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TWO FOR TUESDAY

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By:  Holly Horning & Kurt Snyder

Welcome to Week 3 of the 2018 Post Season! And for Tiger fans, well, we are quite familiar with plenty of these players still at work in the playoffs.

Now that we are down to the Final Four, 2 teams have emerged as the battle of the heavyweights in the AL. The team with the best record versus the defending World Champs.

As always, our writers have not shared their responses to the topic below in the interests of offering a range of perspective. So what will readers get today as Holly and Kurt address a question about the Astros and Red Sox.

What are our two bloggers’ thoughts and feelings about the Astros – Red Sox playoffs?

HOLLY

I’ve already let it be known how bittersweet it is seeing so many ex-Tigers not only getting into the playoffs, but being catalysts for their teams’ success. I am thrilled for each one but also can’t help having feelings of extreme disappointment coupled with a dash of anger over how they were all together in Detroit and couldn’t get it done.

And it further rubs salt into the wounds to also know that the Tigers are paying the salaries of 4 ex-players, including JV, to perform in October for other teams.

But if I had to pick a side, it would be rooting for the Astros. Not just for JV, who deserves every accolade, but because Houston plays the game the way it should be. They are solid in every category, play hard and show such a great love of the game.

As for Boston, I wish Kinsler, Price, Porcello and JD well – but I don’t want them to win. Part of it goes back to the gut-wrenching playoffs with them in 2013 symbolized by the vision of the Boston police officer celebrating instead of rushing to Torii Hunter’s aid.

But it would also be too painful to see so many Tigers get it done for another team when they were unable to do it in Detroit. And there is a big part of me that doesn’t want to see Dave Dombrowski get that ring because it would really open a Pandora’s box of concerns about why one of baseball’s best rosters and pitching rotations for nearly a decade couldn’t get it done in Motown.

KURT

Was I alone in wondering why, prior to the start of the playoffs, the Astros were being mysteriously forgotten and rarely mentioned?

Not surprisingly, baseball’s rivalry took center stage instead. The 108-win Red Sox vs. the 100-win Yanks, the series many wanted the most, overshadowed the whooping that Houston put on the Indians.

The Astros are the best team in baseball; only getting better this season by upgrading at starting pitcher, catcher and at closer. But even with all of that, they got no love and I would guess they have enjoyed being in an odd  position – out of the spotlight as defending World Champs.

I don’t think anyone beats the Astros this season, and conquering the Red Sox along the way would make it even sweeter. The last thing I want is for Dave Dombrowski to spend 14 years in Detroit without winning a title, and then go on and win one somewhere else.

I feel like it would be sweet justice if Dombrowski led a team to the most wins in all of baseball, but still didn’t have the best team or win a title; this reflects a lot of jealousy, but it would be the least of a plethora of emotions we all suffered through over the last several years of failing to win.

Meanwhile, the Astros, led again by Justin Verlander, have now conveniently emerged as everyone’s favorites to repeat, which is just fine with me.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

TWO FOR TUESDAY

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By:  Holly Horning & Kurt Snyder

Welcome to Week 2 of the 2018 Post Season! And for Tiger fans, well, we are quite familiar with plenty of these players still at work in the playoffs.

And this quite quickly brings us to this week’s Tuesday topic.

As always, our writers have not shared their responses to the topic below in the interests of offering a range of perspective. So what will readers get today as Holly and Kurt address a question about former Tigers?

There are 21 former Tigers in the playoffs this year. What are our two bloggers’ thoughts about seeing these guys who used to wear the Olde English D?

HOLLY

I am thrilled for Justin Verlander, JD Martinez, Ian Kinsler, Anibal Sanchez and the others who are still in the mix this October and deserve all this good fortune. However, forgive me if I also feel a whole heapin’ helping of frustration and anger about all the lost opportunities when they were in Detroit.

In 2014, the Tigers ALDS starting rotation consisted of 3 Cy Young Award (and 1 future) winners – Scherzer, Verlander, Price and Porcello – and yet they got swept by Baltimore. How does something like this happen, especially when it is known that great pitching almost always beats great hitting?

And now that all these stars have left Detroit, they are universally recognized as instrumental players who got their teams to the playoffs and have helped them survive these October games. JV went 16-9 (2.52 ERA), Porcello 17-7 and even Anibal finished above .500. JD’s offensive stats were last achieved by Ted Williams and Jimmie Foxx on his newest team – and most recently in all of MLB by Miguel Cabrera.

