Wakiji: Tigers' inconsistencies may not be fun to watch, but it could be worse
DETROIT -- It's funny how time offers some perspective.
There's a lot of angst surrounding the Detroit Tigers these days with their 41-40 record and inconsistent ways this season.
Justin Verlander giving up seven runs in five innings did not help assuage that angst.
Superstar Miguel Cabrera is on the shelf for six weeks with a calf strain, David Price could leave after the season and experts consider the farm system to be decimated after several trades the last few years to try to make a run at a championship.
Even if the Tigers see their Central Division title run come to an end this year, it's not the end of the world. (Although it's too soon to know that it will end.)
There are a lot of current Tigers fans who don't really remember what it's like for this team to be really bad.
When I started covering the team in the second half of 1995, it was at the end of Sparky Anderson's tenure.
The 1996 season was Buddy Bell's -- and my -- first full year.
Young fans should just take a look at the numbers from that team. Then they'd know what a truly bad team is.
I'm not just referring to the 53-109 record, although that does paint the picture pretty accurately.
People want to rage about Verlander, which is somewhat understandable.
Admittedly, he's 32 now and his 6.75 ERA is not inspiring but it's just four starts after a long layoff because of the right triceps strain.
That's not to say he's going to regain his MVP/Cy Young form of 2011, when he was 24-5 with a 2.40 ERA and 0.92 WHIP.
But I'm not ready to write him off yet.
Besides, pretty much every pitcher on the Tigers staff now would have been the team ace in '96.
Before there was baseball-reference.com and regular use of the internet, I kept a Post-it note with the 27 pitchers the Tigers used that season.
Richie Lewis, Omar Olivares, Mike Christopher, Trever Miller, Brian Moehler, John Farrell (yes, the current Red Sox manager), Jeff McCurry, Greg Keagle, Felipe Lira, Brian Williams, Todd Van Poppel, Jose Lima, Clint Sodowsky, Bob Scanlan, Mike Myers, Scott Aldred, Brian Maxcy, Randy Veres, Greg Gohr, John Cummings, C.J. Nitkowski, Justin Thompson, Gregg Olson, A.J. Sager, Tom Urbani, Joey Eischen and Mike Walker combined for a 6.38 team ERA that season.
The current Tigers haven't been on fire pitching-wise but their team ERA is 4.22.
Olivares led the '96 squad with seven wins that season. SEVEN. In 25 starts.
David Price (eight), Anibal Sanchez (seven) and Alfredo Simon (seven) have already done that well before the All-Star break.
People flabbergasted by Anibal Sanchez's 18 home runs allowed in 112 1/3 innings would have loved Greg "Gofer" Gohr, who gave up 24 dingers in 91 2/3 innings. His ERA was 7.17.
He didn't even lead that team in home runs allowed. That was Lira with 30 in 194 2/3 innings.
Defensively? Well, let's put it this way, Andujar Cedeno would not make anyone forget Jose Iglesias.
At old Tiger Stadium, there was one game where a fan deliberately sat behind a post in protest when many other seats were available.
It would have been funny if it weren't so sad.
The cupboard was pretty bare when Dave Dombrowski joined the team in late 2001.
Most people have some memory of the 43-119 Tigers of 2003.
It took a while for Dombrowski to right the ship but the Tigers made the World Series in 2006 and 2012.
Although they lost both times, as former closer Todd Jones famously said, "You have to be in the World Series to lose the World Series."
Tigers fans have come to expect the team to make the playoffs as if it's a given.
It's not.
But they will be in the hunt for a playoff spot.
Although it may not be easy, nor always fun to watch, just remember, it could be a lot worse.
Just ask some of those '96 Tigers.
