The Spot Starters

Checking In With The 2003 Tigers

The 2003 Detroit Tigers were one of the worst teams ever.  Remember when they rallied at the end to avoid losing 120 games?  Boy, those were the good ol’ day weren’t they?  That club, led by Alan Trammell, ended the season 43-119.  To win only 43 games in a season has to take some serious lack of talent.  In those post, I’ll briefly recap what everyone is up to in 2009.  Enjoy.

• Brandon Inge:  Inge was the starting catcher for most of the season and hit .203.  Wow, not much as changed.  In all seriousness, Inge is a much better player now and is currently starting at third base.
• Carlos Pena: Pena hit 18 homers in 2003 and had an OPS+ of 108, one of the best marks on the team.  He is currently a slugging first baseman for the Tampa Bay Rays.
• Warren Morris: Apparently Morris started more games at second for the Tigers than anyone else in 2003.  He hasn’t appeared in the bigs since then and was last in the minors in 2005 with the Brewers organization.  I cannot find any more information on him.
• Eric Munson: Munson put up Carlos Pena numbers over at third base.  He was a below average fielder.  Munson spent the 2008 season in the minors with the Brewers as a catcher.  He is currently a free agent.
• Ramon Santiago: Santiago was a prospect way back then and was later traded to Seattle for Carlos Guillen.  Santiago is now the Tigers utility infielder.  He hit .225 in 2003.
• Craig Monroe: Monroe was a bright spot on this club.  He hit 23 homers after being selected off of waivers.  Monroe is currently fighting to make the Pittsburgh Pirates roster on a minor league contract.
• Alex Sanchez: The Tigers got Sanchez in a trade at the end of May and he went on to hit .289 and steal 44 bases.  Sanchez would later go on to be suspended for performance enhancing drugs.  He played independent ball in 2008 before getting injured.
• Bobby Higginson:  Higginson, a former star, stunk in 2003, hitting only .235 and hitting 14 home runs.  Higginson is now involved in the limousine business, whatever that means.
• Dmitri  Young:  Young probably had the best season by a Tiger in 2003.  He hit .297 with 29 home runs and made the All Star team.  Young is currently battling injuries but is under contract with the Washington Nationals.
• Shane Halter:  Halter was the utility man for the Tigers 2003, playing six different positions and hitting .217.  I named my fantasy team after him for this season.
• Kevin Witt: Witt was a power hitting machine in the minor leagues and hit 10 for the Tigers in 2003.  He played in Japan in 2007, that’s all I could find.
• Omar Infante:  Infante was a promising youngster back in 2003.  He hit .222 in limited action, spending most of the year in the minors.  Infante currently plays for the Atlanta Braves.
• Andres Torres:  Torres was a speedster.  He hit .220 and stole five bases in 59 games.  Torres played for the Cubs in the minors last season and hasn’t played in the majors since 2005.  Torres is currently in Spring Training with the San Francisco Giants.
• Matt Walbeck:  Walbeck was Inge’s back up at catcher, what a duo.  Walbeck hit .174 in what ended up being his final season as a player.  He is currently a manager in the Pirates minor league system.
• Gene Kingsale:  Kingsale was an outfielder who hit .208 with one home run in 2003.  Kingsale was the first player from Aruba to appear in the majors and he played in the Netherlands in 2008.  He his currently playing for Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic.
• Ben Petrick:  Another back up catcher.  Petrick hit .225 with four homers.  In 2004, Petrick announced that he has Parkinson’s Disease.  He currently speaks about the disease.
• Dean Palmer:  What a waste of money.  Palmer was paid $8.5M to hit .140 in 2003.  According to his Wikipedia page, Palmer is now studying computer science in London.  I don’t know if I believe that but it’s all I could find.
• AJ Hinch: Another light-hitting catcher, Hinch hit .203 in 27 games.  Hinch is now the farm system director for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
• Danny Klassen: Klassen got into 22 games and hit .247 as a back up infielder in 2003.  He hasn’t played in the majors since then but has kept plugging along and played in the Astros system last season.  He is currently a free agent.
• Craig Paquette: Paquette hit .157 in the final 11 games of his career and was released in April.  No further information was found.
