Rosternomics
Log in Sign up 𝕏

Tigers DET

201288–74 (0.543)Lost World Series
‹ Previous Next ›

GM: Dave Dombrowski

Overview

Ranks vs the 30 teams in 2012, or a custom range (defaults to every team-season since 1985, when our data starts).

to

Front Office

PoorAverageGreat
Value
Payroll $M
$124M
Surplus $M
-8
Win %
0.543
TAB
+7.9
WAB
+3.3
Roster composition
Roster fWAR
44.8
Dead money %
22%
Depth Players
8.0
Dead WAR
-7.7

Offense

PoorAverageGreat

Pitching & Defense

PoorAverageGreat

Roster

2012 depth chart — stacked by playing time

C

LAlex Avila113
RGerald Laird56
RBryan Holaday6
ROmir Santos3

1B

LPrince Fielder159
LDon Kelly8
RMiguel Cabrera2
RBrad Eldred1

2B

BRamon Santiago71
ROmar Infante⇄61
RRyan Raburn32
RDanny Worth31
RBrandon Inge⇄6
LMatt Young2
RHernán Pérez1
LDon Kelly1

3B

RMiguel Cabrera154
BRamon Santiago6
RDanny Worth5
RJeff Baker⇄4
LDon Kelly3
ROmar Infante⇄3

SS

RJhonny Peralta149
BRamon Santiago20
RDanny Worth3

LF

LQuintin Berry64
LAndy Dirks59
RDelmon Young31
RRyan Raburn30
LDon Kelly18
LMatt Young3
RAvisaíl García2

CF

RAustin Jackson137
LQuintin Berry22
LDon Kelly8
RAvisaíl García2
LAndy Dirks1

RF

LBrennan Boesch121
LDon Kelly35
LAndy Dirks24
RRyan Raburn22
RAvisaíl García18
LQuintin Berry5
LMatt Young1

DH

RDelmon Young118
LAndy Dirks10
LBrennan Boesch9
RMiguel Cabrera7
RBrad Eldred5
LQuintin Berry3
LDon Kelly3
LPrince Fielder3
RGerald Laird2
RRyan Raburn2
RBrandon Inge⇄1
RDanny Worth1
RJhonny Peralta1

Starters

RJustin Verlander6.8 WAR
RMax Scherzer4.5 WAR
RDoug Fister3.5 WAR
RRick Porcello2.9 WAR
LDrew Smyly1.8 WAR
RAnibal Sanchez⇄1.3 WAR
LDuane Below0.2 WAR
LCasey Crosby-0.1 WAR
LAdam Wilk-0.2 WAR
RJacob Turner⇄-0.3 WAR

Bullpen

★ RJose Valverde35 sv
RJoaquin Benoit30 h
LPhil Coke20 h
ROctavio Dotel11 h
RBrayan Villarreal10 h
LDarin Downs1 h
LDuane Below0 h
RLuis Marte0 h

Each position shows its top 3 by games (top = starter) — click "+more" for the rest. The letter is bats/throws; ⇄ marks a player traded mid-season. Starters are ranked by WAR, bullpen by holds; ★ marks the closer (most save chances). MLB Stats API.

Key additions (new vs 2011)

PlayerfWAR
Prince Fielder5.0
Drew Smyly1.8
Octavio Dotel1.5
Aníbal Sánchez1.3
Quintin Berry1.0
Omar Infante0.3

Key subtractions (gone from 2011)

Player2011 fWAR
Casper Wells0.9
Wilson Betemit0.5
Brad Penny0.2
Ryan Perry0.2
Scott Sizemore0.2
Lester Oliveros0.0

Contract Value

WAR translated into tier-adjusted market value, then compared with what the player was paid by Tigers. Guaranteed contracts from the 2015-present contract-data period use the known contract period through 2012; everyone else is shown as a 2012 season snapshot.

