a World Series appearance in 2012), Detroit has been one of the weaker major league franchises since 1987 (one other trip to the postseason – 2006).
Their pitching staff ranked 17th in ERA (4.24). The Tigers’ bullpen had 33 wins, 27 losses, and 41 saves, with a 4.16 ERA (17th) and 642 strikeouts over 655.2 innings. On the downside, Detroit finished near the bottom of the league in runs (661 – 28th), home runs (165 – 24th), and RBIs (635 – 26th). They stole 85 bases over 108 attempts (78.7%).
In the offseason, the Tigers tried to beef up their pitching staff by signing SP Jack Flaherty, SP Kenta Maeda, RP Shelby Miller, and RP Andrew Chafin. Detroit lost SP Eduardo Rodriguez, SP Matthew Boyd, RP Trey Wingenter, RP Jose Cisnero, OF Austin Meadows, and 2B Jonathan Schoop to free agency. They acquired OF Mark Canha from the Brewers for P Blake Holub in a minor deal.
The future of the Tigers’ offense hinges on the development of OF Riley Greene and 1B Spencer Torkelson. Detroit would love to squeeze at least one good season out of SS Javier Baez before charging him with grand theft ($140 million). 3B Keith Colt looks poised to have significant at-bats in the majors.
The fantasy market is buzzing about the potential of SP Tarik Skubal after delivering a high level of success over short innings in 2023. At the very least, the Tigers want to have a chance to win each day, and their overall starting rotation should be more competitive this season. The ninth inning looks to be in flux after RP Alex Lange battled command issue in his first year with save chances in the majors.
Starting Lineup
OF Parker Meadows
There wasn’t much major league excitement in the bat of Meadows over his first three seasons in the minors. He only .224 over 902 at-bats with 124 runs, 19 home runs, 95 RBIs, and 26 stolen bases. His contact batting average was below .300 in 2019 and 2021, with a slow starting point in his average hit rate (1.408 and 1.571).
Meadows grew into his body in 2022 and 2023, leading to a much more powerful hitter (.263 with 158 runs, 39 home runs, 123 RBIs, and 36 steals over 935 at-bats). His walk rate (10.5) reached new heights while moving close to the league average with his strikeout rate (21.5).
In his first experience with Detroit, Meadows held form with his walk rate (11.7), but he added some strikeouts (25.5%). His overall resume isn’t elite, and one that doesn’t project him to hit leadoff in his potential first season to see everyday at-bats in the majors. He is the younger brother of Austin Meadows, so pedigree is on his side. His hard-hit rate (34.8) with the Tigers showed there is more work to do in his game.
Fantasy Outlook: Meadows had about the same batting average last year against righties (.251) and lefties (.257), suggesting he’ll be more than a platoon player in the majors. His ADP (289) makes him a fourth or fifth outfield option in 15-team leagues in the high-stakes market in mid-January. Based on his 20/20 potential, he will be a desire piece to fantasy team builds. I don’t expect a smooth ride, so I would temper my expectations at least early in the year.
2B Colt Keith…
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