mtutiger

There may be deeper reasons why Russia may not have wanted to trade Whelan, but the reaction by many to Griner being released is an excellent example of why Russia probably wouldn't accept a 2-2 or 2-1 deal anyway. We just cannot help ourselves lol

Does her history mean that she should remain imprisoned in Russia?

Ahh yes, I'm sure it was the President who made the decision not to bring Paul Whelan home. What a toolbag.

I interpret Micah Parsons comments as implying that Brittney should have been left in Russia.

Kinda what I'm trying to drive at as well. The Tiger fan base (at the time and currently) includes a lot of people who don't care one way or another about college sports, or who may root for different college programs in the state. The Wolverine fan base, as large as it is in comparison with other programs in Michigan, is still more limited within the state versus the Tigers, who are drawing from a much larger pool of people. Just think that's important context to consider in a discussion about Bo v. Ernie.

I don't have any memories of it but have discussed the situation with family and have read enough over the years to understand the dynamics involved. Simply put, Bo was a "God", not claiming he wasn't by any means. But Michigan State Spartan fans exist, and given the heated rivalry that existed between the two, a lot of those folks (many of them being Tiger fans) don't view Bo in the same light. I should know because I came from an MSU family.... many view Bo that way in the state, but we never did and many other Spartan loyalists (at least the ones I know) are the same way. So one can surmise that a God-like figure who holds 60-65% of the state captive (Bo) knifing a God-like figure who holds 90%+ captive (Ernie), that was never gonna end well.

The Tigers fan base and the reach of the team on radio goes far beyond Detroit. There's a whole state out there that largely supports them. And not all of them are Wolverine types.

This is true, but one significant difference between the two is that (I'm guessing) 30-35% of Michiganders who are sports fans root for the other big state school, and Bo wasn't a "God" to all of those folks. Ernie, OTOH, was beloved by a broader cross section of people. One can surmise that was never a fight Bo would win, even if he was a God in Ann Arbor.

Brendon Davis did resign, so there's a second at least overall

He also had complimentary things to say in his writeup about the trade last night.

Great news, although I suspect some will attempt to make Griner the next Bowe Bergdahl

For a guy that the Red Sox wanted to bring back so badly, they fell way short when the dust settled....

This largely seems like a complaint about Rule 5 in general... The system is what it is... and there is history of finding players through it that can be successful major leaguers. I dont see the issue being raised here other than just a complaint about where the Tigers are at more generally.

Correct... they have a deep farm system and he was the first one who had to be left off the boat. Chris Young has already commented that he'll be watching with interest... Would have preferred they went position player, but they did relatively well with Englert

I know the leverage is different during the offseason versus the trade deadline, but the split-screen between the Joe deal and the Fulmer deal is awful. Even with Fulmer just being a pure rental. Would Al have been capable of pulling this kind of deal off for Joe?

I do wonder if this move may precipitate some other Words never uttered by Al Avila lol

Because he has a lot of talent and is emblematic of the kind of pitcher that Harris wants in our system, my guess. The Rangers and people who follow the org think really highly of him, which speaks some volumes... they have a decent farm system.

The return is Justyn-Henry Malloy and Jake Higginbotham... the former being the centerpiece of the deal. Pretty good value for Joe on the surface... Malloy looks promising.

Harris seems to have a thing for guys who have gone through TJ once lol

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/mason-englert/sa3015036/stats?position=P

Don't worry, the party will be rolling soon enough over in the Rule 5 Draft thread lol

I would find it frustrating if they went with a pitcher.... especially given all of the concerns on the position player side, they should have room to carry another position player. Now.... pass the cocktail weenies.

Honestly, outside of maybe Jace Peterson, I'm not sure any of the free agents that have fallen thus far were ones that seemed realistic for the Tigers anyway.

The correct agent needs to talk to Heyman and say "Tigers" lol

But he could have blamed the railroads, so NBD.