D-Train could be released...

What has happened to Dontrelle Willis; the former 22 game winner, two time all-star, runner up for the Cy Young and 2003 post-season hero is on the verge of being released while still being owed 12M. What a difference in philosophies, the Mets struggle to cut guys like Marlon Anderson who are owed 1M, while Detroit in back-to-back years are potentially cutting 12M players ( Sheffield/Willis).

Is the left handers career really over at 27 y/o...

This much is known, he hasn't been good or healthy in three straight years. His last good year was in 2006 when he made 34 starts going 12-12 with an ERA of 3.87. The next season he made 35 starts but his ERA ballooned to 5.17 with a record of 10-15. His last two years in Detroit he's only made 14 starts with a combined ERA over 8.

This spring he is ranked 6th on the rotational depth chart and while his spring training numbers are decent, his fastball is topping out at 89 MPH. He's appeared in four games, two were starts for a total of 10 innings in which his ERA is 0.90, he's allowed 1 ER off five hits, five walks and two hit bats men while striking out six.

He's always been an Omar favorite and if he's released it wouldn't surprise me to see him signed on a minor league deal as a reclamation project.

Willis has shown better control during his Grapefruit League stints. But he no longer has the fastball, or the repertoire, that's fundamental to beating big-league teams. He can get the ball over the plate. But he isn't fooling any hitters.

I suspect the Tigers have been preparing all along on having to absorb one of their starting pitcher's contracts in 2010, and Willis ($12 million salary) looks as if he will be the casualty. source The Detroit News