Detroit Tigers

Javier Baez is giving back to the people of his home country, providing free food to anyone in Puerto Rico affected by Hurricane Fiona.

The kid is just barely 20 years old, but he can throw a baseball as few others can, and Jackson Jobe is starting to rise through the Detroit Tigers farm system.

Is it really unreasonable to wonder whether a rumored-to-be-disinterested owner, who has to reference note cards in order to speak about specific players, would listen to serious offers on his MLB franchise?

Epstein's big-spending philosophy is at extreme odds with Chris Ilitch's frugal ways. And that's only one reason why this combination could never work.

Until or unless Ilitch is willing to share the burden of responsibility, via engaged ownership and committing to spending like a serious contender, it won't matter who the Tigers' general manager is — Detroit will continue to wander the baseball wilderness.

Whenever fans want a manager or executive replaces, it does take on a somewhat blood-thirsty nature. Think Matt Millen with the Detroit Lions, Rich Rodrigues with Michigan, more recently Jeff Blashill with the Red Wings.

With just four words, the late Vin Scully sent Tigers Nation into a frenzy ahead of their 4-1 World Series win over the Padres in 1984.

How else can you explain Chris Ilitch allowing the man who's completely botched this rebuild oversee another? Ilitch's priority is to maximize the Tigers' profitability with minimum investment, and Avila serves that interest.

The game attracted not only the best of the best, but also a packed house of some 49,000 fans. The National Leaguers wore special uniforms that afternoon. The American League players word their home whites.

Through one-third of the season the Tigers are one of the worst teams in baseball, just one year after a surprising 2021 campaign gave fans hope that the team's five-plus-year rebuilding period was over.