sabretooth

I think this is the right "take" on the deal. I don't think there was or is any "secret sauce" with Paredes or hidden problems with Meadows. Paredes may be able to carry this jump-start forward, but I think after this current hot streak, Paredes will settle back to where he was (and still IS) projected to be, which is a decent to good on-base guy with some pop. Meadows just needs Steve Austin bionics (not the wrestler, the TV character), not much to ask for. And yeah, I grabbed Josh Lowe for my Fantasy Team and already dropped him...his stock as a prospect has gone from high to zero in just a couple of terrible months, especially for a 24-year old with a lot of minor league mileage and only one really "plus" year at AAA in 2021 to show for it.

Obviously I was referring to the kind of "gotcha" headline you said would happen if he dared to make any kind of balanced observation about the team. What is the point of reading or responding to the rest of your post if you are going to make a mockery of a respectful question.

....and as much as I want Avila gone, and as lopsidedly bad as the Paredes/Meadows trade has been to-date, it's ridiculous to me to suggest that anyone guessed or knew how this would shake out. All of the preseason projection services had Paredes pegged for mediocre power (415 - 425 SLG and mid-100's ISO), not a 600 SLG and 25% HR/FB ratio. He hasn't changed his launch angle or his FB approach as a hitter, so it's not obvious yet that Tampa's people unlocked something in his swing, though that's possible. Maybe just maybe he's having a really hot stretch. And c'mon, nobody could have predicted that Meadows would suffer the plagues of Job. If someone can explain to me how Meadows various health problems are tied together and/or could have been predicted, that's one thing, but what has happened to him is just really, really bad luck. I'll make a deal -- I'll agree that Avila should have known that this trade would not work out, if somehow that claim gets Avila fired -- otherwise I'm sticking to my guns on this.

He's had a really bad 5 game stretch but do you honestly think that Skubal is broken? He's had 5 game slumps before.

Can you provide any example where an anodyne comment by an owner in Detroit was turned into such a headline? I can't. You're acting like this is the WH Press Corps and Ilitch is Richard Nixon or something.

We need John Wick.

Give me a break.....he didn't have to act like Jim from Taxi. The only thing that would have been stupider is if he had rolled some 80's montage about how the Tigers are improving.

What the ****???!!???? Chris Ilitch is the stupidest owner this side if WCFS. We are completely effed. Forever.

Oh, boy it would be nice to see Haase get it going.

Some guys focus on the last 90 at bats and nothing else. And salaries. Because thats even more important than the last 90 at bats. Which is more important than the last 900. Or the next 900.

Agree

Yeah, I wasnt trying to suggest that getting rid of Pena made them a better team talent wise, but rather that it helped Leyland make a point, for better or worse. It was strange that Pena was not played or traded by BOS in 2006, then was dealt to Tampa and was nearly (or actually? I cant recall) the MVP in 2007.

Well I accept that, it tracks with UZR and DRS. He must be the master at positioning himself. He doesnt seem fleet or quick to the ball to my eye.

I dont have a strong feeling against DFAing both, but Grossman is at least trying hard. When I saw Harold Castro fail to chase a catchable foul ball last night, I became alarmed. I realize that hes an externally laid back guy, but at this point, hes essentially our most productive player by far, on a team thats mightily struggling, and he dogged a play. The way that some guys are approaching at bats and plays makes me truly wonder if they all need a serious kick in the ass. For example, I always objected and still object to them getting rid of Carlos Pena before 2006, because I liked him, and he was a good player....and of course, he did have some ***really*** good seasons after that with the Rays. However, getting rid of Carlos was part of what allowed Leyland to shape the team's attitude and personality into a winner, ehile he and DD also brought better players to bear. I dont want to see them get rid of a young and good player like Carlos was, but I do think that *somebody* in mangement needs to instill a sense of urgency.

The difference to me is that Grossman is playing hard and making some defensive plays. Schoop is just flat-out dogging **every** at-bat, not extending at-bats or fighting for pitches, hes jogging on every run-out, and I cannot remember thr last time he made a plus defensive play. I liked the Schoop contract well enough at the time, but he is currently a terrible and counterproductive fit for this club.

