Thursday, April 14, 2005

Worried Yet?

Carlos Guillen's knee is acting up just a bit. Magglio Ordonez has some type of intestinal disorder and abdominal pain that won't go away. Troy Percival and Ugeuth Urbina have been, well, lousy. Omar Infante does not look like a leadoff hitter. Jason Johnson and Jeremy Bonderman have each been drilled in one of their two starts. The Twins are on the verge of sweeping the Tigers right out of Minnesota. Anyone find this discomforting?

I'm not going to panic, it's only the second week of the season. However, the array of problems the Tigers are having is taking my pre-season optimism away. Ordonez' health leads my list of concerns. Intestinal disorders can flair up at anytime. Trust me on this one. Also, the medication can take a while to adjust to and a diet change might be necessary. None of which is going to help Mags get back to his usual health quickly.

I think the other issues may resolve themselves more easily. Guillen's knee will have to be watched closely, but keeping him off of artificial turf will help. The bullpen arms should rebound. Infante will never be a classic top-of-the-order hitter, but he can hit. And, I think he will. Johnson is simply not real good and we should just get used to that.

There are positives on the ballclub, too. Bonderman had a great first outing and battled back in his second start. Carlos Pena has been a selective, productive hitter. Kyle Farnsworth has been terrific. The offense overall looks solid even on days when a Pudge Rodriguez, Guillen or Ordonez sits out. Of course, the Tigers are still in the American League Central and that helps, too.

At times, it seems like the season has been much longer than two weeks. Thankfully, the Tigers have plenty of time to get healthy both physically and in the standings.

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