Tigers sign Schoop, Cron to 1-year deals

The Detroit Tigers were busy Saturday.

Detroit announced the signings of second baseman Jonathan Schoop and first baseman C.J. Cron to one-year deals, adding some much-needed power to a team that ranked last in the AL in home runs in 2019.

"Adding Jonathan and C.J. is a step towards accomplishing our offseason goal of making the ballclub better heading into the 2020 season," Tigers executive vice president of baseball operations and general manager Al Avila said. "We’re excited to have them join our organization, and we expect both players will inject significant power to our lineup. Defensively, C.J. will provide stability at first base, while Jonathan will lead the middle of our infield."

Both players will earn $6.1 million for the season, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports.

Schoop and Cron spent the 2018 season as teammates on the division-rival Minnesota Twins.

While Schoop was slated for free agency following the 2019 season, Cron was eligible for arbitration. However, the Twins non-tendered the slugger, who subsequently hit the open market.

Schoop, 28, hit .256/.304/.473 with 23 homers and 23 doubles over 121 games last season.

The former All-Star is slated to be the everyday second baseman for the Tigers, who deployed Ronny Rodriguez, Gordon Beckham, Harold Castro, and Josh Harrison at the position last year. Detroit ranked worst in baseball at production from second base, according to FanGraphs' WAR.

Meanwhile, Cron posted a .253/.311/.469 slash line with 25 homers and 24 doubles. The 29-year-old is one season removed from a 30-homer campaign with the Tampa Bay Rays.