The Tigers should sign Brian Wilson to be their closer

The Tigers wanted to sign a closer last year but in the end general manager Dave Dombrowski didn’t acquire any and gave a chance to Joaquin Benoit.

Pay per head services found out that this year the team is searching for a closer and Dombrowski apparently likes Brian Wilson.

According to Lynn Henning of the Detroit News, the Tigers are interested in the 31-year-old right-hander, formerly of the Giants and the Dodgers. The Tigers reportedly want a closer with a younger, more dynamic arm than that of the 36-year-old Joaquin Benoit.

Looking at how Wilson pitched last year, he started his comeback from a 2012 Tommy John operation (unfortunately not his first) in August, and he allowed one earned run allowed in 19 2/3 over 24 appearances. And considering he hadn’t pitched in over a year, an 8.2 walk rate is really impressive.

He was also keeping the ball on the ground quite a bit. According to FanGraphs his regular season ground ball percentage was 56.3. In the postseason it was 71.4.

Aside from the ERA and the WHIP, the strikeouts, walks and ground balls represent the really exciting aspect of his comeback, as it is the best recipe for success for any pitcher.

It was filthy-moving pitches and good location that got him lots of strikeouts and ground balls and kept his walks at a decent rate, not just his speed like in the past, so there’s plenty to like about how he pitched, which means he will have plenty of job opportunities. It’s up to the Tigers to hurry up and sign before somebody else does. Remember that the Yankees also wanted him but he refused to shave his beard.