I hate to even suggest this, because its totally against my nature to want to do something rash, but the way that Schoop has been dogging it everywhere, I honestly think I would DFA him just to make a point.

nope

can Schoop find a pulse

4 runs might as well be a million

Schoop looks like hes hitting in slow motion

going for 3rd with 2 outs....

I would also add that less than one week ago, they were in pretty good shape, having won 14 out of 25 games. The Chicago series was a total disaster, a shock to the system, everything failed dramaticallly. The loss last night is a dick-punch. But if their hitters hit the way they have in the past 3 years, they will be a lot closer to what we thought they would be in 2022. Get Pineda and Eduardo back and pitching well, and maybe we're a decent team, or even a good team. I can't argue with the disappointment vs. what we hoped for, but if people are angry about this season so far and weren't expressing anger before about 2017 - 2020, then I don't want to hear it.

Yeah, it would be unbelievably stupid for them to fire AJ and leave AA in place. AJ is the only person in this organization that has brought a modicum of success. Their problems this year are with towering injuries and an inexplicable inability for anybody to hit the ball. Both of those might reflect on AJ, or not. Regardless of whether AJ should be held accountable for the mess this year so far, the major problem with this team is a lack of talent beyond those that they have either spent huge losses on (tank picks like Manning, Mize, Tork, Greene, Jobe), FA contracts on, or trades....while that might work with superior FA signings and trades, with Avila, the FAs and trades AND tank picks are just not good enough to carry the total lack of D/D.

Even without the good D/D we can still get there if we commit to doing the right things now. They are not really "stuck" anywhere with long-term committments or overhang. They can turn on a dime. They can't count on future draft picks to help in the short-term, but they still have a lot of resources to put on the table, especially when Miggy, Grossman, and other contracts roll-off in the near future. If they are going to pick up Miggy's option, that had better be for pure PR and not count against the team's performance needs, which are very significant. Also, it should be obvious that their entire lineup isn't going to continue to have 50-60 OPS+ for the balance of the season! Their skill level HAS to come through at some point. They are not this bad.

Yeah, I was being a little sarcastic.....to blame things right now on FAs is so myopic. At some point there has to be a consensus realization that Avila is a shitty GM....he sucked when he first had a big payroll, he sucked trying to tear it down and firesale the veterans, he sucked trying to rebuild, he sucked at bringing in the right developmental platform and personnel before last year, he sucked at drafting, he sucked at development. He's made a couple of decent to good trades here and there, and a couple of good FA signings here and there, and he hired AJ, which I think has been a plus, but overall, it's so painfully obvious that Avila sucks that I cannot believe when I see a myopic focus on a certain aspect of failure separate from Avila's ultimate responsibility. Now, that having been said, Avila sucking means that Chris I ALSO sucks, since he kept Avila around year after year when it was also obvious from the get-go that Avila couldn't do ***anything*** at an above average level.....every year that ticked by saw increasing evidence that Avila was in waaayyyy over his head from the minute he was hired as GM in 2015 by Mike I. Chris took his sorry GM and gave him ZERO resources, probably because Avila understood and confirmed Chris's bias/desire to build the team as if it was the Roaring '20s (1920s), and to spend/risk zero dollars on anybody. Avila can't do anything about the fact that he's a sorry GM. But Chris can always change his mind, hire the right GM, and give him the proper resources and hold him accountable for results. To the extent that Chris continues to refuse to do any of these things, HE is the fly in the ointment with this team. Firing Avila is an obvious move, which is overdue by at least 5 years, but firing Avila won't mean a thing if Chris I doesn't shape up his approach to hiring, spending, and so on. And for those who are going to respond negatively to this, I am NOT demanding/supporting/asking for a big payroll....as I've said thousands of times over the last 5+ years, I just want to see an average payroll as a floor. They are kinda there, but I'll believe that they are committed to an average payroll after Miggy's contract rolls off and they reinvest that $$ in other talent.