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Tigers, Guardians could set a not-so-great mark in 2022

If you’re looking for power-hitting outfielders this season, look away from the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Guardians, a pair of MLB teams that could establish a new low for home runs this century.

MLB statistics show just how Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Guardians have lacked power in the outfield this season

Heading into Tuesday’s action, the Detroit Tigers (at the bottom of the American League Central) had just 14 home runs hit by a member of the outfield in the team’s first 118 games. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Guardians (at the top of the AL Central), had just 16 homers hit by their outfielders in their first 116 contests.

If those numbers seem low to you, you’re spot on and sensing something that hasn’t happened in MLB since 2007.

As Frank points out in his tweet, you have to take out the power numbers that were posted during the pandemic-shortened season of 2020 when only 60 games were on the schedule. In that campaign, five MLB teams hit less than the 23 slugged by the Royals in 2007. The lowest team that season? Cleveland with just 11.

Detroit has had eight different outfielders hit a home run this season, but the four off the bat of Willi Castro pace the group, showing just how powerless the Tigers’ outfield has been.

And it’s not just the outfield for Detroit, a team that has a total of 69 home runs so far in 2022, putting the Tigers dead last among American League teams. They trail Cleveland (who is 14th in the AL) by a wide margin, with the Guardians posting 93 homers in all.

Cleveland, meanwhile, has Franmil Reyes and Oscar Mercado pacing their outfielders with four homers each while five Guardian outfielders have hit long balls this season.

Just how low is the power in Detroit and Cleveland? As a comparison, the New York Yankees pace the AL with 192 home runs, nearly three times the amount the Tigers have hit.