The Detroit Tigers: The Modern Tragedy

look at the team in front of the one pitching in the near completely empty home stadium I see you laughing at them behind their back but what if I were to tell you this pathetic basement-dwelling franchise stripped bare once had incredible hopes for their future with an owner that would stop at nothing to get a taste of World Series glory the crowds roaring and hungry for it as well the desires never fully within grasp ripping at their very being slowly devolving into a crippling madness what you get is the modern tragedy for this story we have to go back to 2003 our tale begins with the Detroit Tigers hitting rock bottom as a franchise quite literally this year was the culmination of years upon years of poor management and allegedly neglectful ownership I'm Mike Ilitch so many awful drafts that the dead prospects could fill a canyon such it's the life you lead when you draft to close it with the first overall pick in 1997 that never panned out unsurprisingly it resulted in a common feeling of apathy among Tigers fans having to linger in the cellar of the American League for too long there are only true legacies in that time being an ill-advised trade for wangan and bobby Higginson's terrible contract a bare-bones operation with no real excuses to be totally awful 43 and 119 the second worst record in the modern era of baseball for reference the team with the worst record were the expansion New York Mets on the surface things looked horrible but deep underneath this collapsed building a glimmer of light was forming somewhere along the line Mike Ilitch had a change of heart about the Tigers maybe it was becoming content with his cherished Red Wings fulfilling his ambitions in the hockey realm maybe was due to the embarrassing nature of his baseball franchise perhaps it had to do with the new stadium that Detroit built for his Tigers a few years earlier regardless of the real reason mr. I had a hunger fill his belly he wanted a World Series championship whatever the cost bringing in a proven and reputable executive like Dave Dombrowski would definitely help for him this wouldn't be like Montreal or Miami he wouldn't be hampered by shoestring budgets this offseason would prove it to them they would reload the franchise with great haste it began with splash acquisitions to flush the team with talent they nabbed in particular an elite prize in putt Rodriguez in an unheralded in fielder from Seattle named carlosgey and over the next few years they would be better but still middling even with you Jack positions like Magglio ordóñez they still needed more Alan Trammell wasn't going to cut it as a manager prospects were starting to emerge but they needed the right hand to guide them a gruff no-nonsense old-school legend in Jim Leyland 2006 wasn't just going to be any year it would be the new norm years of basement-dwelling perpetual ridicule and scorn by the baseball world was thrown to the wayside the Detroit Tigers were back the awful 2003 season had a consolation prize drafting a burgeoning ace to call their own in Justin Verlander Curtis Granderson another far man to keep an eye on for the future the moves made over the past few years leading to a stunning revelation a playoff berth for the first time in almost 20 years even if they had stumbled at the end of their season the team had been blessed by the gods their magical run would lead them to glory snap seen since 1984 other domination of their foes in the Yankees and athletics in consecutive series the World Series was at their doorstep they were considered heavy favorites against the Cinderella story in the st. Louis Cardinals a team that had a mere 83 win season this would be a total cakewalk for them Mike Ilitch his dream would become a reality soon enough the Cardinals had other plans the so-called de facto champion was declawed and tamed in five games the bats lay silent their pitching humiliated by a career journeyman in David Eckstein their outstanding season filled with a sour aftertaste the championship glory would have to be put on hold this series loss would only embolden Ilic to push harder his ambitions were within his grasp all he had to do was reach for it taking on the massive contract of Gary Sheffield and extending it would only help matters even coming off a significant wrist injury the glory was well worth the risk 2007 had great expectations for the Tigers yet they took a step back they failed to make the playoffs despite the continued emergencies of Granderson and fer Lander and mr. eyes mind they still needed more Ilic was slowly being consumed by that taste of a world series once again he would stop at nothing to make his team a champion the vaults were open a trade for Edgar Renteria to start but their main masterpiece would be soon to come legit power baton their line for over a decade Miguel Cabrera the Marlins weren't going to pay him anywhere near what he wanted so why not ship off a package of top prospects for him and Dontrelle Willis they both would be paid handsomely by Detroit as well Cabrera for eight years of his prime a team that had a shoestring budget five years earlier now had one of the richest payrolls in baseball a clear playoff contender they wouldn't blow regress