Even those in the national media joke about the “ex-Tiger effect” that is proving formidable for the new teams. And if that’s not enough, it is painful to know that the Tigers are paying most or all of the salaries of Verlander, Sanchez, Fiers and Martin while other teams are reaping the benefits.

For the Tigers to have such a tremendous amount of talent for over a decade and to achieve exactly 1 game win in the World Series is painful, totally inexcusable and requires an in-depth soul-searching mission and accountability review by the organization. #neverforget

KURT

What stands out the most is how many of the former Tigers have significant roles. They are still, or have become, difference makers for their individual clubs.

JV, of course, is a home-grown Tiger success story, and still sits near the top of the league as one of the game’s best. JD represents a find by the Tigers, from the Astros of all teams, as someone who had been on the scrap heap, but who the Tigers had kept their eyes on a player they felt  had much more to give.. He now sits near the top of the game as one of the most feared power hitters.

And even Anibal Sanchez, who many can admit, seemed only destined for retirement after he left Detroit, had a comeback season in Atlanta and has already started a game in the playoffs; simply amazing in itself.

In Milwaukee, Cory Knebel and Joakim Soria, Tigers who were traded for each other, now play key roles on a Brewer team with a great shot at going to the Series.

All of these and others stand near the top of the heap when we consider all whom the Tigers have let go and are still very much alive and well. They represent what could have been; they represent missed opportunities. So many great players wore the D, and they have all left the city without a single ring; something that is still hard to explain.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

NOTABLE NEWS

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By:  Kurt Snyder & Holly Horning

With the MLB playoffs in full swing, certainly anything about the Tigers could be overshadowed. But not here! There is always something published here to ponder.

Kurt and Holly don’t normally share their topics with each other in the interests of getting a wider range of perspectives. During any given week, they could head in a number of directions.

Let’s see where they ended up based on what has transpired this week.

KURT

Times have certainly changed when a player, not the team, says goodbye and in essence announces he will not be returning to the team.

The departure of Jose Iglesias signals just another sad day for the Tiger organization, as just one more exemplary talent is wasted in Detroit. Certainly for me, when it comes to Iggy, seeing him walk is a painful realization.

Iggy may not have hit the way everyone would have liked but he won games defensively, with a flair that entertained fans and energized the team.

Watching the golden arm of JV and the powerful bat of JD exit Detroit was rough on fans. And now with Iggy’s exit from Detroit, it takes another bite out of the talent base.

I understand how the shortstop position has evolved into an infield spot that demands both offensive and defensive production, but Iggy was a special talent, who impacted games with his tremendous play at short; a gifted player who won’t soon be forgotten.

HOLLY

The news that Jose Iglesias will not be back came as no surprise but the definitive answer he posted on social media makes us ask questions about him – and the Tigers’ future plans.

First of all, why have the Tigers been trying to trade him, and his exceptional glove, for over 2 years – and why have there been no takers? Could his offensive skills really be the sole reason or are other factors, potentially personality issues, that helped determine his future – and his overall desirability to other teams?

Did the Tigers flat-out tell him that they would never have the money to re-sign him or did Iggy tell the team that he would not be interested in returning to them?

Usually, when players leave, both sides diplomatically leave things hanging about whether we may see the player return. But Jose posted his farewell right after the last day of the season so it’s obvious that discussions and decisions had been made well before the season ended.

If the Tigers are rebuilding or prepping to sell the team, cutting this salary makes sense but what doesn’t is getting absolutely nothing in return for him when the team is desperate for both a capable shortstop and the urgent need to restock their farm system.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

TWO FOR TUESDAY

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By: Holly Horning & Kurt Snyder

Welcome to Week 1 of the 2018 off-season! Does it get any better than this?

This week kicks off Totally Tigers’ discussion of Year 1 of the rebuild. There will be plenty of questions to answer and plenty of analysis as we head into Fall, Winter and Spring Training 2019. So what topic will we tackle first?

As always, our writers have not shared their responses to the topic below in the interests of offering a good range of perspective. So what will readers get today as Holly and Kurt address a question about this past season?

What are your overall thoughts and review of the 2018 season?

HOLLY

I thought this year was going to be really bad and completely unwatchable but was surprised (pleasantly) at times. Unlike last year, there was regular late-inning fight by the team early in the year, a number of games that were more enjoyable than those from 2017 and a team that managed to stay within 1 game of .500 until June 17th.

