The Cure for Rabies

In the past, I have always been a fan of Ryan Raburn, but unfortunately, my man-love for Rabies burns no longer. He needs to go back to Toledo. Now.

Raburn doesn't have much talent in terms of raw power, speed, or athleticism, but he was useful in the past because although he didn't bring a whole lot to the table, he never took anything off of it. Quick aside, Rod Allen just quoted MC Hammer, I feel that it is necessary to point this out. Anyway, Raburn is now removing items from the table faster than Wojo (I miss WDFN...) at an all-you-can-eat buffet. He isn't hitting, which would be acceptable if he was providing his usual steady defense in the infield and outfield, but he has been nothing short of atrocious this season on the defensive side of the ball. He has cost the Tigers at least one game so far by simply dropping routine fly balls and in a division that will almost certainly come down to a few games in October, you can't afford to give away games in April. Raburn used to be valuable because of his ability to play in the infield and the outfield, but with Gary Sheffield gone, the Tigers have room to keep both a strong defensive outfielder, Josh Anderson, and a strong defensive infielder, Ramon Santiago, on their bench, which significantly cuts down the value of Raburn's versatility. With his defensive usefullness accounted for by other players (who are both outhitting him by the way), Raburn must earn his keep with his bat. Excuse me for impugning somebody's job performance in this tough economy, but 1/11 with 4 strikeouts is just not going to get it done.

This whole discussion might seem like a moot point, because Marcus Thames will eventually take this spot back when he recovers from his injury, but with so many divisional games coming up in the next couple of weeks, it is absolutely paramount that the Tigers send their best 25 on to the field every night. Until Thames gets healthy, wouldn't Jeff Larish be a hell of a lot more useful for the Tigers? Assuming that he can at least equal the job that Raburn has done defensively, which at this point I think could be handled by a drunk chimpanzee, Larish provides left-handed power off the the Tigers' bench, something that the Tigers really lack with their current team. Don't get me wrong, I would love to see Rabies succeed, but that this point, he looks like the definition of a 4A player and somebody who is not capable of helping a big league club.