Miguel Cabrera.jpg

Rajai Davis is hitting better vs. right-handers this season (.321, .835 OPS, 2 SOs) than Miguel Cabrera is (.257, .744 OPS, 8 SOs).

(AP File Photo)

SAN DIEGO -- There is a big difference from one season to the next when it comes to how much run support a pitcher gets.

Of course, it was a bit of a fluke how many runs the Detroit Tigers scored for Max Scherzer in 2013. The numbers he had more control over -- the 2.90 ERA, the 240 strikeouts and the 0.97 WHIP -- helped him win the American League Cy Young Award. But his 21-3 record was helped immensely by the run support he received from his teammates.

Through three games this season, he's not getting the same support. Scherzer allowed four runs in five innings Sunday afternoon as

to the San Diego Padres.

The Tigers have scored five runs in his three starts.

Clearly, it's fair to expect Scherzer's record to regress more toward reality in 2014. Truly, no starting pitcher "deserves" to go 21-3. No matter how Scherzer pitches, he won't match that record this season. Part of that is, as Tigers manager Brad Ausmus likes to say, "water finding its level." A guy who receives extraordinary -- or terrible -- run support won't benefit from good luck -- or be hurt by bad luck -- forever. Things even out over the long haul.

But another part of the equation is the fact that the Tigers simply won't score as many runs in 2014 as they did in 2013. That's how things looked going into the season. That remains how things look now.

The Tigers feature a lineup of mostly right-handed hitters. The majority of starting pitchers are right-handed. So far, that has spelled bad news for the Tigers. Yes, it is early. The sample sizes are small. But here are some raw numbers for the Tigers in 2013 and 2014:

Tigers vs. left-handers

2013:

2014:

Tigers vs. right-handers

2013:

2014:

Prince Fielder and his left-handed bat are gone. Andy Dirks, who hits left-handed, is on the disabled list. Alex Avila, who hits left-handed, is off to a terrible start. Miguel Cabrera, who hits everyone, has scuffled at the plate.

The Tigers don't have a ton of left-handed hitters to run out there on a regular basis. The Tigers faced right-hander Tyson Ross on Sunday and sent eight right-handed hitters and the switch-hitting catcher Victor Martinez to the plate.

"We hit some balls pretty well today," Ausmus said. "And I know that Tyson's numbers are better against righties than lefties, but we really hit some balls pretty well. We are a right-handed hitting lineup. And if Alex isn't in the lineup catching that day, then we become even more right-handed."

Here are a handful of Tigers players who have struggled vs. right-handed pitchers thus far:

Miguel Cabrera:

Ian Kinsler:

Alex Avila:

Tyler Collins:

Shortstops:

Want Ausmus to play more left-handed hitters? OK. In which positions would you like to see them? Cabrera, Kinsler and Austin Jackson are locks for the everyday lineup. Torii Hunter is hitting the ball well. Rajai Davis has struggled historically against right-handers, but he had two hits Sunday against Ross, has a seven-game hitting streak and is hitting .321 against right-handers thus far. He's also an absolute terror on the bases.

Based on the conversations on Twitter and the emails I get, it seems unlikely that Tigers fans want Don Kelly to start at third base in place of Nick Castellanos or for Kelly or Collins to spell Hunter or Davis in the outfield. (Collins has weird reverse splits in the minors and hits left-handers better.) Andrew Romine is clearly a better defender than Alex Gonzalez, but if either shortstop is the answer to the team's offensive questions then the wrong questions are being asked.

That leaves catcher, where Avila, who hits left-handed, is batting .130 (3 for 23) with three singles and 14 strikeouts. Avila has hit well for long stretches at points in his career. He was an All-Star and received Most Valuable Player votes in 2011 and hit better than .300 after the All-Star break in 2013. He also has had lengthy funks, most notably during the first half of last season. The departure of Fielder and the injury to Dirks means there is more pressure on Avila to produce. So far, he hasn't done so.

The Tigers will be in a bit of a bind behind the plate if Avila's struggles continue. Rather see Bryan Holaday? He's not going to hit a ton. Want Martinez to catch more? Based on two errors and a passed ball in two starts on the West Coast road trip, that doesn't appear to be a great option, at least not on a regular basis. It's also extremely important to the Tigers that Martinez stays healthy.

Besides, it wouldn't make much of a difference in games played in American League parks. Sure, Martinez is better offensively than Avila. But who replaces Martinez at designated hitter in that scenario? It seems that the risk of playing Martinez behind the plate outweighs the reward of replacing Avila in the lineup with, say, Kelly or Collins.

Is it early? Of course it is. Is it time for Tigers fans to panic? Of course not. Haven't the Tigers done pretty well anyway?

Yes. They have.

Wins and losses for a pitcher don't mean much at all. Wins and losses for a team mean everything. The Tigers are heading home with a 6-4 record. They've won 60 percent of their games. If they go 6-4 over and over and over and 10 more overs for the rest of the season then they'll finish with 97 wins. If they do that, they'll win the Central Division, like they have in the past three seasons.

But every season is different. Scherzer pitched just five innings and allowed four or more runs two times in April 2013. He went 2-0 in those two games, thanks to 15 runs by the Tigers. Scherzer pitched just five innings and allowed four runs Sunday. The Tigers suffered a 5-1 loss.

The difference in Scherzer's win-loss record between now and a year ago is nothing for Tigers fans to be concerned about. The difference in the team's offensive numbers against right-handed pitching?

It's worth keeping an eye on.

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