3,000

Incredible. 

I wish I had been more appreciative earlier. I will likely never see another player like Miguel Cabrera. There may never be a player like him ever again. It's hard to believe that all too soon, we won't get to see him at the plate anymore. I can't imagine the Tigers without him. But that is still in the future. For now, we get to celebrate greatness.

Part of what makes him so great is his humility. I'm sure it is special to him to be hitting these huge milestones and getting his name in amongst the game's greatest players but the team is so much more important to him. If he gets all the records and milestones and the team loses, Miggy doesn't really enjoy the stuff that just about him. He wants to win. He wants his hits and home runs to help the team win and have a good season. It's not just about him. 

When the fans were all booing his intentional walk on the Thursday before he got #3,000 (April 21st, 2022), Miggy tried to calm them down and make them understand that the important thing was that we were winning. He's so classy and humble. Too many players, in baseball and other sports, when they are great, they know it and they get arrogant and rude. Miggy's attitude is part of what makes him so great and so special.

 
I can't believe how lucky I am to have gotten to experience so much of this great man's career. I lived through his Triple Crown season. (How was that already 10 years ago?!) I got to "see" him get 500 home runs and 3,000 hits and we'll soon see 600 doubles. It's something special and to live through it is a huge blessing and privilege. And he's on MY team!!! My hometown. I got to grow up watching Miguel Cabrera play baseball. I've taken it for granted for too long but not any more. I enjoy each and every game. Each and every moment. This has been one heck of a career and it's not over yet. He's special, and we all know it. 

Miggy, we love you 3,000 :)

Living Legend

Watch the 3,000th hit 

Miggy's career video 

Everything you need to know about Miggy's 3,000 hit

 

Photos taken by me in August 2016.

2021 - The Best Losing Season I've Seen

Finally, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. To be honest, it is hard to believe it's been five years of rebuilding. In some ways, it doesn't seem like it's been that long, and in other ways, winning seasons and teams seem like a distant memory. I cannot believe what I watched this year!

The Tigers should not have done as well as they did. We dug ourselves a hole in April and never quite got out of it, but we got close to .500 a couple of different times. The last week to 10 days of the season were disappointing, to say the least, especially with how September started. But we had four winning months and we could have been much, much worse.

Imagine with me for a moment, if we had not had Tyler Alexander. What if Mize/Manning/Skubal had gone through rookie struggles or regressions? Can you imagine what our season would have looked like? Each time we had an injury that could have sunk us, someone (or multiple someones) stepped up. Help came from places you wouldn't have expected. Late in the season, we lost two of our late inning guys and the rest of the 'pen closed ranks. Could we have won some games we ended up losing if we had Soto and Cisnero? Maybe, but it's just speculation. Maybe they would have had rough days for those games too.

I'm sure there are some really ugly numbers for the 2021 season. I know there are areas that still need improvement. One that everyone will be talking about is offense. During the last two weeks, especially, we left way too many guys on base and in scoring position. We could have won if we could have scored those runners. But I submit to you that we have a VERY young offense. We have young guys and guys with not much Major League experience. Our catchers for most of the year were rookies. Our outfield is mostly rookies or guys with only a few years of experience. Commentators want more home runs but we tried that recipe for almost 10 years and it didn't work. Now we have a team who can walk, steal bases, and still hit some home runs. Want to know which team had the most triples this year? The Tigers. In all of baseball! Home runs are not everything. If you can't get guys on, you only score one run at a time. Not the best recipe for winning. 

I'm not saying don't sign guys if they can help, but I'd rather see the Tigers work with some of the talent they have to improve hitting. Don't go after a guy if all he does is hit for power. I would love to see guys who walk and hit doubles. Guys who are smart about the strike zone. Remember, we have a very young team. Learning the strike zone takes time. It takes practice. It takes experience. 

There will be new faces next spring, but I hope we don't walk away from what got started this season. I think there is a lot of promise here; a lot of hope. The Tigers have grit and that goes a long way too. All things considered, this was the best losing season I've lived through. Everyday felt like a chance to win. We had things to play for and, of course, don't forget about the season Miggy had. 2021 was an exciting baseball season and here's hoping it is the catalyst for even better seasons, starting in 2022.

We Got TWO MustC videos!!!

The Tigers catchers were flashing their gloves in defensive wizardry the other day vs. Texas. Watch the awesomeness!!

 http://m.mlb.com/det/video/topic/47076644/v1410935683/must-c-catches-mccann-avila-make-fantastic-grabs


We also had the bats going in full force, starting in the 1st inning. We haven't done this in the first inning since 2013.

http://m.mlb.com/det/video/topic/47076644/v1410412083/must-c-combo-tigers-go-backtobacktoback-in-1st 

I wish I could post them so they look like a video, but this is all I know how to do. Enjoy!