Detroit's sudden freefall highlights the massive void left by their injured star, forcing a youthful roster to anchor a fading playoff push without its most reliable presence.
Riley Greene’s production with runners in scoring position has been an easy target for criticism this season. His absence, however, has provided a much clearer picture of his overall importance to the Detroit Tigers.
Greene has not played since leaving Detroit’s Aug. 11 victory over Cleveland with a right hamstring strain. The Tigers placed him on the 10-day injured list the following day, interrupting what had been a late-summer push toward the American League playoff picture.
Since Greene left the lineup, Detroit has gone 2-11 through Tuesday’s 4-1 victory over Tampa Bay. The Tigers have lost games because of their bullpen, starting pitching and defense during that stretch, so their decline cannot be placed entirely on one missing player. Still, the offense has looked thinner and considerably more dependent on young hitters being asked to learn in the middle of a playoff chase.
Before the injury, Greene was batting .273 with a .366 on-base percentage, a .450 slugging percentage, 16 home runs and 54 RBIs in 117 games. His 128 wRC+ ranked behind only Kevin McGonigle among qualified Tigers hitters. He also had appeared in 117 of Detroit’s first 119 games and occupied the third, fourth or fifth spot in the order in all but four of those appearances.
Greene has struggled in one important area. In 131 plate appearances with runners in scoring position, he is hitting .232 with a .305 on-base percentage and .384 slugging percentage. The resulting .689 OPS is well below his overall .816 mark. He has struck out 41 times in those situations, although he has still driven in 36 runs.
Those numbers matter, particularly for a hitter regularly occupying a run-producing position. They do not erase everything that happens before or after those at-bats.
Greene reaches base. He works walks. He forces pitchers to navigate a legitimate middle-of-the-order threat. His 12.4% walk rate is the best of his major league career, while his overall offensive production sits approximately 28% above league average. Removing that type of hitter does not simply eliminate his plate appearances. It changes the assignments for everyone surrounding him.
The kids have been pushed forward
Without Greene, along with Kerry Carpenter, Parker Meadows and James Outman also landing on the injured list, Detroit has been forced to accelerate its transition toward a younger lineup.
Max Clark is no longer being used only as an athletic young player who can contribute near the bottom of the order. He is receiving meaningful opportunities while learning major league pitching in real time. His two-run home run Tuesday provided the decisive swing in Detroit’s first victory following a six-game losing streak. It was Clark’s second major league homer and his first at Comerica Park.
Brett Callahan was promoted Aug. 16 after Detroit lost much of its left-handed outfield depth. The former 13th-round pick responded with five hits, a home run and six RBIs in his first 19 major league at-bats. His first-pitch, two-run triple in his debut made him the first Tiger in 114 years to accomplish that feat. Callahan has handled the opportunity well, but his promotion also illustrates how far Detroit has been forced to reach into its depth chart.
Hao-Yu Lee has received additional opportunities and entered Wednesday batting .281 with seven home runs and 32 RBIs in 221 at-bats. He homered during the Kansas City series and supplied an insurance run Tuesday with an RBI single.
McGonigle, meanwhile, has been asked to carry even more of the offensive burden. He had a game-tying homer and an RBI double Sunday in Kansas City, drove in two runs against Paul Skenes in Pittsburgh and entered Wednesday leading Detroit in batting average, on-base percentage and hits. Over his past 15 games, he has driven in 11 runs despite batting .233, another indication of how much responsibility has shifted toward the 22-year-old.
This experience should benefit Detroit in the future. Clark, Callahan, Malgeri, Lee and McGonigle are receiving meaningful at-bats that cannot be replicated in Toledo. They are facing postseason-caliber pitching while opponents actively search for weaknesses they can exploit. They are taking their lumps.
There is also a difference between giving young players opportunities and asking them to replace an established All-Star all at once.
Greene provides structure
The Tigers’ lineup without Greene has occasionally looked like a collection of promising players instead of a complete major league offense. The young hitters have produced encouraging moments, but the lineup has lacked the established left-handed presence who normally connects its different pieces.
Greene’s return will not solve every problem. His performance with runners in scoring position must improve, and Detroit’s recent collapse has exposed problems throughout the roster. Even Tuesday’s victory required four relievers to protect the work of Jackson Jobe after the returning right-hander lasted only 4⅓ innings. But Greene does not need to be perfect with runners in scoring position to be essential.
His absence has demonstrated the difference between being disappointed in what a player has not done and recognizing everything he provides. Greene offers on-base ability, power, patience and stability in the middle of the order. He allows Hinch to place the younger hitters in roles that better match their current development instead of asking them to immediately become the offense.
The young Tigers have been pressed into service, and some have responded impressively. Clark’s home run Tuesday offered another glimpse of where this lineup may eventually be headed. What the previous two weeks have shown is that Greene remains the player who helps hold it together while they get there.
