Has Detroit media ever collectively shit on a GM in this town this hard, with the exception of Millen? And even with Millen, it look a while.
Thought this was interesting from Cody Stavenhagen at the end of his piece today... MLB Draft buzz There have been a lot of MLB draft whispers over the past couple of weeks. To start: Both general manager Al Avila and assistant GM David Chadd watched Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Prep infielder Alex Mooney play recently. Mooney won’t be going at the very top of the draft, although his stock could be rising. If Mooney stays on the board long enough, the Michigan prep talent could be in the mix for the Tigers’ later picks at No. 32 or No. 39. Mooney has an interesting profile: A good runner, a good arm, a good contact hitter with the potential to develop a little more power. Scouts view him as a solid prospect across the board, even if he doesn’t have one tool that totally pops. The Tigers are also thought to be becoming increasingly infatuated with California prep shortstop Marcelo Mayer. I went down a rabbit hole of watching Mayer on video this week, and it’s easy to see why scouts love him. His footwork at shortstop is premium, his swing is simple and smooth and he has a 6-foot-3 build with plenty of room to grow into a monster athlete. Some scouts think he could profile like a Corey Seager. The Tigers, though, might have tough choices at No. 3. Vanderbilt’s Kumar Rocker threw a complete game last Friday against Mississippi State, and the velocity that was down as Rocker toyed with his release point earlier this season has been restored to around 96 mph as of late. Just how much the Tigers like Rocker seems to be a source of debate in the organization right now — some love him, some aren’t too interested at all. Plenty is still in flux before draft day, July 11. One more thing to consider: Louisville catcher Henry Davis — as The Athletic’s Keith Law recently noted — is a highly impressive player, the type of talent who could be worthy of a 1-1 pick. If Davis’ stock keeps rising, it could shake up the top of the draft in a big way. He’s someone the Tigers might keep looking at, too. That’s why we’re probably already speculating too much about a draft that’s still a couple of months away.
Leiter has been getting rocked lately with HRs and has now allowed 9 HR in 65 IP (or something like that). I like that we're apparently in love with Mayer, though.
Law tends to be pretty tough on college bats, and his stuff on Henry Davis is interesting. If Davis is a legit top 3-5 pick, I'll gladly pick between him, Lawlar and Mayer and call it good. I'm terrified of Rocker, and Leiter is kind of a wild card at this point before we see how he finishes the season. That's a lot of HR he's allowing right now.
I'm a moron for this, but I'm at the point where any time this thread is bumped, a part of me is wondering if maybe, just maybe, Avila got fired.