But gradually, the increased smoke from an impending fire grabbed my attention more. The numerous core injuries including 2 from players who were simply running out a ball to first base, combined with the same big names who get injured every year, speak of a runaway disaster of a training and conditioning program that will continue to bite the team every single year and ruin talent and dreams.

The players I expected the most from disappointed and the ones barely on the radar added some luster to a season desperately in need of some positive news. Al Avila’s talent is digging through the bargain basement bin to find some diamonds in the rough, but I’ve yet to see anything approaching hopeful in any other parts of his job, especially when it comes to successfully trading players.

The best part was not hearing the moronic, defeatist comments anymore from the former manager and instead listening to a skipper who is candid, has a quick wit and was able to re-establish harmony within the clubhouse. While I was disappointed in the lack of improvement re fundamentals, I have to think that Gardy is behind the Lakeland meeting to finally get the organization and players to adopt the Tigers’ Way manual developed 3 years ago – and ignored until now.

But this year isn’t quite finished yet and it’s the next couple of months that will be most telling about where this organization and team are headed. More trades (or giveaways) will be challenging, more holes will be created, veteran leadership could all but disappear and this rebuild that is still tearing down could get much uglier, especially if the Royals and White Sox show visible improvement.

KURT

Early in the year, the Tigers would field a lineup anchored by Miggy, VMart and Castellanos. With Iggy still at short for another season, a promising outlook for Dixon Machado at second, and a good-looking rookie at third, it seemed things could be worse, with a real shot at improving on a 98-loss season.

There would be defensive challenges in the outfield, and a serious lack of stability in the bullpen. The starting pitching success would hinge on hopes that Michael Fulmer would look like an ace, Jordan Zimmermann would overcome early injury concerns, Matthew Boyd would continue to develop and Daniel Norris would finally fight off injuries and emerge.

Take the good out of paragraph #1 and the only ones who impressed in 2018 were Castellanos, Iglesias and to a lesser extent, Candelario.

Grab the best out of paragraph #2 and only Matthew Boyd remained as someone who made progress in 2018.

Injuries dominated and decimated this Tiger team; with a training staff now under tremendous scrutiny as a result of the same type injuries hitting player after player; they dropped like flies and the losses, consequently, mounted.

The hopes for the future reside within the following players: Niko Goodrum, JaCoby Jones, Jeimer Candelario, Joe Jimenez and Victor Alcantara.

As we bid adieu to 2018, Ron Gardenhire has proven to be the right guy to get this clubhouse in order, stress improved fundamentals (still a work in progress) and instill a strong work ethic for his team. We leave still puzzled about the passion of our ownership and the ability of our GM to execute a plan, assuming there is one.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

NOTABLE NEWS

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By:  Kurt Snyder & Holly Horning

Even though we are following a team that is playing out the string in September, there is still news. There is always something published here to ponder.

Kurt and Holly don’t normally share their topics with each other in the interests of getting a wider range of perspectives. During any given week, they could head in a number of directions.

Let’s see where they ended up based on what has transpired this week heading into last night’s game in Milwaukee.

KURT

The news surrounding Dan Gilbert’s supposed interest in purchasing the Tigers was met with the usual answer from the Ilitch family. They aren’t selling – something they have stood by every time the subject comes up.

So why does it keep coming up and why is there a continued desire, by the fan base, for new ownership? Well, Chris Ilitch, to this point, does not strike anyone as an owner with any kind of passion or urgency to win. He primarily stays behind the scenes and when he does speak, there are generalizations and scripted responses to questions.

We all know this team won’t win overnight; it’s not the way rebuilds work. More importantly, we have ownership doing nothing about how the franchise is structured; people in key positions are setting this team up for failure for the long haul unless Chris wakes up and responds to all the mold growing inside the walls of the organization.

HOLLY

There are signs that the Tigers and Fox Sports Detroit are closing in on a decision regarding next year’s broadcasters.

Within the media world, no one gets hired until they have gone through extensive test marketing in order to ascertain chemistry and receive positive feedback from focus groups who watch and rate the pairings. In the month since the removal of Mario Impemba and Rod Allen, new and old faces from both radio and tv are being test-driven with the combo of Matt Shepard and Kirk Gibson resulting in a pleasant pairing that has seen Gibby’s on-air banter improve.

