Bob Wojnowski

Manager Jim Leyland's not prime suspect in Tigers' collapse

Everyone wants to blame the manager. Everyone always wants to blame the manager.  Fair enough, but sorry, way too simple. Jim Leyland's Tigers had a seven-game lead Sept. 6 and a three-game lead with four left, and they blew it. Of course, the Twins also swiped it, going 17-4 down the stretch, including that amazing 12-inning classic Tuesday night.  Leyland is culpable, no doubt, because his teams have faded in second halves in his four seasons here. But if you think he's the main reason for the collapse, you're nuts.

Question Leyland's lineups, such as the odd decision to rest Magglio Ordonez and Placido Polanco in big games last week. Shriek that he doesn't bunt enough, even though the Tigers had more sacrifices this season than the Twins.

But come on, trying to pin this all on Leyland is too easy and lets too many others off the hook, including the general manager who put together a flawed roster and the hitters who squandered chance after chance with runners in scoring position. Leyland dealt with a batch of tough issues, and if the Tigers had won one more game, he might have been a manager of the year candidate. I think players still respect him, although they might need to fear him a bit more.

I do think he needs to show more urgency, perhaps using Rick Porcello on three days' rest Saturday against the White Sox instead of tossing out rookie Alfredo Figaro.

The Tigers had a slim cushion, and Leyland acted like it.

But this is not a managing issue. This is a hitting issue, which makes it an issue for GM Dave Dombrowski, who has spent a lot of money -- the Tigers had the fifth-highest payroll in baseball at $119 million -- and not gotten enough in return. I always applaud Mike Ilitch's go-for-it mentality, but writing bigger checks doesn't guarantee titles.

Dombrowski has made mistakes of over-aggressiveness, but mistakes nevertheless. Gaudy contracts for pitchers Dontrelle Willis and Nate Robertson were gaffes. The pickups of Jarrod Washburn and Aubrey Huff turned out to be flops, but I won't hammer a GM for trying to get better at the trade deadline.

Players culpable

This goes back to the players, and their inconsistencies. Miguel Cabrera is culpable because he's the Tigers' best hitter, and his late-night drinking incident during the most important weekend of the season showed staggering immaturity. You can live with the 26-year-old's misdeeds as long as he's mashing the ball, but his RBI total (103) was the lowest of his six full seasons.

Ordonez was terrific the second half, and while his $18 million contract hampers the hunt for other hitters, he's still valuable. Beyond Cabrera and Ordonez, what constants do the Tigers truly have in their lineup?

Two years ago, they went too far one way, trying to stack a fearsome lineup with similar-type sluggers. Last offseason, Dombrowski overcompensated with a narrow focus on defense.

The Tigers infield defense was good and so was the pitching, led by Justin Verlander, Porcello and Edwin Jackson. You hope Jackson's fade was due to weariness because that's fixable, and if fixed, the Tigers have the pitching to contend again.

Production slips

They just don't have enough hitting, which is why the whine about Leyland misses the point. Polanco is a pending free agent and still a good player, but his average (.285) was his lowest in seven seasons. Brandon Inge made the All-Star team but battled a knee injury and stumbled to a .230 finish.

Carlos Guillen wasn't healthy most of the year, and at 34, who knows what he still can do? Curtis Granderson lifted his power numbers nicely (30 home runs), but his .249 average didn't help the run production.

The Tigers finished 10th in the AL in hitting (.260), not something a manager can "small-ball" his way around with clever little hit-and-runs and suicide squeezes. In some ways, Leyland actually overmanaged by juggling his lineup so much. But honestly, how many Tigers hitters could you argue overachieved this season? Ryan Raburn? Anyone else?

Gerald Laird was too good of a defensive catcher to bench, but he killed the Tigers at the plate (.225), capped by a crucial strikeout with the bases loaded in the 12th inning on Tuesday. Adam Everett's defense also was solid, but his .238 average was tough to carry.

I don't know if the hitters felt the pressure or simply found their level. I'm guessing it's the latter. Leyland handles his roster pretty much the way he did in 2006, when clutch hitting was a big part of the Tigers' run to the World Series.

Accountability starts at the top, and that's partly why Leyland didn't get his two-year contract extension until this season was under way. But accountability and questions don't end there, and don't delude yourself into thinking otherwise.

bob.wojnowski@detnews.com