In Tigers’ offseason rotation overhaul, only one move paying immediate dividends

12:25 AM ET

KANSAS CITY — There is no skirting the issue with Tigers pitcher Mike Pelfrey. He has pitched poorly. And he knows it.

“I don’t know if my command has ever been this bad, but it’s unacceptable,” Pelfrey said following the Tigers’ 4-0 loss to the World Series champion Kansas City Royals. “I’ve been terrible.”

He knows he is letting his teammates down, as well as those who showed faith in signing him as a free agent this offseason.

“I feel bad for the guys behind me, you know, having to stand around and go hit after standing around for 40 minutes, so I take the blame for this. This is my fault. This is unacceptable. I need to be a lot better,” he said.

Pelfrey, who inked a two-year, $16 million deal with Detroit in December, stumbled out of the gates for his new club with his first pair of starts and Thursday was no improvement. He gave up eight hits, four runs — three of them earned — and walked five in just five innings in a start plagued by poor fastball command and heavy traffic on the basepaths, with 14 of the 26 batters he faced reaching base.

A two-year, $16 million deal for Mike Pelfrey isn’t looking like money well spent after three poor outings. Peter G. Aiken/USA TODAY Sports

Another dispiriting outing ultimately begs the question: Is there a mechanical adjustment that can be made to alleviate his subpar performances?

“It’s something that …

continue reading in source espn.go.com