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Tigers DET

201490–72 (0.556)Made Playoffs
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GM: Dave Dombrowski

Overview

Ranks vs the 30 teams in 2014, or a custom range (defaults to every team-season since 1985, when our data starts).

to

Front Office

PoorAverageGreat
Value
Payroll $M
$168M
Surplus $M
-38
Win %
0.556
TAB
+5.1
WAB
+3.1
Roster composition
Roster fWAR
44.0
Dead money %
13%
Depth Players
10.0
Dead WAR
-3.4

Offense

PoorAverageGreat

Pitching & Defense

PoorAverageGreat

Roster

2014 depth chart — stacked by playing time

C

LAlex Avila122
RBryan Holaday58
RJames McCann6
BVictor Martinez2

1B

RMiguel Cabrera126
BVictor Martinez35
LDon Kelly30
LAlex Avila1
RDanny Worth1

2B

RIan Kinsler160
BAndrew Romine12
RHernán Pérez5
RDanny Worth3
LDon Kelly1

3B

RNick Castellanos145
LDon Kelly41
RMiguel Cabrera10
REugenio Suárez2
RHernán Pérez2
RÁlex González1

SS

BAndrew Romine83
REugenio Suárez81
RDanny Worth13
RÁlex González9
RHernán Pérez1

LF

RRajai Davis99
RJ.D. Martinez83
LDon Kelly8
LTyler Collins5
LEzequiel Carrera1

CF

RRajai Davis48
LEzequiel Carrera38
LDon Kelly6
LTyler Collins1

RF

RTorii Hunter128
RJ.D. Martinez34
LDon Kelly11
LSteven Moya5
LTyler Collins5

DH

BVictor Martinez115
RMiguel Cabrera25
RTorii Hunter7
RJ.D. Martinez5
LSteven Moya2
LDon Kelly1
RBryan Holaday1
BAndrew Romine1
REugenio Suárez1
RJames McCann1
RRajai Davis1
LTyler Collins1

Starters

RMax Scherzer5.5 WAR
RAnibal Sanchez3.4 WAR
RJustin Verlander3.3 WAR
RRick Porcello3.0 WAR
LDavid Price⇄2.3 WAR
LDrew Smyly⇄1.1 WAR
LKyle Lobstein0.5 WAR
LKyle Ryan0.2 WAR
RDrew VerHagen0.1 WAR
LRobbie Ray0.0 WAR
RBuck Farmer-0.1 WAR

Bullpen

★ RJoe Nathan35 sv
RJoba Chamberlain29 h
RAl Alburquerque17 h
LIan Krol10 h
LPhil Coke5 h
LBlaine Hardy4 h
REvan Reed4 h
RJim Johnson⇄2 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 2013)

PlayerfWAR
Ian Kinsler4.5
J.D. Martinez3.8
David Price2.3
Rajai Davis2.2
Eugenio Suárez0.9
Joba Chamberlain0.7

Key subtractions (gone from 2013)

Player2013 fWAR
Doug Fister4.2
Jhonny Peralta3.6
Omar Infante2.9
Prince Fielder2.7
Joaquín Benoit1.4
Brayan Peña0.5

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 2014; everyone else is shown as a 2014 season snapshot.

