Tigers Pitching woes

Seems like all the Detroit Tigers die-hards are worried sick about the state of the team's pitching staff. Everyone whose last name doesn't rhyme with "Jerlander" seems to be under suspicion. Francisco Cruceta can't get out of the Dominican Republic due to visa issues, lefty Tim Byrdak stunk so bad this spring he was given an outright release, Rodney seems to be perpetually troubled by tendonitis, and starter Dontrelle Willis has a combination of electric stuff and control problems that remind you of Charlie Sheen of "Wild Thing" vintage.

Yet, all the focus has been on the problems, and not the bright spots. Denny Bautista, picked up in a trade for prospect Jose Capellan, has looked fantastic, with three great pitches -- maybe Pudge and Chuck Hernandez can teach him how to mix them up correctly. Zach Miner is a legitimate major-league bullpen arm. Todd Jones has been there before and done it before. And Tata, Cruceta and Rodney could be back by May, for all we know. All is not lost. And fans are fooling themselves if they think other teams aren't facing the same sorts of questions.

And in the end, they simply need the bullpen to be average. Much has been said about the astonishing bats in this lineup -- all of it deserved. This team has starting pitching that, if all five guys get right, will shut down opponents' bats. Robertson and Bonderman were dogged by injury last year, but both have been sublime at times when healthy. Rogers is old as dirt, but he's also smarter than 95% of the guys he'll face. Verlander, well -- he's a great one. (Seeing his no-hitter in person was one of the greatest sports memories of my life. Who pitches a no-hitter in their second season? Who does that?).

So all the hand-wringing about the bullpen and the last two position players on the bench is a bit much. It's easy to imagine May 1 rolling around, with Rodney, Cruceta and Tata in the bullpen, Granderson in CF, Willis and his control problems sorted out after a slow start, and all of us asking ourselves, "What were we all so worried about?"