Detroit Tigers GM: Jose Iglesias Will Be “Fine” For 2015

Feb 27, 2014; Lakeland, FL, USA; Detroit Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias (1) loose control of the ball as Atlanta Braves catcher Ryan Doumit (4) slides into second safely during the third inning at Joker Marchant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 27, 2014; Lakeland, FL, USA; Detroit Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias (1) loose control of the ball as Atlanta Braves catcher Ryan Doumit (4) slides into second safely during the third inning at Joker Marchant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

The Detroit Tigers infield could get a much-needed boost in the 2015 season, as general manager Dave Dombrowski said injured shortstop Jose Iglesias should be ready for next year.

The Detroit Tigers won’t have to spend a dime to upgrade the shortstop position, a serious problem throughout the 2014 season, as it appears Jose Iglesias will be ready to return to the team in time for spring training next year. Iglesias missed all of this season with stress fractures in his shins, an injury that was discovered late in spring training and left the Tigers scrambling for much of the year.

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General manager Dave Dombrowski said team doctors told him Iglesias is over his injuries and will be ready to go for spring training, but stopped short of naming him the starting shortstop for next season, mostly because manager Brad Ausmus has yet to see Iglesias play in an exhibition game since his injury.

“I would think with what we know from Iglesias, if he returns to the form that he was in the past, which they tell me he will, but if he does, then he would be our regular shortstop because he’s a very, very good shortstop,” Dombrowski said during his end-of-the-year presser.

Iglesias is considered an excellent defensive shortstop, and the soon-to-be-25-year-old hit well in his rookie season in 2013, split between the Boston Red Sox and the Tigers. Detroit used a variety of shortstops in 2014, including Andrew Romine, Alex Gonzalez, Danny Worth and Eugenio Suarez, and Iglesias is considered a substantial upgrade over all of them.

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