Cabrera headed for his worst season?

LAKELAND, Fla.

Miguel Cabrera is facing charges of impaired driving and resisting arrest in Fort Pierce, Fla. He is undergoing treatment for what team and league officials (though not Cabrera himself) have described as an alcohol addiction.

You knew that much already. But new information emerged Wednesday evening.

TheSmokingGun.com published documents detailing Cabrera’s Feb. 16 arrest. According to one, Cabrera created a disturbance at a steakhouse, at one point saying, “I will kill all of you and blow this place up.” Another said he brandished his middle finger at a police officer and wandered in the middle of a Florida highway, shouting, “(Expletive) shoot me! Kill me!”

Even if the incident itself is three weeks old, the report was chilling. Cabrera is the face of the Detroit Tigers, a superstar who finished second in balloting for the American League MVP award.

Obviously, he was drunk. He doesn’t behave that way at the ballpark. He was quite cordial, in fact, when I interviewed him Wednesday. We conversed briefly in Spanish at the end. He complimented my efforts to learn the language. He told me that when we speak at this time next year, I won’t need to fall back on my English. He smiled.

And then this.

Whether or not Cabrera reads news reports about himself, these revelations won’t help him get ready for the season — and could hurt his defense in court, thus prolonging off-the-field distractions.

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Cabrera declined to address non-baseball subjects during our interview, several hours before the Detroit News and Free Press published the new information from police reports. When asked about Raul Gonzalez, the companion mandated by his treatment program, Cabrera said, “Next question.”

To follow-ups on off-the-field subjects, he repeated the response. Next question. He wanted to talk only about baseball.

The news isn’t terribly encouraging there, either. In his first 23 at-bats this spring, the big guy is batting .174.

“He’s not ready,” manager Jim Leyland acknowledged Wednesday. “He’s still in the process of getting himself in baseball shape.”

And when will that process be complete?

“Probably real late in spring,” Leyland said. “He’ll be ready on cue.”

Maybe so. But at the moment, I’m not convinced that the Tigers can count on the same .328 batting average, 38 home runs and 126 RBI that Cabrera produced last year.

This is Cabrera’s fourth season as a Tiger, and we can safely say that he is in the midst of his worst spring training with the team — statistically, personally, legally, totally. And that’s relevant for a slugger whose production has followed a curious pattern since he arrived in Detroit.

He had his best spring in 2010. He had his best regular season in 2010.

He had his second-best spring in 2009. He had his second-best regular season in 2009.

He had his worst spring in 2008. He had his worst season in 2008.

“Worst,” of course, is a relative term. Cabrera had a so-so .816 OPS in the spring of ’08 and started the regular season slowly. He had ordinary numbers at the end of June — a .281 average, 11 home runs — before finishing with a flourish. He ended up leading the American League with 37 homers, but the Tigers finished in last place.

For Cabrera, the season began with a $141 million contract extension and ended in disappointment.

Cabrera faced considerable scrutiny that season because of his blockbuster trade, staggering contract and World Series expectations. But the difference between that year and this year is something like the competitive chasm between the Big East and Big Sky.

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“What pressure you talking about?” Cabrera replied when I asked if he feels the need for a strong showing this spring. “I don’t know what pressure you’re talking about. You have to be ready to play. That’s it.”

I asked how high his expectations are for himself.

“What are your expectations about us?” he answered.

I think the Tigers will be pretty good, I told him.

“Me too,” he said.

It’s nice that Cabrera is thinking about his team, but the burden on his broad shoulders is greater than ever before. The reports on Wednesday night — the three-week anniversary of the traffic stop heard ’round baseball — reinforced that to anyone who might have forgotten.

And since Cabrera won’t address matters that reach beyond the foul lines, we’re left to speculate whether there could be a link between the alcohol issues and his play thus far.

A number of people with the organization, from club president Dave Dombrowski to multiple players, told me that Cabrera has hit several line drives this spring that gusting winds have turned into outs.

At the same time, here’s what I saw in Wednesday’s 5-3 loss to Philadelphia: Twice he struck out on pitches outside the strike zone, recalling a habit he fell into in pressure situations three years ago. Twice he couldn’t come up with ground balls that a more nimble first baseman might have turned into outs.

Cabrera looks heavier than he was at any time last year. He is not moving particularly well in the field. He looked a little anxious at the plate Wednesday.

“I feel good, you know?” he told me. “I’ve got my approach. That’s why we’re playing in spring training. I’ve got to make adjustments.”

Yes. He does.