PlayerPeriodfWARTier Market $MPaid $MSurplus $M$ / WARTierContract
Max Scherzer 2014 +5.5 +110.9 15.5 +95.4 $2.8M 2.50× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $3.0M AAV
J.D. Martinez 2014 +3.8 +54.7 0.5 +54.2 $0.1M 1.79× –
Victor Martinez 2014 +4.6 +55.0 12.0 +43.0 $2.6M 1.49× –
Rick Porcello 2014 +3.0 +46.5 8.5 +38.0 $2.9M 1.96× –
Aníbal Sánchez 2014 +3.4 +53.3 15.8 +37.5 $4.6M 1.96× –
Miguel Cabrera 2014 +5.2 +56.7 22.0 +34.7 $4.2M 1.37× –
Justin Verlander 2014 +3.3 +51.2 20.0 +31.2 $6.1M 1.96× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $13.0M AAV
Ian Kinsler 2014 +4.5 +43.4 16.0 +27.4 $3.6M 1.20× –
David Price↔ 2014 +2.3 +27.7 4.5 +23.2 $1.9M 1.49× –
Rajai Davis 2014 +2.2 +21.6 5.0 +16.6 $2.3M 1.22× –
Austin Jackson↔ 2014 +1.7 +16.5 3.9 +12.6 $2.3M 1.22× –
Drew Smyly↔ 2014 +1.1 +8.8 0.4 +8.4 $0.4M 1.02× –
Joba Chamberlain 2014 +0.7 +7.8 2.5 +5.3 $3.4M 1.34× –
Eugenio Suárez 2014 +0.9 +4.3 0.3 +4.0 $0.4M 0.61× Free Agent · 2026–2027 · $15.0M AAV
Kyle Lobstein 2014 +0.5 +3.7 0.1 +3.6 $0.2M 1.02× –
Ezequiel Carrera 2014 +0.5 +3.6 0.2 +3.5 $0.3M 0.83× –
Blaine Hardy 2014 +0.3 +1.8 0.3 +1.5 $0.8M 0.67× –
Nick Castellanos 2014 +0.4 +1.8 0.5 +1.3 $1.3M 0.58× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $0.8M AAV
Alex Avila 2014 +1.3 +5.2 4.2 +1.1 $3.3M 0.52× –
Kyle Ryan 2014 +0.2 +1.1 0.1 +1.0 $0.4M 0.67× –
Corey Knebel 2014 +0.2 +1.0 0.1 +0.9 $0.4M 0.67× –
Drew VerHagen 2014 +0.1 +0.8 0.1 +0.7 $0.8M 1.02× –
Chad Smith 2014 +0.1 +0.3 0.0 +0.3 $0.0M 0.67× –
Tyler Collins 2014 +0.0 +0.2 0.1 +0.1 $4.3M 0.83× –
Hernán Pérez 2014 +0.0 +0.0 0.1 -0.1 $20.5M 0.56× –
Evan Reed 2014 +0.1 +0.3 0.5 -0.2 $8.0M 0.67× –
Danny Worth 2014 -0.0 -0.2 0.0 -0.3 – 0.61× –
Andrew Romine 2014 +0.0 +0.1 0.5 -0.4 $26.1M 0.61× –
James McCann 2014 -0.1 -0.5 0.1 -0.5 – 0.52× Free Agent · 2026–2026 · $2.8M AAV
Buck Farmer 2014 -0.1 -0.8 0.1 -0.9 – 1.02× –
Luke Putkonen 2014 -0.2 -1.1 0.5 -1.6 – 0.67× –
Don Kelly 2014 -0.2 -0.8 1.0 -1.8 – 0.58× –
Phil Coke 2014 -0.0 -0.0 1.9 -1.9 – 0.67× –
Álex González 2014 -0.4 -1.8 1.1 -2.9 – 0.61× –
Joakim Soria↔ 2014 -0.1 -1.5 1.5 -3.0 – 1.34× –
Ian Krol 2014 -0.5 -2.8 0.5 -3.3 – 0.67× –
Jim Johnson↔ 2014 -0.1 -0.3 3.0 -3.3 – 0.67× –
Bryan Holaday 2014 -1.3 -5.5 0.5 -6.0 – 0.52× –
Torii Hunter 2014 +1.1 +7.4 14.0 -6.6 $12.6M 0.83× –
Joe Nathan 2014 +0.2 +2.0 9.0 -7.0 $48.6M 1.34× –
Al Alburquerque 2014 +0.2 +0.9 0.8 +0.0 $5.2M 0.67× –
Robbie Ray 2014 +0.0 +0.2 0.2 +0.0 $6.4M 1.02× Free Agent · 2022–2026 · $23.0M AAV
Jose Ortega 2014 -0.1 -0.5 – – – 0.67× –
Justin Miller 2014 -0.1 -0.3 – – – 0.67× –
Kevin Whelan 2014 -0.1 -0.8 – – – 0.67× –
Melvin Mercedes 2014 +0.0 +0.2 – – – 0.67× –
Patrick McCoy 2014 -0.0 -0.1 – – – 0.67× –
Steven Moya 2014 -0.0 -0.0 – – – 0.83× –
Total—+44.1+572.0167.9+405.7—

Trades

Every graded 2014 deal involving the Tigers — best expected value first. Surplus is realized value in $M; 9 total.

