The debate has been going on since last season.

Should Brandon Inge be a Tiger this season, or no?

Against popular opinion from most fans, I believe the Tigers should keep him. Before you call me crazy, please hear me out.

I have many reasons for keeping him on the team this season. The first reason is playoff experience. This team has high hopes of making a run at the World Series otherwise it will be a disappointing year to most people. Well, I believe that with the veteran leadership and playoff experience that Inge has, he could be a big part of the success this year.

The second reason is his contract. He is about to make six million dollars this year, so why not give him a chance? Obviously, he has the support of his manager and general manager and they have been around baseball for a long time. Even if he were to struggle the worse thing that could happen is releasing him mid-season. No matter what, the Tigers are still paying for him no matter where he is playing this season.

The third reason is you can’t always judge a hitter by his stats or his spring training performance.  Yes Danny Worth is hitting better this spring. Yes Worth is 26 and Inge is 34.  But is Worth the answer to this team’s holes? No. Neither is Inge. However, Inge is the best defense option at second on this team and if he can produce half of what he did in 2006, which would be 13 home runs and about 42 runs batted in, then I would take that risk.  Ryan Raburn and Ramon Santiago in my opinion, can’t produce that over the course of an entire year, just look at past years for evidence. 

This team doesn’t need more hitting, it needs defense and pitching, because that is what is going win the World Series for them. Inge provides a solid defensive option at 2nd and anything provided in the offensive column is a bonus.

My final reason is injuries. Every good team has to prepare for the worst. If Miguel Cabrera was to get hurt (he already did), Inge is the only one i would feel comfortable with playing third base.

Here is another good thing about Inge: He is a fierce competitor and would do anything for this team to have it win. He was compared to a guy named Tebow by a local writer recently. However, most people are writing Inge off. But not me.

Inge has been a Tiger for 11 years now. He has done a lot for this team on and off the field. I believe for the time being, that they should give him one more shot, considering that it might be his last legit shot at a World Series and a spot on a major league roster.

After everything, the Tigers at least should give him that.