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detroit_tigers2008-04-14 10:28 am
thecrazedhermit.livejournal.com) wrote in detroit_tigers2008-04-14 10:28 am
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Cabrera v. Inge
Here's the thing about this debate. It's not a debate. This is was the Ingies need to remember. Brandon Inge is a .241 career hitter. Right now, when he's playing so well by his standards, he's only hitting .282, which is good for a whopping 80th best in all of baseball. His best average for a season ever was .287 in 2004.
Make no mistake, Cabrera is not playing well. Not well at all, and I would not suggest otherwise. However, to say that they Tigers would be better off with Inge at third long-term is positively ludicrous. Cabrera is not some hot prospect kid who blew a scout away in Winter League, this is a guy who essentially every scout, GM and manager in baseball thinks is one of the Top-10 or Top-15 players in the game, and he's only just about to turn 25. Remember that nobody said the trade was a bad idea when it was made, which is essentially unheard of when a team gives up a blue-chipper like Cameron Maybin. All we heard was "Maybin's 21, Cabrera's 24, Cabrera's a know commodity and already great, Maybin isn't." There you go. Every expert loves this kid.
Miguel Cabrera is in a slump right now. Everyone slumps. Ty Cobb slumped. Ted Williams slumped. Willie Mays slumped. The Babe himself slumped. Every one of those illustrious careers probably was checkered with two or three or ten stretches of a few weeks when they couldn't hit water if they fell out of a boat.
So this non-debate is not Camero vs. Mustang in the quarter mile. It's not even Toyota Camry vs. Honda Accord. This is 1997 Chevy Malibu vs. 2008 Z06 Corvette with a flat tire. So if Jimmy Leyland can get the jack and tire iron out, watch out, because we'll never hear from Brandon Inge again.
Make no mistake, Cabrera is not playing well. Not well at all, and I would not suggest otherwise. However, to say that they Tigers would be better off with Inge at third long-term is positively ludicrous. Cabrera is not some hot prospect kid who blew a scout away in Winter League, this is a guy who essentially every scout, GM and manager in baseball thinks is one of the Top-10 or Top-15 players in the game, and he's only just about to turn 25. Remember that nobody said the trade was a bad idea when it was made, which is essentially unheard of when a team gives up a blue-chipper like Cameron Maybin. All we heard was "Maybin's 21, Cabrera's 24, Cabrera's a know commodity and already great, Maybin isn't." There you go. Every expert loves this kid.
Miguel Cabrera is in a slump right now. Everyone slumps. Ty Cobb slumped. Ted Williams slumped. Willie Mays slumped. The Babe himself slumped. Every one of those illustrious careers probably was checkered with two or three or ten stretches of a few weeks when they couldn't hit water if they fell out of a boat.
So this non-debate is not Camero vs. Mustang in the quarter mile. It's not even Toyota Camry vs. Honda Accord. This is 1997 Chevy Malibu vs. 2008 Z06 Corvette with a flat tire. So if Jimmy Leyland can get the jack and tire iron out, watch out, because we'll never hear from Brandon Inge again.