Is the Fielder contract a display of “bad baseball sense”?
Whether it be the climate, the image of the city or the fact his estranged father was staple on the team during the mid 90′s, it remains clear that the Tigers had to spend more money than any other team out there to get Prince Fielder.
And boy did they spend.
Tigers owner Mike Ilitch wrote the fourth largest contract in baseball history a nine-year, $214 million dollar deal to land the prized free agent.
But did it make “baseball sense”?
Tom Verducci of SI.com doesn’t believe that’s the case…
This was an ownership-driven, impulsive deal, which is why the Tigers will contend for a World Series and why the contract makes poor baseball sense. Nothing drives an organizational culture like an owner who is consumed with actually winning the World Series, not just competing or making money.
“Only a handful or so owners have that,” said one executive, “to the point where that’s the first thing they think about when they wake up in the morning. It’s a great advantage for those teams.”
A top-down will to win is an asset, though not always an efficient one. Said another executive when asked about the Fielder contract getting done at nine years on an ownership level (and similar to Angels owner Arte Moreno driving the Albert Pujols mega-deal), “Lots of low-hanging fruit for the agents. This one was a shocker by any standard.”
I guess I’m missing something here because isn’t the point of making a signing like this to win the World Series which is what Verducci said the Tigers have given themselves a very good chance at doing?
Sure the contract was for a lot of money with a bunch of years tacked onto it. And sure people are going to be concerned where Fielder is going to be at physically towards the end of the contract.
The fact of the matter though he will be 36 years old and in the American League. This isn’t a catcher whose knees are going to break down or a center fielder that’s going to lose a step in the outfield, Fielder will more than likely be playing first base and filling in at DH towards the end of the contract.
No plans to move Inge?
With Fielder in the fold and Cabrera making the jump to third base, it looks like the odd man out in all of this is going to be Brandon Inge.
However instead of moving Inge, Jim Leyland said that Inge will still have a big role with the team if he wanted it.
According to Jason Beck of MLB.com, that role seems to be a fall back to Miguel Cabrera in case he doesn’t adjust to the third base position.
“I can understand he wouldn’t be thrilled,” Dombrowski said of Inge on Thursday, “but I also think at this point — he’s not coming off a big year, the market is pretty well set — probably the best thing is to let him come to Spring Training, let him play well and let’s see what happens. I think he still can play a very important role on our club. Like I said, we’re trying to win.
“I respect his situation. We’ll do what we can. We’ll see what happens, but I think he’s a very important part of our club. He is in good shape, and he’s worked hard, and I think he’s got a chance to put up some nice numbers this year.”
Things are different though this time around than when Cabrera first got to the Tigers back in December of 2007. Prince Fielder wasn’t here then and the team didn’t have a viable first base option which enabled them to move Cabrera over to that spot.
In 2012 though the Tigers are going to give Cabrera every opportunity to improve at the position.
Ref: SI.com, MLBTradeRumors.com, MLB.com, ESPN.com (image)