PlayerPeriodfWARTier Market $MPaid $MSurplus $M$ / WARTierContract
Justin Verlander 2012 +6.8 +136.6 20.0 +116.6 $2.9M 2.50× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $13.0M AAV
Austin Jackson 2012 +5.1 +83.5 0.5 +83.0 $0.1M 2.05× –
Max Scherzer 2012 +4.5 +78.3 3.8 +74.5 $0.8M 2.19× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $3.0M AAV
Miguel Cabrera 2012 +7.3 +83.3 21.0 +62.3 $2.9M 1.43× –
Doug Fister 2012 +3.5 +54.5 0.5 +54.0 $0.1M 1.96× –
Rick Porcello 2012 +2.9 +46.0 3.1 +42.9 $1.1M 1.96× –
Prince Fielder 2012 +5.0 +55.1 23.0 +32.1 $4.6M 1.37× –
Alex Avila 2012 +3.0 +23.7 0.5 +23.2 $0.2M 1.00× –
Drew Smyly 2012 +1.8 +20.9 0.4 +20.5 $0.2M 1.49× –
Andy Dirks 2012 +1.8 +17.8 0.5 +17.3 $0.3M 1.22× –
Octavio Dotel 2012 +1.5 +12.1 3.0 +9.1 $1.9M 0.98× –
Jhonny Peralta 2012 +2.0 +14.2 5.5 +8.7 $2.8M 0.89× –
Aníbal Sánchez↔ 2012 +1.3 +10.8 3.1 +7.7 $2.3M 1.02× –
Quintin Berry 2012 +1.0 +6.7 0.5 +6.2 $0.5M 0.83× –
Brayan Villarreal 2012 +1.0 +5.1 0.5 +4.6 $0.5M 0.67× –
Brandon Inge↔ 2012 +0.8 +3.7 0.6 +3.1 $0.7M 0.56× –
Phil Coke 2012 +0.7 +3.8 1.1 +2.7 $1.6M 0.67× –
Al Alburquerque 2012 +0.4 +2.4 0.5 +1.9 $1.1M 0.67× –
Jose Valverde 2012 +0.9 +9.9 9.0 +0.9 $9.7M 1.34× –
Darin Downs 2012 +0.2 +1.2 0.5 +0.7 $2.1M 0.67× –
Duane Below 2012 +0.2 +1.0 0.5 +0.6 $2.5M 0.67× –
Luke Putkonen 2012 +0.2 +1.0 0.5 +0.6 $2.5M 0.67× –
Avisaíl García 2012 +0.0 +0.3 0.1 +0.2 $2.1M 0.83× –
Clete Thomas↔ 2012 -0.0 -0.0 0.1 -0.1 – 0.83× –
Bryan Holaday 2012 +0.0 +0.0 0.5 -0.4 $40.8M 0.52× –
Hernán Pérez 2012 +0.0 +0.1 0.5 -0.4 $17.6M 0.56× –
Omar Infante↔ 2012 +0.3 +1.3 1.7 -0.4 $5.7M 0.56× –
Jose Ortega 2012 -0.1 -0.5 0.5 -1.0 – 0.67× –
Danny Worth 2012 -0.1 -0.6 0.5 -1.1 – 0.56× –
Luis Marte 2012 -0.2 -0.9 0.5 -1.4 – 0.67× –
Jeff Baker↔ 2012 -0.3 -1.3 0.2 -1.6 – 0.58× –
Casey Crosby 2012 -0.1 -1.2 0.5 -1.7 – 1.02× –
Adam Wilk 2012 -0.2 -1.9 0.5 -2.4 – 1.02× –
Daniel Schlereth 2012 -0.4 -2.3 0.5 -2.8 – 0.67× –
Jacob Turner↔ 2012 -0.3 -2.6 0.4 -2.9 – 1.02× –
Collin Balester 2012 -0.5 -2.8 0.5 -3.3 – 0.67× –
Ramon Santiago 2012 -0.3 -1.2 2.1 -3.3 – 0.56× –
Gerald Laird 2012 -0.6 -2.7 1.0 -3.7 – 0.52× –
Joaquín Benoit 2012 +0.1 +1.2 5.5 -4.3 $48.3M 1.34× –
Brennan Boesch 2012 -0.7 -4.7 0.5 -5.2 – 0.83× –
Don Kelly 2012 -0.8 -5.3 0.9 -6.2 – 0.83× –
Ryan Raburn 2012 -1.4 -6.4 2.1 -8.5 – 0.56× –
Delmon Young 2012 -1.2 -6.4 6.8 -13.1 – 0.69× –
Brad Eldred 2012 -0.1 -0.5 – – – 0.69× –
Matt Young 2012 +0.0 +0.0 – – – 0.83× –
Omir Santos 2012 -0.2 -1.0 – – – 0.52× –
Thad Weber 2012 +0.0 +0.0 – – – 0.67× –
Total—+44.8+632.2124.5+509.6—

Trades

Every graded 2012 deal involving the Tigers — best expected value first. Surplus is realized value in $M; 5 total.

