Lynn Henning

Tigers' season already a success

Detroit

What went right and wrong for Detroit during a 162-game season that will stretch at least into Tuesday night's playoff game at Minnesota:

Right: Justin Verlander, Edwin Jackson and Rick Porcello. They were the best 1-2-3 starters in the league. And they had to be. Jeremy Bonderman made one start. Nate Robertson wasn't a factor until late in the season. Dontrelle Willis was a goner. Armando Galarraga faded even before his arm gave out.

Given the absence of starters, it was ridiculous this team has won 86 games and stuck in first place for nearly five months.

Wrong: The Tigers offense. Keep in mind that two weeks after their 2006 World Series surprise, the Tigers swung a blockbuster trade for Gary Sheffield. It was all because a team that won via solid pitching and sturdy defense lacked a big bat. Three years later, the Tigers still need a big bat -- a couple.

Right: The way the team developed Porcello. Detroit took care of its 20-year-old right-hander, choosing to pitch him in his first big league start during a day game at Toronto when the crowd, setting and pressure could be minimized.

The Tigers were careful along the way with his innings. They gave him a couple lengthy breaks. It was the best of the organization's 2009 strategies, and it included the way manager Jim Leyland agreed with the plan and never once came close to abusing a treasure of a pitcher.

Wrong: Believing Bonderman and Willis were ready to assume places in the rotation.

Willis' recovery from anxiety disorder was happy news everyone wanted to embrace. But the hopes and wishes didn't translate into him being ready for big league duty during a handful of spot starts in late spring.

As for Bonderman, he was not even remotely the pitcher he needed to be when he started against the White Sox in June.

Right: Continuing to believe Magglio Ordonez would turn things around. He did, and the Tigers have a hunch he will be just fine in 2010 after seeing him for the past month drive fastballs to left field and scorch the ball as he once did.

Wrong: Believing the Tigers could get away with inadequate defense at their corner outfield spots. It's not Carlos Guillen's fault he has been kicked from shortstop to first base to third base to left field. The Tigers signed him for the long term and need his offensive potential. But they cannot give ground in left field, or in right field. Guillen needs to be more of a full-time designated hitter in 2010.

Right: Deciding Fernando Rodney would make it as a closer. Thirty-seven saves later, the gamble paid off -- and then some. It will be replacing Rodney in 2010, after he has likely opted for a free-agent contract elsewhere, which will represent the toughest offseason assignment for the front office.

Wrong: Any forecasts the Tigers would hit the box-office rocks following their 2008 disaster. They instead drew 2,567,185 fans this season, the fifth-highest attendance in team history. Their television ratings the past week on Fox Sports Detroit set records. People had a tougher time making it to the park, no question, when jobs and cash were tight. But they still showed up to see an appealing baseball product.

Right: Signing right-hander Brandon Lyon to help fortify the back end of Leyland's bullpen. Factoring in his bad second half for Arizona in 2008, then watching him pitch during spring camp, the feeling here was Lyon was a bust.

He turned out to be a bullpen anchor. When Lyon came into a game from June into October, he was usually money. He should earn a lovely free-agent bid this autumn.

Right: The July-August trades for pitcher Jarrod Washburn and Aubrey Huff. Each player should have been a boon to the Tigers down the stretch.

Wrong: The trades for Washburn and Huff. Washburn's bad left knee, which hadn't been any detriment in Seattle, appeared to go to pieces as quickly as he got to Comerica Park. Huff, who should have been the difference in the additional game the Tigers needed to win to avoid a playoff, was an utter bust. No way could the flops have been predicted.

Right: The job Leyland did as manager. I've been getting e-mails complaining he should have pitched Verlander on three days' rest; that he didn't "motivate" his team to win; that he didn't play Placido Polanco when Polanco had a stiff back Thursday, etc. I don't buy the indictments, although I understand fans (and we in the media have our issues, as well) are going to quibble with decisions regularly.

He did a solid job and deserved the two-year extension he received in June. The team won 86 games. The Tigers hung in first for most of the season. No matter what happens Tuesday, it was a good season in Detroit.

lynn.henning@detnews.com (313) 222-2472