mtutiger

After multiple seasons of listening to his color commentary when he was with the Rangers, one gets the impression that, personality wise, he seems like the type who could rub people the wrong way anyway.

Also, despite the mention earlier in the thread of Chasen Shreve, Chafin leaving also led to Tyler Holton... like, do we know that Holton is even a significant member of last year's team (or even claimed) if Chafin is still in the picture? The Candelario thing, we've flogged it numerous times, but I get the frustration there even if I think it's more explainable than others do. Given what transpired last season, both with the Tigers and with Chafin, I cannot quite understand why people are *still* pointing to that as a demerit to the team / front office. It's wild to me.

I think you can be pro-player while still recognizing that this is a business and these negotiations have two parties who are going to negotiate their side to the best of their abilities. Fans hate it, understandably, because it isn't their money, but the fact that fans hate it doesn't make it not a reality. We've had this discussion in other contexts as well (ie. non-tenders during the last offseason, not gonna say the name because that horse has been flogged to death about 19 times). That said, even if the gap between the two sides is larger than published, the outcry isn't very surprising given how it looks.

Oblong and Ed have more or less covered anything I would say, but the only thing I'd add is that I highly doubt that this will have any impact whatsoever on the relationship between the team and Casey Mize. Zero.

Pretty sure I have said the same thing at various points?

They played him at 3B a lot down the stretch, and IIRC, commentary from the brass earlier in the offseason suggest that they plan on utilizing him at the position in 2024. I'll take them at their word there.... although ideally put me in the camp of wanting them to trade from their strengths to bring back talent if the opportunity presents itself.

The Tigers strategy works because of the division they are in.... as much as we complain about how much they spend and their overall management / ownership group, it's probably the best in the division considering who they are bunked with.

I wouldn't read too much into the time it's taken to sign given the relative lack of activity more broadly thus far in the offseason.... he's going to command a longer term deal.

It's not an apples to apples case, here.... there aren't any Corey Seagers out there and, with what is out there, is anything really worth the investment in terms of years given some of the options internally? Matt Chapman would maybe the exception to the above, but in terms of contract length, he is going to be asking for too many years and there will be someone else out there willing to give him five years I'm guessing

People are accustomed to crediting the Rangers World Series win to simply signing free agents, but in reality, they don't get there without their young core coming up and performing. The Tigers are kind of in the same boat... maybe there's a trade to be had that could change the dynamics at third base, but otherwise it's hard to see anything that really moves the needle sitting on the free agent market right now.

Granted Harris hasn't said a ton to the media since starting, but every indication seems to be that the decisions are coming from him... Chris Ilitch gets a ton of criticism, but he's not a hands-on owner (in a sport that has quite a few of them)... so one could see why the gig was desirable for someone like Harris.

A lot of why "playoffs" is in our vocabulary with this team comes down to the division they play in. If they were in any other division, they'd be at least a year out. With where they play now, with the signings that they have made, you can squint and see it. But it's going to require a number of things to go right, even if they are in better shape than in years past, there aren't enough "sure bets" on this roster. I'm guessing the projection systems are catching that. Even on the division point, I do think that Minnesota's moratorium on spending money this offseason doesn't, in and of itself, mean they shouldn't be the favorite to win the division still. They still have a good amount of talent on that roster.

I saw a front page shared on Twitter of a newspaper based in Houma/Thibodeaux Louisiana recently where the front page cover was about President of Harvard's testimony before Congress regarding antisemitism on their campus. It really struck me as a great example of how the news industry falls woefully short in covering local issues in today's day and age. Also not looking to comment on the politics either, but at a larger level, local newspapers and news outlets really have lost course.... with larger cities like Detroit and Chicago it makes sense to have a national beat or focus some on it, but overall at the smaller regional level, there are too many important stories that get ignored in favor or national stories. And the reasons seem as much about finances (ie. keeping costs down, not paying more staff), which is such a failure the people they purport to serve.

Player only

Chafin's deal is interesting in how team friendly it is compared to his initial deal.... lower cost and more control after year 1 with a team option. As much as folks complained about letting him go last year, especially early when the bullpen was struggling, the situation is basically going to play out about as well as it possibly could have for the Tigers.

I was initially skeptical they would trade an arm for a bat, but after reading this tweet lol

We've agreed twice in one week, it's a Christmas miracle lol

The new speculation is whether this portends trading any young arms.... I'd be hesitant to do that, otherwise you're betting on a big bounce back from Flaherty in 2024. Overall, I think it's a fine signing and given that this org has had success working with pitchers, it seems like a worthy gamble despite his rough 2023 stats.

If they sign Yamamoto, great.... I haven't said that they shouldn't. But going back to my original point: Many fans seem to approach their payroll with the view that this team having a payroll lower than 2023 would be a failure.... personally, I don't care whether the payroll is or isn't lower. If they managed to land Yamamoto or Imanaga or someone else at the higher end of the market on a longer term pricier deal, great, fine by me. If they can't accomplish that but go the more Lorenzen-esque route, that's fine too. Either way, I just want them to make moves that make sense within the context of what they are trying to accomplish in 2024 and beyond. The dollar signs are irrelevant to me.

Fair point, really lovely part of the world!

One way to accomplish this is to ensure you don't make decisions that subsequently lead to expenses exceeding revenues. I know I'm a fan and I'm not supposed to care about any of that, but at least in how I approach being a fan of the Detroit Tigers, I'm not going to feign ignorance to the reality that running a major league club is a business and healthy businesses in any industry generally try to avoid making stupid investments or spend money without their being an ultimate purpose.

If I were a fan of the San Diego Padres at the moment and my team was forced to slash payroll because they have cash flow issues, I would consider that a problem and would expect that to impact my enjoyment of the team in the immediate near term. Whether I'm hoping for it or not seems like an irrelevant point.

Looking at what's going on in San Diego this offseason for instance, clearly the reality is a little more complicated.

Credit to you for acknowledging that there actually is cost or risk involved. Many appear unable to acknowledge that.