The Detroit Tigers just signed David Price to a record arbitration deal for the 2015 season, and the team insists that they do not have any plans to further tinker with their rotation. The team was thought to be interested in adding another starting pitcher, particularly after Max Scherzer elected to sign with the Washington Nationals.
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According to Mlive, Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski admitted that the team had talked with Scherzer's agent, Scott Boras, but he said that the discussions never really went anywhere. "We had conversations (about Scherzer), but we didn't get into negotiations," Dombrowski said on Monday. "Scott called us a couple times to say that Max would be interested in coming back to Detroit, but that was the extent of it."
Detroit repeatedly insisted all offseason that they were not actively pursuing Shcherzer, likely because of how much it would cost to sign him. "We never 100 percent closed the door (on Scherzer)," Dombrowski added. "But we're very happy with the rotation we have."
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The team still boasts an above-average starting rotation, particularly if Justin Verlander can recapture the form that made him an MVP in 2011. They also have David Price and Anibal Sanchez. Dombrowski mentioned that the team traded for Price in part to protect themselves against losing Scherzer.
"When we acquired David Price, we did so knowing that we would have a difficult time signing Max, so we knew we'd have a legitimate No. 1," Dombrowski said. "We also think Justin Verlander will bounce back and we really like Alfredo Simon."
Talk has recently emerged that the Tigers may pursue free agent James Shields, but Dombrowski is adamant that the team is satisfied with their current projected rotation and that they have no plans to add another starter before the season begins.
When asked if he was willing to refute the rumors surrounding a possible Shields signing, Dombrowski replied, "I just did, didn't I?"
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