But Gibson, admitting that Parkinson’s has taken a bigger toll on him and Jack Morris, who is wedded to his home state where he is also raising a second family, have created a situation where Dan “Peaches” Petry will probably step in after years of offering temporary guest commentary and the current one-month trial. There is the added bonus of having an established relationship with FSD and his former teammate, Gibby, which enhances the comfort and banter factors.

And with viewership going nowhere but down, adding former Tigers with World Series rings who can share stories of the glory days, will help stem the viewer bleeding.

As for Mario and Rod, both the Tigers and FSD are likely to make a clean break and not renew either one’s contracts in order to minimize any controversy arising from retaining one or the other.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

TWO FOR TUESDAY

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By:  Holly Horning & Kurt Snyder

As we enter into the final week of the season for the Tigers, it’s not too early to begin reflecting back on who made the biggest impacts on this version of baseball in Detroit.

We will have all of the off-season to analyze the roster and any changes that are made. But what about Ron Gardenhire and his staff?

As always, our writers have not shared their responses in the interests of offering a range of perspectives. So what will readers get today as Holly and Kurt address a question about the staff who led the team this season?

Which coach (including Gardy) performed the best this year and why?

HOLLY

The best coach has only had the job for just short of 3 months and was Ron Gardenhire’s choice – but not the Tigers, who selected Chris Bosio instead.

Rick Anderson, who took a step down by becoming the bullpen coach, inherited the job he should have had in the first place and showed a marked change in the performance of multiple pitchers in the second half of the season.

I don’t remember any pitchers, for years, giving their pitching coach credit the way a number of Tigers have been lauding Anderson’s work with them – Matthew Boyd, Drew VerHagen, Joe Jimenez, Buck Farmer and others. The latter who bluntly stated that he wished Anderson had been with the team 4 years ago, throwing shade on both Jeff Jones and Rich Dubee.

Under Anderson, Boyd regained his fastball, VerHagen’s performance has leveled out to where he is now posting a 2.21 ERA under Anderson’s tutelage and Jimenez has regained his edge and confidence – important for the closer-in-waiting.

Granted, there is still a distance to go but in comparison to the other coaches, Anderson has shown distinct and consistent results from multiple players. We can’t say the same about the rest, including Dave Clark, who oversees the daily chaos in the outfield where you now wonder how many collisions or near-misses will happen every day.

KURT

Just as I was about to talk up the Tigers’ coach who has made the biggest difference this season, I found an article on him in one of the local rags, so I will shift the discussion in a more unique direction.

Ron Gardenhire, as it turned out, had made a wise choice for his bullpen coach, a trusted friend from his days in Minnesota, Rick Anderson. And little did he know how important the choice would be. Chris Bosio, a high-profile pitching coach who had been fired by the Cubs, was someone the Tigers felt they needed to grab, instead of showing good faith in their manager.

Bosio turned out to be the absolute wrong choice, for reasons we won’t bring up again. But, having Rick Anderson on staff allowed him to smoothly transition into the familiar spot as pitching coach for Gardenhire.

And the results, to us maybe, have been a pleasant surprise; but I doubt they are a surprise to Gardy. The pitching staff has responded to Anderson’s tutelage and they have grown, which for 2018, is what we wanted.

Hopefully the Tigers will start learning a valuable lesson and asking themselves one simple question: Do you trust the men you have hired? Then let them do their jobs!

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

NOTABLE NEWS

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By:  Kurt Snyder & Holly Horning

Even though we are following a team that is playing out the string in September, there is still news. There is always something published here to ponder.

Holly and Kurt don’t normally share their topics with each other in the interests of getting a wider range of perspective. During any given week, they could head in a number of directions.

Let’s see where they ended up based on what has transpired this week heading into last night’s game at home against the Royals.

KURT

Christin Stewart, all season, was considered one of the better Tiger prospects and on Thursday night, he had a coming out party as he celebrated his promotion to the big club by clubbing 2 homers and driving in 6 runs.

That’s the good news, but the bad news is that his defensive reputation, just like his offensive power, has preceded him.

And it bothers me that one of our best prospects has a major hole in his game. When we are talking about a top prospect, I would hope his talents go beyond his ability to hit the ball out of the park.

JaCoby Jones has struggled at the plate, but provides other opportunities to win games as shown by his speed and athleticism in the field and on the base paths; all of which makes him worthy of  further evaluation.

On the other hand, Stewart doesn’t strike me as a player who will get a long leash playing for a manager like Ron Gardenhire who places importance on players who can help win games all over the field.