2012 · PIT / DET
PIT · Neal Huntington +$0.0M
Andy Oliver
DET · Dave Dombrowski +$0.0M
Ramón Cabrera
Even trade
2012 · DET / BOS
DET · Dave Dombrowski +$0.0M
Jeff Kobernus
BOS · Ben Cherington +$0.0M
Justin Henry
Even trade
2012 · DET / ATL
DET · Dave Dombrowski +$4.8M
Greg Ross
ATL · Frank Wren −$4.8M
Jeff Baker
DET came out ahead by $4.8M
2012 · CHC / DET
CHC · Theo Epstein +$4.0M
Marcelo Carreno
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$4.0M
Jeff Baker
CHC came out ahead by $4.0M
2012 · DET / MIA
DET · Dave Dombrowski +$60.8M
Omar Infante, Aníbal Sánchez
MIA · Larry Beinfest −$60.8M
Rob Brantly, Jacob Turner, Brian Flynn
DET came out ahead by $60.8M

Current & Historical Payroll

2012 payroll
$124.1M

What the front office was committed to as of 2012, 2012–2018. Pre-2015 has no contract-terms data — forward italic $ are realized actuals (hindsight, not commitments known then). Control labels (ARB/FA) are point-in-time.

current $ guaranteed $ actual $ (hindsight) arbitration (proj) pre-arb (proj) free agent

Guaranteed / signed (12)

PlayerAgeSvc2012201320142015201620172018
Prince Fielder286.068$23.0M$23.0MFREE AGENT
Miguel Cabrera298.101$21.0M$21.0M$22.0M$22.0M$28.0M$28.0M$30.0M
Justin Verlander296.001$20.0M$20.0M$20.0M$28.0M$28.0M$23.8MFREE AGENT
Jose Valverde348.090$9.0M$2.0MFREE AGENT
Joaquín Benoit3415.040$5.5M$5.5MFREE AGENT
Jhonny Peralta307.118$5.5M$6.0MFREE AGENT
Octavio Dotel3812.113$3.0M$3.5MFREE AGENT
Ramon Santiago327.095$2.1M$2.1MFREE AGENT
Omar Infante3014.020$1.7M$4.0MFREE AGENT
Gerald Laird327.007$1.0MFREE AGENT
Brandon Inge3510.095$596kFREE AGENT
Brad Eldred317.000—FREE AGENT

Arbitration-eligible (6)

PlayerAgeSvc2012201320142015201620172018
Delmon Young265.034$6.8MFREE AGENT
Max Scherzer273.079$3.8MARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Aníbal Sánchez285.099$3.1MFREE AGENT
Ryan Raburn314.109$2.1MARB 3FREE AGENT
Phil Coke293.028$1.1MARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jeff Baker315.049$248kFREE AGENT

Pre-arbitration (29)

PlayerAgeSvc2012201320142015201620172018
Rick Porcello232.170$3.1MARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Don Kelly322.149$900kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Alex Avila252.061$510kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Doug Fister282.058$507kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brennan Boesch272.000$502kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Austin Jackson252.000$500kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Al Alburquerque261.000$495kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Daniel Schlereth261.111$490kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Andy Dirks260.127$485kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Collin Balester262.016$485kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Casey Crosby23–$482k
Danny Worth262.049$482kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Duane Below261.050$482kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Bryan Holaday240.000$480kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Luke Putkonen262.018$480kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jose Ortega230.049$480kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Quintin Berry272.080$480kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Darin Downs272.044$480kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brayan Villarreal251.084$480kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Hernán Pérez210.000$480kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Luis Marte251.000$480kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Adam Wilk240.056$480kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Drew Smyly230.000$391kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jacob Turner210.029$353kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Clete Thomas281.027$96kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Avisaíl García210.000$89kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Omir Santos31–—
Matt Young291.000—Pre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Thad Weber270.000—Pre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT

Graphs

How each 2012 acquisition stacked onto Tigers's playoff-odds curve. The side table is ranked by PPA.

Rosternomics — front-office performance, roster value, and transaction history. Follow @rosternomics on X.
Decision-maker records extend to 1933; resource-controlled WAR and payroll metrics cover 1985–2026. Data sources include FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference, the Chadwick Bureau register, the Lahman Database, prospect rankings from Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, and FanGraphs, and public payroll records. Transaction and trade data was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Executive birth/death data via Wikidata (CC0).
Privacy Policy · Terms of Service · © 2026 Rosternomics