Detroit Tigers face stiff challenge after Victor Martinez goes out with a knee injury – MLB News
Victor Martinez was absolutely sensational for Detroit Tigers this past season. The designated hitter displayed some high quality hitting skills. Batting with an impressive .330 average, he helped the Tigers secure memorable wins in 2011.
However, few days ago, the Tigers announced that the catcher will have to miss the entire next season due to a knee injury he suffered in August. Martinez hasn’t fully recovered since the incident took place. In addition to his sensational batting skills, the guy has a rock solid defence, which makes him one of the most wanted players in the baseball world right now.
Martinez played at the number five spot and his absence means that there is a blank spot in the line-up that needs to be filled. With spring training starting in a few weeks time, the Tigers will be looking to get Martinez's replacement as soon as possible. They may also ask Miguel Cabrera to perform the DH duties in some of the games.
“I wrote down several lineups already since this happened,” Leyland said. “But there’s also a blank spot in the lineup. Whatever spot it may be, there’s also a blank spot, because somebody’s got to DH.”
However, Jim Leyland will be looking for a permanent solution to this problem to let the Tigers win their second straight American League title. Although it will be difficult for Leyland to find someone as good as Martinez, he will wait for the best possible deal. If the Tigers fail to rectify this problem in the 10 weeks they have, will have to face tough challenges in the upcoming season.
“I think we’ll have somebody, either internally or externally, by opening day,” Leyland said. “The only blessing to this whole thing is we’ve got 10 weeks to rectify the problem.”
The Tigers could also sign a deal with Price Fielder, who had a terrific season last year. However, having spent so much on their payroll already, the Tigers will be looking to go for much cheaper deals. The AL Central team might also consider their arbitration players to save themselves millions of dollars.
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