Christin will need to prove everyone wrong by working hard on his defensive game in the off-season, which he will need to improve to be considered part of the future mix in the Tiger outfield.

HOLLY

The state of the game is increasingly getting more press by those who feel baseball will lose fans if it continues along the same path.

The latest stats show that balls are put into play only 40% of the time and for the first time ever, there are more strikeouts in MLB than there are hits. If you think the Tigers’ individual batting averages are low, keep in mind that the average BA in all of baseball is around .240. This is similar to the early 1970’s – and a time when the DH was introduced to help counteract the drop in hits.

The evolution of pitchers, as well as analytics, have factored into these changes. Pitchers are throwing harder and harder which makes hitting singles, let alone bunting, not a good option. This is one reason why hitters are boom or bust – trying for home runs or striking out in their attempts.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

TWO FOR TUESDAY

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By:  Holly Horning & Kurt Snyder

With 2 weeks left in the season, contending teams are fighting for their playoff lives. But if there has been any kind of race when it comes to the most injuries in a month, the Tigers have eclipsed their magic number, popped the champagne and won the title going away.

Unfortunately, the injury bug is still on our minds; and at the top of the heap sits a starting pitcher who has had his fair share of ailments.

As always, our writers have not shared their responses in the interests of offering a range of perspective. So what will readers get today as Holly and Kurt address a question about Michael Fulmer?

It’s been a challenging year for Michael Fulmer. How much hope do you have about him going forward?

HOLLY

It was only revealed on Saturday by the tv broadcasters that Fulmer has been having knee problems most of the year – and that it was well-known in the clubhouse. They further commented that when you are ailing elsewhere, especially your lower body, that you change your mechanics and delivery as a way to compensate for the other injury.

It is somewhat comforting that this is probably not fully attributable to his arm but to being thrown off by another injury. What is troubling is the season-long knee injury and the attempt to continue pitching him while he had it. Was it Michael insisting on playing or was it a desperate attempt by the Tigers to showcase him for the purpose of trading?

And when you are favoring part of your body, your alignment gets thrown out of whack and you can suffer an injury elsewhere – like an oblique that puts you on the DL. It is wholly disturbing that the Tigers never mentioned the knee problem at all this year nor publicly admitted that the oblique injury could be the result of ignoring his knee pain. This really smacks of either gross negligence or a team just trying to hide what is really going on because their priority was trying to unload a player for prospects.

Equally troubling is the fact that, yet once again, a player has an injury that goes on forever and never gets resolved. I hope he has several long chats with his continued mentor, Justin Verlander, who will guide him to seeking better medical care and training advice because Fulmer’s biggest obstacle to his success is the Tigers’ medical/training/conditioning staff – and not for a lack of talent.

KURT

Is there anything more maddening about the Tigers’ starting pitching than Michael Fulmer – other than Jordan Zimmermann of course.

Let me begin my answering the question about how much hope I have about Fulmer going forward. I have no hope. How much have I pleaded to people to understand how important it was to unload Fulmer while he still had value – more times than I can count.

He had been a ticking time bomb of a pitcher since before the Tigers even traded for him. Elbow issues and meniscus tears were part of his injury history before he came to Detroit.

The injury bug continues to find Michael Fulmer, and after he heals and comes back, it isn’t for very long. When he hasn’t been hurt, he has been good, but who knows how truly healthy he has been this season, as he has suffered from both oblique and now meniscus problems again, which may require surgery, again.

This whole Fulmer train is heading in a worrisome direction, and has been since he was an All-Star. There has been more than an inkling that it may be wise to deal him before things got worse, but too late, they have and he is still here.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

NOTABLE NEWS

/ totallytigersblog / 5 Comments

By:  Kurt Snyder & Holly Horning

Even though we are following a team that is playing out the string in September, there is still news. There is always something published here to ponder.

Holly and Kurt don’t normally share their topics with each other in the interests of getting a wider range of perspective. During any given week, they could head in a number of directions.

Let’s see where they ended up based on what has transpired this week heading into last night’s game in Cleveland against the Indians.

KURT

The Tigers waited for the right opportunity to bring Christian Stewart to Detroit. And if you have watched the games, the concerns in the outfield are real.

Stewart hasn’t played poorly, but he seems uncomfortable and doesn’t appear to have much of an arm.

