29-year old righty swinging shortstop Jhonny Peralta has been awesome with the bat so far in May. Peralta has played in 21 games so far in May and he is 25 for 72 (.347 avg, 1.128 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 7 homers and 18 RBIs. Peralta has now played in 46 games for the Tigers this year and he is 49 for 161 (.304 avg, .898 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 8 homers and 29 RBIs. The Tigers were smart to re-sign Peralta as he has really been producing for them with the bat this year.

The Tigers have acquired 29-year old lefty reliever David Purcey from the A’s for 26-year old righty swinging Scott Sizemore. Purcey has pitched in 14 games (0 starts) for the A’s and Blue Jays this year and he is 0-0 with a 3.60 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Purcey has now pitched in 68 games (21 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 5-10 with 1 save, a 5.17 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. Purcey will work out of the pen for the Tigers. Scott Sizemore played in 17 games for the Tigers this year and he was 14 for 63 (.222 avg, .567 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 4 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He played in 65 games in his two years with the Tigers and he was 46 for 206 (.223 avg, .612 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 3 homers, 18 RBIs and 1 stolen base. I have a feeling that the Tigers might have given up on Sizemore just a little bit too early. At least they got a pitcher that can help them right now for Sizemore.

The Tigers have released 34-year old righty reliever/starter Chris Oxspring. Oxspring pitched in 8 games (3 starts) in AAA-ball for the Tigers this year and he was 0-1 with a 6.53 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. His only major league experience came back in 2005 when he was pitching with the Padres. He pitched in 5 games (0 starts) for the Padres back in 2005 and he was 0-0 with a 3.75 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. This is virtually no loss for the Tigers.

Lefty closer Willie Hernandez won both the A.L. Cy Young and the MVP Award in 1984 for the Tigers. Hernandez pitched in 80 games (0 starts) for the Tigers in 1984 and he was 9-3 with 32 saves, a 1.92 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. Hernandez worked an amazing 140 1/3 innings for the Tigers in 1984. Hernandez pitched in 358 games (0 starts) in his six years with the Tigers and he was 36-31 with 120 saves, a 2.98 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP. He is currently #4 in Tigers’ history in saves with 120 of them. It’s very rare for a reliever to win the Cy Young Award let alone the MVP Award, so 1984 was a magical year for Willie Hernandez.

The Tigers have placed lefty starting pitcher Phil Coke on the 15-day disabled list due to a bone bruise in his left ankle. Coke has pitched in 11 games (9 starts) for the Tigers so far this year and he is 1-5 with a 3.81 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He will be replaced in the starting rotation by 23-year old lefty Andy Oliver who will be called up to take his next start. Oliver came into this season as the Tigers’ #3 prospect according to Baseball America. Oliver has pitched in 8 games (all starts) in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 4-3 with a 3.26 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. The Tigers hope he’s better this time around as he got off to a rough start to his major league career in 2010. Oliver pitched in 5 games (all starts) for the Tigers last year and he was 0-4 with a 7.36 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP.