Scott Hairston, a potential outfield partner for Andy Dirks – MLB Detroit Tigers News
Scott Hairston may not be a superstar as he could potentially fill a valuable position for the Detroit Tigers in the next season. Apart from 60 games for the Oakland Athletics in 2009, the 32-year-old outfielder has spent almost his entire Major League Baseball
career in National League.
In addition to being an excellent outfielder, Hairston is a career .247/.302/.449 hitter with 10-15 home-run power. He has been used as a platoon outfielder over the last couple of season. His striking ability is also quite good considering a 21.1 percent
K rate for his career.
I said he is a not a superstar because he tends to get the job done without anyone realising it. So how can he be a valuable asset for the Tigers and why should Manager Jim Leyland care?
Because Hairston has the ability to destroy left hand pitching and that is exactly what he did for the New York Mets in the last season. He is a .276/.325/.500 hitter against southpaws over the course of his career. He made the left handed pitchers run for
their money in 2012, hitting .286/.317/.550 against them.
Although his career OPS of .825 is no way near Miguel Cabrera’s numbers, it is not anything to be left unnoticed either, particularly for a guy who made just over $1 million last year. Hairston’s glove work is also better than many other right handed corner
outfielders available in the market these days.
Defensive play is one of his strengths but it has been slightly less favourable over the past two seasons. Nonetheless, he is better Brennan Boesch and Delmon Young in every aspect of the game. Additionally, he could be used at second base as he played at
that position in the past.
According to blessyouboys.com, Hairston may not end up in the Tigers. He is more likely to join the New York Yankees next season. The Boston Red Sox and some other teams have also showed interest in acquiring his services. It will be interesting to see if
the Tigers come out of nowhere to make him an offer.
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