back to a 75 win season thanks to a complete collapse of the pitching staff Dontrelle Willis totally fell apart and would never be the same pitcher 'i was earlier in the decade may as well have burned that 29 million it was assumed that the Tigers had learned the lessons on gross overspending by being quiet into the 2009 season it would work as there were significant bounce-back years for the pitchers the highly touted Edwin Jackson joining by trade Rick Porcello from the farm Verlander back to being an ace they had a seven game division lead in early September despite a massive skid that were still boasting a three game lead with four days left in the season all they had to do was beat the twins once and they would make it into the playoffs they completely and utterly choked not only losing this series to the White Sox they lose to Minnesota in a tiebreaker game on a walk-off in the 12th inning maybe they can beat the Royals next time instead of losing five of six to them in September then you wouldn't have to keep Fernando Rodney in for three innings a shake up was needed to maximize potential Curtis Granderson who's he Austin Jackson is the future centerfielder Max Scherzer as the kind of piece Detroit truly needs in another strong pitcher they still struggled a collapse in July hampered them and they never truly recovered from it more bolstering was needed in the form of Joaquin Benoit Doug Fister and Victor Martinez 2011 was going to be make-or-break for Detroit they finally broke through again their core pieces performed Alex Avila and Jhonny Peralta became all-stars they won their division convincingly crushed their first-round opponent in the Yankees only to promptly roll over and tied to the Texas Rangers in the ALCS Game six turned into a massacre the team had failed them the ants of her image was clear as crystal he needed more this off season even more island nations would be expunged of value to fund the Tigers war machine Carlos Guillen and Magglio ordóñez would be rendered obsolete Victor Martinez would be out for the season and his hitting needed to be replaced they splurged on another prize free agent prey fielder it was the biggest contract in Tigers history nine years 214 million dollars fielder and Cabrera terrorizing opponents for years to come Detroit's elevated the expectations were greater especially after acquiring Anibal Sanchez from the Marlins in July once again it worked the Tigers were a dominating force winning their division and convincingly crushing the Athletics and Yankees after six agonizing years they finally made it back to the World Series finally they would win mister I his title against the Giants alas those ambitions swept that vaunted offense would be silenced in gut-wrenching fashion they were once again just short of the ultimate goal nonetheless Detroit's for the descendant of free-spending madness would continue honorable Sanchez gets a hefty extension Torii Hunter brought in to solidify right field in 2013 there would be no excuses the championship is Detroit's to win Republic who had to pay if they didn't the talent on the roster was quite possibly the best in team history Miguel Cabrera with the career with a stick earning the MVP award five players with batting averages over 300 Prince Fielder a starting rotation full of aces Verlander Scherzer Sanchez Pfister and Marcelo Scherzer himself a sigh you winner what Kean Benoit turning into a legit closer if there was a year to do it it was this one surviving the Athletics in the ALDS again is one thing but then more heartbreak falling to the Red Sox by means of two towering Grand Slams they had failed yet again all of their spending and talent yet they still can't get over that hump Jim Leyland couldn't be banned as he was retiring to great managerial pastures beyond Prince Fielder maybe but Texas was willing to take on it's disappointing contract for a legit second baseman in Ian Kinsler the new manager Brad Ausmus will take on a more New Age approach once again the Detroit Tigers were loaded instead of aces they had a rotation full of Siam contenders gloating at the deadline for David Price to give them the final piece to that puzzle JD Martinez emerging as a legit master to be Prince Fielder better than he ever could a totally revamped bullpen they may have had fewer wins than 2013 but don't let that deceive you they wouldn't even win a game in the playoffs swept by the Baltimore Orioles in Hue million Bechet at this point logic and execution have to be questioned almost a decade burned at attempting to win a World Series yet they have nothing to show for it their lust for glory was corrupting them Mike Ilitch was descending into a desperate madness Justin Verlander given a massive contract extension in 2013 taking him to his mid-30s Victor Martinez extended until 39 Miguel Cabrera he got a check into contract until he's 40 trading Porcello for a rental and Yoenis Cespedes they probably would have signed Max Scherzer of the Nationals didn't throw even more money at him they were sacrificing their long-term health for a shot at tasting the World Series again it would fade to near nothingness in 2015 the team fell apart yet again injuries had destroyed any viability of the team they weren't going