And this will be the challenge for the Tigers if they firmly believe that his bat is enough to consider him for a starting spot on this team next season. They will have to run him through a complete course of Fundamentals 101 in order for him to have a shot to become an average outfielder, which is all they need if JaCoby Jones continues to anchor centerfield in 2019.

Spring training will be an important time for Stewart from a defensive standpoint. The Tigers need left-handed power, so he would be a critical piece if he can round out his game; if not, Christian may not be here long.

HOLLY

The Tigers have started to show their hand when it comes to planning next year’s outfield. If you count Niko Goodrum, they have 7 players to cover 3 outfield positions along with Adduci, Castellanos, Jones, Mahtook, Reyes and Stewart but realistically, the battle is between the latter 5.

Gardenhire has been told to play Stewart in LF as much as possible during this final month but his statements to Mahtook indicate that he is a serious candidate to stay in 2019. Other interviews hint that JaCoby is the clear favorite to man CF.

The big question mark is whether the Tigers hang onto Castellanos for his final year before free agency and thus an ever-decreasing value as a rental player. It will be a huge gamble to keep him next year, hoping that his stats continue to resemble this year’s. If they are able to trade Nick, then the Tigers have the preferable number of 4 surviving outfielders and if not, then 1 will have to go back to the minors – or to another team.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.

TWO FOR TUESDAY

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By:  Holly Horning & Kurt Snyder

With September baseball well underway, the Tigers are still celebrating. Yep, that’s right, it has been a year of celebration in Detroit, even though the product on the field hasn’t been that fun to watch. This Tuesday topic has everything to do with the events of this last weekend. It deserves a proper wrap-up.

As always, our writers have not shared their responses in the interests of offering a range of perspectives. So what will readers get today as Holly and Kurt address a question about the ’68 Tigers?

What are your thoughts about this past weekend’s celebration for the 50th anniversary of the 1968 World Championship team?

HOLLY

After listening to John Hiller’s comments about how cheap pre-Ilitch owners were when honoring the ’68 World Champions, it was good to see them receive better treatment this time ‘round.

Don’t get me wrong – I appreciated the event but it was tinged with some bittersweet thoughts. Grainy videos that no longer appear dated but lean towards antique and make us realize exactly how long ago this happened. The majority of the remaining players who attended obviously were suffering from significant health and ageing problems, including Al Kaline, who had to be helped up the stairs. Mickey Stanley, Trixie and ironically Hiller (he who suffered an early heart attack and then changed his lifestyle) were the only ones who appeared to have aged well.

Then you realize that this event was so important and unique because the Tigers have won so few World Series – 2 in the past 50 years. I doubt that the Yankees hang onto their teams’ winning memories as desperately as the Tigers cling and play up theirs.

But if you looked around the stadium, there were far fewer fans in attendance than the reported 30,000 attributed to season ticket holders. The stands were half empty and those who showed up were primarily older attendees, supporting the idea that many of today’s fans are not as connected to the past as the organization would hope.

The most eye-opening moment came from MLB Radio on Saturday morning as they interviewed many of the ’68 Tigers – and the revelation that after the 1967 season, Jim Campbell unsuccessfully tried to trade both Denny McLain and Al Kaline to the Twins for Jim Kaat because he believed the team needed better pitching going into 1968.

KURT

What the Tigers have done from a PR standpoint in all 3 celebrations over the last several weeks, is hit 3 consecutive home runs. Of course, recognizing stars and teams of the past is something they really couldn’t avoid this season, with 2 Hall of Fame inductions and a significant World Title anniversary.

The number retirement ceremonies of both Morris and Trammell were very well done and the team didn’t miss the mark with the 50th Anniversary of the 1968 World Champion Tigers. It was a weekend-long celebration which the team deserved, and I was happy to see that they spent some time at Michigan and Trumbull, where they clinched the pennant in 1968. All of their great memories of baseball in Detroit were realized at The Corner, so it was definitely a nice touch to have the team spend some time there.

What was most evident is that 50 years is a long time, and it showed as the players slowly made their way onto the field for the Saturday ceremony at Comerica Park. Sadly, we may have seen the last of most of these players, so it made it that much sweeter to see them all together.

It was a bittersweet celebration, but it was important to educate fans who were not familiar with the significance of this championship. This was no ordinary team and it was important to tell that story once again. Well done, Tigers.

Totally Tigers loves your comments!  But please remember that responses are only published if they address today’s topic, are respectful and do not exceed the maximum response length.  All rules are at:   https://totallytigers.wordpress.com/commentsrules/.