Why Brandon Inge Should Be On The Tigers Opening Day Roster

Standard baseball procedure is meaningful player evaluations aren't done in spring training. It's also to leave the door open for change early in the season.

Those are the two reasons the right decision by the Tigers would be to keep Brandon Inge on their roster for opening day, even though he has clearly been outplayed this spring by Danny Worth, who has more overall value as a backup infielder because he is probably their best shortstop defensively - in addition to being a solid third baseman and a very good second baseman.

Inge hitting .171 in spring training doesn't mean as much as hitting .324 as a club is clinching a division title in September, or posting a .929 OPS in extensive postseason play. Inge did turn it around after biting the bullet and going to Toledo late last season. Worth is having a good spring with a .296 batting average and a .931 OPS. At 26, he is primed for his shot as a backup infielder, which will be his role if he is able to perform well enough to remain in the major leagues. He is a very good fielder. He is, at best, an OK hitter. He hit .256 at Toledo last year with a .759 OPS, which was a good season by his previous standards.

Inge is the better option at third base over Worth. It's another factor with Miguel Cabrera's situation there becoming even more precarious because of injury.

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