The Detroit Tigers have several decisions to make this MLB offseason, and re-signing designated hitter Victor Martinez remains the team’s top priority, meaning outfielder Torii Hunter is left waiting to find out if he will return to Detroit.
Calling this winter “crucial” for the Detroit Tigers is putting it lightly. Two of the team’s top players, ace Max Scherzer and designated hitter Victor Martinez, will be free agents, as will right fielder Torii Hunter. The Tigers have extended qualifying offers to Scherzer and Martinez and also made it a priority to retain Martinez at the very least, but MLB.com’s Jason Beck notes the uncertainty surrounding Martinez could have a ripple effect on Hunter, and if he returns to Detroit as well.
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Hunter is 39, and will play the 2015 season at age 40. His defense has been in sharp decline for a few years, but he was effective with the bat as recently as the 2013 season and he had his uses last season. The Tigers have 23-year old Steven Moya, who earned a September call up in 2014, and his raw power excites the Detroit brass, but it’s not certain if he will be ready for MLB by the beginning of next season, and it might behoove the Tigers to have a backup plan in the outfield, an area they were particularly weak in after trading center fielder Austin Jackson and others in a three-team deal for David Price.
But the Tigers want to hear from Martinez first, and he could be in line for a raise given his MVP-caliber season in 2014, and Beck notes that Hunter typically prefers to sign early in free agency. Hunter’s first preference is to remain in Detroit, but if the Tigers have to break the bank for Martinez (and possibly Scherzer or other free agents), Hunter could be out of the team’s price range for a stop-gap right fielder.
Hunter is also reportedly considering a return to the Minnesota Twins, although it appears his first preference is to join a contender, and it doesn’t look like the Twins plan to make a push for 2015.
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