2014 · BOS / DET
BOS · Ben Cherington +$49.6M
Rick Porcello
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$49.6M
Yoenis Céspedes, Alex Wilson, Gabe Speier
BOS came out ahead by $49.6M
2014 · TOR / DET
TOR · Alex Anthopoulos +$14.4M
Devon Travis
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$14.4M
Anthony Gose
TOR came out ahead by $14.4M
2014 · BAL / DET
BAL · Dan Duquette +$3.2M
Steve Lombardozzi
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$3.2M
Álex González
BAL came out ahead by $3.2M
2014 · ANA / DET
ANA · Jerry Dipoto +$21.6M
José Álvarez
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$21.6M
Andrew Romine
ANA came out ahead by $21.6M
2014 · DET / SEA
DET · Dave Dombrowski +$0.0M
Manny Piña
SEA · Jack Zduriencik +$0.0M
cash / PTBNL
Even trade
2014 · NYY / ARI / DET
NYY · Brian Cashman +$80.0M
Didi Gregorius
ARI · Kevin Towers +$32.0M
Robbie Ray, Domingo Leyba
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$112.0M
Shane Greene
NYY came out ahead by $80.0M 3-team
2014 · TEX / DET
TEX · Jon Daniels +$11.2M
Jake Thompson, Corey Knebel
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$11.2M
Joakim Soria
TEX came out ahead by $11.2M
2014 · DET / SEA / TBR
DET · Dave Dombrowski +$40.8M
David Price
SEA · Jack Zduriencik −$1.6M
Austin Jackson
TBR · Andrew Friedman −$39.2M
Drew Smyly, Willy Adames, Nick Franklin
DET came out ahead by $40.8M 3-team
2014 · CIN / DET
CIN · Walt Jocketty +$134.4M
Eugenio Suárez, Jonathon Crawford
DET · Dave Dombrowski −$134.4M
Alfredo Simón
CIN came out ahead by $134.4M

Current & Historical Payroll

2014 payroll
$167.8M

What the front office was committed to as of 2014, 2014–2020. 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 (11)

PlayerAgeSvc2014201520162017201820192020
Miguel Cabrera3110.101$22.0M$22.0M$28.0M$28.0M$30.0M$30.0M$30.0M
Justin Verlander318.002$20.0M$28.0M$28.0M$23.8MFREE AGENT
Ian Kinsler328.000$16.0M$16.0M$14.0M$11.0MFREE AGENT
Aníbal Sánchez307.099$15.8M$16.8M$16.8M$16.8MFREE AGENT
Torii Hunter3814.132$14.0MFREE AGENT
Victor Martinez3510.114$12.0M$14.0M$18.0M$18.0M$18.0MFREE AGENT
Joe Nathan3912.120$9.0M$10.0MFREE AGENT
Rajai Davis336.167$5.0M$5.0MFREE AGENT
Joba Chamberlain286.055$2.5M$833kFREE AGENT
Joakim Soria307.000$1.5M$4.2MFREE AGENT
Álex González3716.000$1.1MFREE AGENT

Arbitration-eligible (9)

PlayerAgeSvc2014201520162017201820192020
Max Scherzer295.079$15.5MFREE AGENT
Rick Porcello254.170$8.5MARB 3FREE AGENT
David Price284.164$4.5MARB 3FREE AGENT
Alex Avila274.061$4.2MARB 3FREE AGENT
Austin Jackson274.000$3.9MARB 3FREE AGENT
Jim Johnson315.165$3.0MFREE AGENT
Phil Coke315.028$1.9MFREE AGENT
Don Kelly344.138$1.0MARB 3FREE AGENT
Justin Miller275.022—FREE AGENT

Pre-arbitration (28)

PlayerAgeSvc2014201520162017201820192020
Al Alburquerque282.147$838kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Luke Putkonen282.018$510kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Andrew Romine281.049$504kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Ian Krol230.118$504kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Evan Reed280.082$503kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Bryan Holaday260.107$502kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
J.D. Martinez262.047$500kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Nick Castellanos220.029$500kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Drew Smyly251.154$390kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Eugenio Suárez220.000$317kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Blaine Hardy270.000$284kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Ezequiel Carrera271.010$161kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Robbie Ray220.000$150kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Tyler Collins241.080$131kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Buck Farmer230.000$118kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Kyle Lobstein240.000$90kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Kyle Ryan220.000$82kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
James McCann240.000$79kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Hernán Pérez230.065$77kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Drew VerHagen230.000$76kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Corey Knebel220.000$71kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Danny Worth282.049$44kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Chad Smith24–$3k
Kevin Whelan30–—
Jose Ortega251.049—Pre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Patrick McCoy25–—
Melvin Mercedes23–—
Steven Moya220.000—Pre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT

Graphs

How each 2014 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).
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