There is a balance there between panic and just poor performance. Justin Verlander have the Tigers facing that dilemma  with the way he has pitched lately. When an ERA is pushing five, a WHIP is rising above 1.6 and bats just are not being missed, it cannot be dismissed.
I've remember Verlander this bad before. Last season for a stretch. Throughout 2008. But it seems less certain he will snap out of it this time without some sort of action. You know, something like skipping a turn in the rotation to regroup.
But it's not like there are a lot of off days upcoming and the Tigers have a lot of depth in starting pitching.
The problem is, the Tigers' couldn't have expected this and don't have a Plan B. But it's why you have to be careful not to trade a commodity as valuable as Doug Fister, especially getting so little in return. It did help the Tigers ride through Verlander's tough times last season that they had Fister. Right now, they miss Fister more than they could have possibly imagined.