The Tigers have agreed to a minor league contract with outfielder Alex Presley, tweets SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo. Presley will receive an invite to Major League Spring Training as well.
[Related: Detroit Tigers Depth Chart]
The 31-year-old Presley returns to Detroit after finishing the 2016 campaign in the Tigers organization. He appeared in just three Major League games with the Tigers last year, but he also saw time in 47 games with the Brewers in a limited role. Collectively, he batted .198/.269/.289 in 134 plate appearances between the two teams. Presley has a better track record than that, as he’s a career .253/.295/.382 hitter in 379 big league games (1239 plate appearances) split between the Pirates, Twins, Astros, Brewers and Tigers. He’s capable of playing center field and also has experience in both outfield corners, so he’ll have a chance to compete for a bench job or possibly more, depending on the team’s other moves this winter. J.D. Martinez has been an oft-speculated trade candidate, and dealing him would create further opportunity for Presley to earn a role with the team.
Presley is always going to be a fringe major leaguer, but he’s a good depth signing. He’s smart, has a team-first attitude, and runs the bases well. He really shouldn’t play CF but handles the corners just fine.
Where are the holes in his game? I see his name all the time so clearly teams like him but I’m curious as to whether there are any glaring holes?
He doesn’t hit the ball 400 feet.
In other words he is a dime a dozen
Thanks. He doesn’t seem to hit well for average either which is the reason for the “holes” question. Looking at his stats you’re totally right he does seem to be a “dime a dozen” player but someone always seems to want him.
Teams want him because he’s a good club house guy and doesn’t have his head up his azz line most players and he can run that always a need especially in the playoffs
“Like”
Never had any power. Has usually hit for a decent average, before last year at any rate. Average at a number of things but not really great at anything. In other words, a decent backup OF.
More organizational depth and certainly not the answer in CF. Avila is under a lot of pressure to justify the trade of Maybin. A contender with a competent GM doesn’t lose a serviceable player without an upgrade or at least an equal but less expensive replacement.
Just wait until the season starts and Maybin misses 60-90 games. Then itll be justified.
If Maybin still played on Detroit but he doesn’t anymore, so no it won’t be justified.
His point is that the 9 million or so you are spending on Maybin for the 2017 season is largely a sunk cost if he continues to do the only thing he’s ever done consistently in the major leagues, which is spend time on the DL. If you’re Avila and you want to compete, you need that money for players that will contribute more
Spot on, Bradley. Cannot invest 9M in the injured reserve list.
Note that I used the term “serviceable”. No MLB player is signed for 162 games and there’s no such thing as a DL predictor. Using Maybin’s history as logic, most MLB pitchers wouldn’t have a job or would be signed for a lot less than they are now.
If his past DL stints were such a concern, Avila wouldn’t have traded for him, or for that matter, a GM could sit in the corner in a fetal position over the possibility that they could sign a pitcher who could blow out his arm on any given day, which applies to ALL pitchers and a host of position players as well. Look at Nelson Cruz who was on the DL a LOT during the early part of his career, and now he’s not only cranking out 40hr a year but with no more strained hamstrings. If a GM is going to be concerned about DL’s as a big factor in player signings, he’s got a club that’s going nowhere, along with his career as a GM.
Maybin was only a starter since 2011 and even then he would have platooned a lot, so you’re reference is relatively short period. It’s not exactly a DL predictor because he takes a 95MPH heater on the wrist or blows out his knee (yeah, V-Mart sucks because he did the same). GM’s sign these guys because they know that injuries are mostly a matter of luck.
The notion of the “injury prone” athlete is mostly BS .
Tell that to Brandon McCarthy.
Well, that’s a good example, but I did say “mostly”.
I remember saying when he first came up with the Pirates he was Jacoby Ellsbury Jr….lol
Are you the “scout” that Huntingdon keeps saying likes Drew Hutchison to justify the Liriano deal?
I am. I’m also the guy who told Dave Littlefield to ask the Mets for Ty Wigginton instead of David Wright in the Kris Benson deal.
I don’t remember that review, but I’d do remember some thinking that he was the Bucs’s lead off hitter for the next 5-10 years. Uh… nope.
The Tigers have Gose and Collins as possible left side platoon candidates. Pressley is needed for the right side. If nothing else, he’s better than Aviles, who was last years candidate in LF. Of course, that’s not saying much. I’d rather see Craig Gentry signed.