to make the playoffs in the window was starting to close Dave Dombrowski saw the writing on the wall and began trading key pieces for prospects David Price Joaquim sori NT ons Cespedes all sold at the deadline however Mike Ilitch wasn't interested in logic his time was running short on this earth he didn't want to hear about how the best championship years were lost and they needed to rebuild he still believed in his ambition Dave Dombrowski as punishment was released from his contract five days later Dombrowski committed the greatest sin in Mike's eyes he told him the truth at this point insanity had consumed 2mr eyes once noble ambitions he just wanted someone that would deliver him his long-awaited title more exorbitant contracts were given to Justin Upton and Jordan Zimmerman in the offseason logic beat Dan the Tigers themselves would continue to be competitive but at this point they just weren't good enough to make it to the playoffs they would be just short of a wild card Detroit was still clinging to hope but by then it was too late Mike Ilitch died in February of 2017 this final ambition would remain unfulfilled despite doing everything in his power to make sure his dream would be a reality it would not come to pass ironically as LH died it seemed as if the team died with him the Tigers imploded on the field the expensive stars that flooded the roster falling apart due to weight or declining ability Dombrowski's inclinations would prove through the world series dreams were dead the disassembly and long rebuild would begin near total liquidation of all sellable assets to be put in stasis as a bare-bones operation in these 15 years Detroit will be able to taste the highs of championship glory but were never allowed to fully embrace them Ilic started out with the best intentions but his desire and lust for championships ended up consuming whatever was left of his sanity that madness for winning he had hoped would finally bring a title to Detroit it ended up damaging the team beyond repair as a result of the ensuing chaos and the moveable contracts throughout the organization the Tigers in front of you today are merely drifting a castaway surrounded by nothing but ocean for miles around him a team that has been abandoned to the wastes trying to send out messages in the hopes that they can be saved from their fate it will not happen for a while consider Mike Ilitch his other team in the red way they may have taken a severe downturn as well but they were champions multiple times over his teams of the 90s and early 2000s will forever be remembered in history as one of the great dynasties of their era for the Tigers there was no closure the only legacy they'll be remembered by in the future as one of the great failures in modern sports over a billion dollars spent on player contracts to get them a championship the final reward being a one-in-eight record in the World Series the only comforts fans would have her of the bittersweet variety longtime ace Justin Verlander finally winning a World Series in 2017 with Houston in 2018 even more former Tigers won with Boston Ian Kinsler JD Martinez Rick Porcello David Price their main architect none other than former GM Dave Dombrowski looking at the wreckage in front of you there are still some old relics of those ambitious glory days Jordan Zimmerman only here because this contract is so awful no one will take it Nick Castellanos a former prospect turned regular for the organization they'll probably be traded soon enough the Tigers themselves are still paying Justin Verlander until the end of 2019 there we've been paying 6 million per year to Prince Fielder until 2020 and of course Miguel Cabrera the golden prize of mr i--'s reign is withered to a state of serious decay injuries have beaten down on his abilities over the past few years and will only get worse his contract still to be paid until 2023 and is already looking to be one of the worst in the major leagues you may look at this and laugh at their despair I say they are a tragedy worthy of Shakespeare a beloved owner undone by his own ambitions and team's misfortunes whatever he did to better his chances at winning were never good enough I'm truly Sisyphean agony and they will be picking up the pieces for years to come these are the kind of stories we have to remember not the glories but modern tragedies like the Tigers may they be a cautionary tale for all that dare to tread in their bad [Music] Byron Buxton ground ball right side Cabrera will cut it off Galarraga colors he's out always safe he is safe [Applause] he is safe at first base

Channel: UrinatingTree

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Keywords: The Detroit Tigers: The Modern Tragedy, Detroit Tigers, Tigers MLB, Mike Ilitch Tigers, Dave Dombrowski Tigers, Tigers Cardinals 2006 World Series, Tigers Twins 2009 AL Central Tiebreaker, Tigers Rangers 2011 ALCS, Tigers Giants 2012 World Series, Tigers Red Sox 2013 ALCS, Tigers Orioles 2014 ALDS, Justin Verlander Tigers, Miguel Cabrera Tigers, Prince Fielder Tigers, Max Scherzer Tigers, David Price Tigers, Victor Martinez Tigers, Jim Leyland Tigers, Brad Ausmus Tigers

Id: IAXC_Or7UK8

Length: 14min 4sec (844 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 27 2019