Detroit Tigers mailbag: How good is this team? That’s a layered question

The Detroit Tigers have not had a winning April since 2016. This season, they could be on the cusp of changing that and finally beginning the year on a positive note.

It’s been an interesting first 24 games. There have been cold bats and frustrating mistakes. There have also been thrilling wins, a lockdown bullpen and a lot of fun moments with a young team.

But what does it all mean? And what are the biggest questions the team faces going forward?

Let’s answer some reader questions to take stock of the Tigers’ season so far.

Is this team any good or nah? — Justin R.

Terrific question and one we talk about every week on the podcast. Here’s where I stand: The Tigers haven’t played very good baseball (though Monday’s win against the Tampa Bay Rays was one of their best overall games in years). They entered Tuesday ranking 25th in OPS. They do have pretty good pitching — their starters ranked ninth in ERA. The bullpen has been dominant but could be due to regress. Opponents have a .204 BABIP against Tigers relievers, the lowest in the league by a long shot. What’s most encouraging: The Tigers are 13-10 despite being far from hitting on all cylinders.

I don’t think this offense is ever going to take the league by storm, but I think it will get better as the year goes on. Right now, they’re not that good of a team in comparison to the league’s big boys. But if they can keep banking some wins, maybe we’ll look up at season’s end and feel pretty good about where they’re at.

Casey Mize is striking out 6.8 batters per every nine innings. Does he have enough swing-and-miss stuff to become a top-of-the-rotation starter? — Thomas W.

Back before Mize had Tommy John surgery, the ability to miss bats was the big talking point. It hasn’t quite translated to higher strikeout totals yet, but I’m actually more encouraged than ever about Mize’s ability to generate strikeouts. The improvements in his fastball have been well documented, and we’ve seen the splitter finally look like the potent pitch it was always billed as. I was, however, surprised to see Mize is so far generating fewer whiffs (19.6 percent) than he was even in 2021 (22.6 percent). It’s definitely something to monitor going forward.

Joey Cora and George Lombard are working extensively in the field with younger players like Colt Keith and Kerry Carpenter. What is the team doing to help reverse what appears to be another bad year of Spencer Torkelson’s fielding? — Holly H.

It’s not like those guys aren’t working with Torkelson, too. Torkelson put a ton of work into his defense this offseason and is out working with the coaches every day. It just hasn’t translated. I don’t have the exact answer, but Torkelson’s defensive woes are puzzling. He’s a good athlete and moves well for a first baseman. The scoops he makes on throws indicate he has good hands. Yet he often plays himself into tough hops, inexplicably misses balls and seems to get caught…