8:34pm: The two sides are closing in on an agreement, according to Jon Heyman (Twitter link). Rosenthal adds that it’ll be a six-year deal, if finalized.
8:29pm: The Tigers are in discussions with free agent outfielder Justin Upton, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Things have been relatively quiet on the Upton front as of late, with more focus being placed on fellow corner outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, but Detroit does stand out as a logical landing spot for a top-tier outfielder.
As it stands, the Tigers figure to use a combination of Anthony Gose and Cameron Maybin in left field and center field, though the addition of Upton could theoretically push those two into a platoon or shift Gose into fourth outfielder territory. Detroit general manager Al Avila has said previously that he considers his heavy lifting this winter to be complete and finds a significant outfield addition unlikely, but owner Mike Ilitch could potentially go over his GM’s head in order to bring in a high-profile outfield addition. Upton, who has slashed .262/.344/.470 and averaged 27 homers per year across the past three seasons would certainly fit the bill.
It remains unclear how serious talks between the two sides are at present, and adding another hefty contract to the books with Miguel Cabrera, Justin Verlander and Jordan Zimmermann all signed through 2019, plus Victor Martinez through 2018 and Ian Kinsler and Anibal Sanchez through 2017 would be risky. However, Ilitch has long been one of the most aggressive owners in terms of free-agent spending and candidly stated earlier this offseason (after the Zimmermann signing) that he “didn’t care” about spending money.
Signing Upton, who rejected a qualifying offer from the Padres in November, would cost the Tigers a draft pick. However, Detroit’s No. 9 overall selection is protected under the collective bargaining agreement, and the team already forfeited its second-round pick to sign Zimmermann, meaning that the cost to sign Upton for Detroit would be “only” a third-round pick — a considerably lighter cost than many other potential Upton suitors would face.
Iglesias
Kinsler
Cabrera
JD Mart
Upton
V Mart
Castellanos
Saltalamacchia
Maybin
Bench: Aviles, Gose, McCann, Romine
Nice sign. Still a 3rd place team in my opinion, but that’s why they play the games!
3rd place team who do you have in front of them besides the royals lol
Twins and Indians
Rajai
Lindor
Kipnis
Santana
Napoli
Gomes
Chisenhall
Almonte
Urshela
Hmm…not quite as good as the Tigers.
There rotation is much better with Kluber, Carrasco, Salazar, and Bauer.
Hahaha
You must be a yankee fan
How does calling the Tigers a 3rd place team make someone a Yankee fan?
Switch salty with McCann. McCann has way more upside.
Have to think Salty’s coming off the bench instead of McCann
McCann catches not salty
Salty as the starter in your lineup? Uhhhhh…not most days bud.
did you forget the season that McCann had last year, as a rookie? Salty, on the other hand, is a terrible C. he’ll be battling for the backup job. Gotta flip those two on your lineup. Also, your order is way off. VMart will be cleanup. Upton will hit 6th. he’s a 1 for 1 swap for Cespy’s spot.
I peg Upton to bat 2nd… solid OBP and other high K guys have thrived hitting in front of Miguel Cabrera (eg. Torii Hunter).
Kinsler, Upton, Cabrera, Victor, JD, Castellanos, McCann, Maybin/Gose, Iglesias
Logical. Gotta make hay while the sun shines – their window is closing.
This comment may seem silly to a lot of people. I grew up a Yankee fan during the boss’s reign. He would spend anything, and do anything to win. And to be honest, we, Yankees fans as a whole, never appreciated it.
Tigers fans, you go out and buy the crap out of little Caesars pizzas. You have an owner in illitch that is currently second to NONE. I have a lot of respect for Michigan sports. I lived the for th 0-16 season and the atrocious mess that was the Tigers. You have an owner who wants to win. Support the crap out of him.
I’ve tried, but man do those hot and ready pizzas tear me up…
And they get to keep there 1st round pick great pick up!
Dang. I was hoping the Braves would sign J Upton for 5-6 years….
He is too streaky and costs a draft pick. I’d be okay with a 5/120 or 6/135 for Cespedes backloaded, but the Angels would probably be willing to beat that deal.
10/20/30/30/30 or 10/20/25/25/25/30
Braves probably want to spend big on a star, but if stars are getting over 200 mil, I don’t want them
Great lineup definitely in the top 3 in the A.L.
With the acquisitions of Justin Upton, Jordan Zimmermann, Mike Pelfrey, Mark Lowe, Francisco Rodriguez and Cameron Maybin, where does the Detroit payroll stand in relation to the luxury tax threshold?
Jason Beck has it around 195m, before benefits
V Mart is breaking down rapidly and so is Cabrera. That eliminates two from this ” Awesome” lineup pretty quickly.
Cabrera won yet another batting title. he’ll hit 30/100 in his sleep every year. perhaps you’re unaware, because he became a star as a teenager, that he’s only 32 years old. He isn’t breaking down anytime this side of the next 4 seasons
This move might motivate the White Sox to go more in on Cespedes.