Detroit Tigers Collapse in progress

And while I'm thinking about it, I have to comment on the woeful Tigers. They were one of the hottest team in baseball before the All-Star break, but this past weekend's series in Tampa showed with blinding clarity the fate of this team in 2008. They have some guys with heart, but not enough pitchers who can throw strikes, especially in the bullpen.

I realize the trade deadline is past and we are likely stuck with what we have for the rest of the season, so here is my official "I'm Throwing In the Towel Offseason Moves the Tigers Need to Make" list.

• Get a Decent Catcher. Brandon Inge is a good catcher, but you need him at 3B.
• Move Inge back to 3B. The guy is a gold-glove caliber 3B and you have him catching. You need to have him at 3B. Caveat: Brandon needs to get a lot more serious about his hitting - .220 just doesn't cut it. You're making lots of money - hire the best hitting coach you can find and spend the offseason at his house thinking, eating, sleeping, and breathing hitting. You need to hit .280 with 20-30 HR's every year to be earning your keep, no matter how good your defense.
• Let Miguel Cabrera continue to develop at 1B. I think Leyland is right: he can be a very good 1B, and he's shown some of it already. I like this move and I hope it sticks, because he stunk it up at 3B.
• I like Marcus Thames, but we need a left-handed power hitter in LF next year. I don't think Matt Joyce is the answer.
• What to do with Guillen? Get rid of Sheffield and make Guillen the DH. He's still got a good bat, is a switch hitter, and has some pop. It'll help his knees too. Then find someone who can play SS.
• Starting Pitching. Robertson and Rogers need to go. Willis needs to get his head out of his butt and pitch, or else give back that contract extension and go get a job a WalMart or something. Verlander was lights-out for a month, but has regressed. Still, this is only his 3rd season in the majors, I think he's doing pretty good. I hope Bonderman's surgeries fix his coconut and he will start getting out of the first inning without getting scored on. He needs to come back strong. Then, you need to find a fifth starter, preferrably a left-hander.
• Relief Pitching. The only keepers in the bullpen right now are Zumaya, Seay, and maybe Fossum (I like his BB/K ratio, and his ERA for his last 10 games is 2.41). Beyond that, this is the area that needs the most help on this team.