Inge to Toledo and Worth to Stay?

There are advantages and disadvantages in sending Brandon Inge to Toledo to begin the year. As stated in the last post, with his performance this spring, Ryan Raburn has all but locked up second base. This leaves two spots for three potential infielders on the roster and important decisions for Jim Leyland and company to make prior to moving up north after spring training.

The three characters that are a part of this drama around the two spots in the infield are Ramon Santiago, Danny Worth and Brandon Inge. With his consistent and humble play, Ramon Santiago will undoubtedly head to Detroit with the team. This leaves one spot for either Worth or Inge.

It will be generally assumed that Inge will have this spot. With his bloated salary and declining ability to compete at the MLB level, maybe proper consideration should be given to Worth instead. The future will be with Worth, experience for the young infielder will be invaluable for the coming years, and his offensive and defensive productivity will be better than that of his counter part.

On the other hand Inge can't get any worse than he was last year. He is bound to hit better and to play solid defense at 2B, which could be beneficial in light of the rest of what is bound to be a sloppy defensive year in the infield in Detroit. More importantly, he is the patriarch of the clubhouse and his experience will be beneficial for keeping the glue strong in the midst of the relationships of the various characters on the club's team.

The decision will be difficult, and both players will get time on the diamond this year, but the decision that the team makes for who comes to Comerica in April will have implications.