• Hiram Bocachica: Bocachica went 1-22 in six games.  He is currently playing professional baseball in Japan.
• Cody Ross: Ross in .211 in only 19 at bats as a 22 year old prospect.  Ross hit .260 with 22 home runs.  He’ll try to hold off Cameron Maybin for a job in with the Marlins in 2009.
• Ernie Young: Young had 2 hits in 11 at bats in 2003 with 5 strikeouts.  Young is currently the manager of the White Sox A-ball team.
• Mike Maroth: Maroth is well known for his 21 losses in 2003.  The Tigers finally got rid of Maroth in 2007.  He is currently in spring training with the Blue Jays, trying to make the club.
• Nate Cornejo: Cornejo led the starting rotation in ERA in 2003 with a mark of 4.67.  It didn’t stop him from going 6-17 on the season.
• Jeremy Bonderman: This was Bonderman’s rookie year and he struggled to 19 losses and an ERA of 5.56.  He has since rebounded and a lot of the Tigers 2009 chances rely on him getting healthy.
• Gary Knotts: Knotts went 3-8 with an ERA over 6.00 as he made 18 starts for the club.  Knotts spent the 2008 season AAA with the Phillies and Orioles.  He is currently a free agent.
• Adam Bernero: Bernero started the season 1-12 for the Tigers before getting traded to the Rockies.  He pitched in AAA ball for the Pirates in 2008.  He is currently a free agent.
• Nate Robertson: Nate made eight starts in 2003 and had a record of 1-2 and an ERA of 5.44.  Nate was worse than that in 2008 and is trying to earn a spot in the Tigers rotation 2009.
• Franklyn German: German struggled as the Tiger closer and walked more than a batter per inning.  German is in Spring Training with the Chicago White Sox.
• Jamie Walker: Walker was the Tigers best relief pitcher in 2003, sporting an ERA below 3.50.  He is currently being overpaid by the Baltimore Orioles.
• Chris Spurling: Spurling pitched close to 80 innings for the Tigers and had an ERA of 4.68.  He was cut during Spring Training last season by the Milwaukee Brewers.  I’m guessing he is now out of baseball.
• Steve Sparks: The knuckleballer ran out of stuff in 2003, heading to the bullpen and posting an ERA close to 5.00.  He retired after the 2005 season.
• Matt Roney: Roney started nearly a dozen games and worked out of the bullpen and compiled a record of 1-9 with an ERA of 5.45.  Roney pitched in AAA for the Blue Jays in 2007.  In April of 2007 he was suspended 50 games for violating the minor league drug program.  He is currently a free agent.
• Wil Ledezma:  Ledezma was a Rule 5 guy in 2003 and had an ERA of 5.79.  Ledezma signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals this offseason and is currently in camp attempting to make the big league team.
• Chris Mears: Mears is pretty forgettable.  He started a handful of games and went 1-3 with a high ERA.  It was his only season in the majors.  He is currently a scout for the Boston Red Sox.
• Shane Loux: Loux was crushed in 2003, sporting an ERA of 7.12.  He started four games and had a record of 1-1.  Loux didn’t appear in the bigs again until last season with the Angels, for whom he still plays.
• Fernando Rodney: The 26-year old Rodney had an ERA of 6.07 in 2003 and walked too many batters.  Sound familiar.  Rodney still plays for the Tigers and is probably a lock to make the team.
• Matt Anderson: Anderson’s better days were already behind him in 2003 as he had an ERA of 5.40 in 23 innings of work.  It was his last season in Detroit.  Anderson pitched for the White Sox AAA team in 2008.  According to MLB.com he is still with the White Sox.
• Danny Patterson: Patterson was busy struggling through injuries in 2003 as he pitched in only 19 games.  He had an ERA just a touch above 4.00.  He last pitched in the minors with the Padres in 2005.
• Steve Avery: This was Avery’s final season in pro baseball after a few good years with the Braves in the early 1990s.  He had an ERA of 5.63 in only 16 innings of work.  Avery is out of baseball and lives in Dearborn, Mich.
• Eric Eckenstahler:  I remember Eckenstahler for his name and his height (he was 6′7”).  He had an ERA of 2.87 in 15 innings of work.  Maybe he should have thrown some more innings?  He pitched in the minors for the Reds in 2005.  I have no clue what he is up to now, but I do know you can get his autographed baseball card for only $7.00.
• Brian Schmack: Schmack pitched in only 13 innings but had a decent ERA of 3.46.  He won his only decision of the season.  This was his only season in the majors.