QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, KUDOS & CONCERNS

By:  Kurt Snyder & Holly Horning

October baseball is living up to its billing as ex-Tigers have been impacting games, both positively and negatively. So, there is plenty to talk about, of course.

Saturday’s segment is a day to touch on as many issues as possible. Let’s see what Kurt and Holly have on their minds this week. They don’t share their Saturday topics and it’s only for the readers’ benefit. So expect a wide array of thoughts.

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 KURT

CONCERN

Leave our game alone; quit messing with it! When a baserunner is at risk of being picked off or called out when his foot comes off the bag for half a second, we have a rule to change. Once again, the sanctity of the game is being affected, and it has cost a team a shot at advancing in the playoffs; it took 2 angles placed side by side to determine that the tag and the foot off the bag were taking place simultaneously and that ain’t right.

COMMENT

It looks like MLB teams now have a reason to add another position to their executive staffs. Without rehashing the dreaded 5th inning in Washington on Thursday night (you’re welcome, Max), it appears teams need to have their own rules official so they can quickly site rules on the spot when umpires are falsely making their own judgements and casting the book aside. Washington and Mr. Scherzer got shafted my friends; I hope the Cubs know how fortunate they are that rules were not properly enforced during Game 5.

QUESTION

What topic is more compelling, the Tigers search for a new manager or Dave Dombrowski’s search in Boston? Just for entertainment purposes alone, I hope the Red Sox hire Ausmus, even though I would fear for Brad’s sanity when having to face the blood thirsty fans and media in Beantown. I still find it very hard to understand how Dombrowski would still consider him, given his failed experience in Detroit; this goes far beyond Brad’s numbers and is centered squarely on a man who commands very little respect.

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HOLLY

COMMENT

The Tigers’ Communications staff has been the hardest-working department in the entire organization with their constant stories about why Miggy wasn’t performing this year. Before his back injuries came to light, they flooded the media with stories about Cabrera’s mother and the strife in Venezuela to generate sympathy and quell the growing public concerns. I am reminded of this concerted effort while I watched Miggy’s best friend, Jose Altuve, who is also from Miggy’s hometown, having his best year ever, hitting 3 HRs in one playoff game and is in the running for AL MVP – and who never once mentioned or was asked about his homeland problems.

COMMENT

Several in the media have mentioned that Dave Dombrowski has only hired 1 solid manager (Jim Leyland) in his entire career. And now he is faced with having waited too long to fire John Farrell and, in the process, losing the highly favored Torey Lovullo who took his new team to the playoffs this year. How interested he may become in Brad Ausmus will tell us a lot about how Dave now views his managerial decision in Detroit – that is, unless Boston’s most highly-paid player, David Price, weighs in with his less-than-favorable opinion.

KUDOS

I dislike them with every fiber of my being, but you gotta admire the way the Yankees did their NY-minute rebuild in less than a year. They ripped that band-aid off and made bold decisions about releasing players, cutting payroll and not being timid about remaking the roster. Let’s hope that Al Avila learns from their moves and finally gets inspired to pull the trigger and make tougher and bigger decisions in a more timely fashion.