why do the Detroit Tigers suck so much?

[pstokely]

?

[Shrek]

1. They're not very good at baseball?

:shrug:

[MSchreader]

2. Will the lady who brought the nine pre-schoolers please come and get them

They're beating the Tigers, 6-0.

:evilgrin:

Martin

[Awsi Dooger]

3. Well, trading John Smoltz for Doyle Alexander was a fine jumpstart

Few remember that Smoltz was a Tiger farmhand ace, until the team got paranoid during a pennant race with the Blue Jays in about '87 and dealt their only stud prospect for a hunchback 40ish Alexander. The Tigers won the division, got dismissed by the Twins in the playoffs and have essentially forfeited the past decade.

I have such a distaste for baseball that the Tigers' demise is actually a glorious excuse for me to ignore the entire sport. I couldn't name 20 players, or tell you which teams will be in the playoffs and which ones, other than my Tigers, were eliminated in May.

[Swede]

4. Hard to believe the Tigers and the Red Wings have the same owner

[Braden]

8. and he is spending more than he makes on his

hockey team and cant afford to spend on his baseball team.

Hands down. the Red Wings are not profitable on an income statement. When the Red Wings stop winning titles you might see Mike emphasize the Ballclub, but until then he cant do both. (my theory do with it what you will)

The Joe is big, but not packed with luxury suites, so the hockey club is enhancing its franchise value without providing a huge payback in the form of incremental cash flows.

When that dries up, or retires in masse, expect the Tigers to rebound.

**on edit** shouldn't say "can't afford to spend on his baseball team" instead is unwilling to spend.

[Japhy_Ryder]

5. I saw a documentary on them once

They had this evil owner who wanted to move the team to Florida. Well, she didn't pay any money so that the team would be really bad, and no one would come see them, then she could move the team. Got a bunch of no name players and has beens to ensure they'd finish last, but the rag tag group of players turned the tables on her! They beat the Yankees for the pennant!

Wait...I might be confused. I think that was actually the Indians.

[StaggerLee]

9. Could we at least get a cool movie made then?

Major League III?

[Caution]

6. Bad management

[kmla]

7. Hey, it has to be somebody...

... not everybody can be good like the '62 Mets...

[bif]

10. They're so bad

They can't even beat the Met's losing record. Sheesh. that pretty bad. And Mike Illitch is an asshole.

[5thGenDemocrat]

12. Easy there, compadre

The Tigs have won three in a row and could still sidestep the Mets' record by winning two of the last three vs Minnesota.
I suspect the Twins might run some backups out there this weekend (if only to save the starters for the playoffs) and there's a 50-50 chance that tomorrow's (Sat) game might be rained out as could Sunday's.
John
Been to six Tiger games this year. The Tigs lost all of them (if it doesn't rain, Mike B and I are heading to Comerica tomorrow).

[MSchreader]

15. Stop on by after the game, John

Save me a phone call if you can.

Martin

[bif]

16. I've been rooting against them

ever since they left their rightful home, Tiger Stadium. I call it "The Curse of Cobb." They'll keep losing until they move back.

[janekat]

11. I remember back in the good old days: Whittaker, Trammell, LeFlore

My favorite was Steve Kemp - what a scrapper!!

[5thGenDemocrat]

14. My favorite Tiger

Mickey Lolich. Then, now and forever. Then, probably, Norm Cash.
John
Speaking as a left-handed Michigan kid born in 1956.

[bif]

18. Gates Brown

was my favorite. Then a tie between Willie Horton and Al Kaline. And could Ray Oyler field or what?

[KharmaTrain]

13. The Pursuit Of Excellence

I once had a teacher who said that if you failed all the questions on his tests he'd give you an A...since it took as much knowledge to know the wrong answers as it did the right ones.

This should apply to the Tiggers. Just like the baseball world was amazed when the Mariners won 116 games a couple years ago, I view this as a distinguishing milestone as well. This especially in light that every time the Tiggers played my beloved White Sox, they looked like the damn Yankees.

Cheers!

[janekat]

17. How many "ex-cubs" do they have on the team - could be "cub-itis"

http://www.geocities.com/benjo4u/royko/041197.htm
http://www.geocities.com/scrubbycity/xcubfactor.html

Ah, but the experts are once again ignoring that most fatal element in baseball success and failure -- the dreaded Ex-Cub Factor.

As true students of the game know, since the end of World War II, 14 teams have played the World Series with three ex-Cubs on their rosters. Only one won the World Series, and that was kind of a fluke.

Only a few years ago, Oakland was hailed as possibly the greatest team in history. It lost the World Series to an inferior team in four straight. Three ex-Cubs.

Last year, Atlanta was clearly the best team in baseball. It didn't even get past the playoffs. Three ex-Cubs.

[5thGenDemocrat]

19. I can't think of any ex-Cubs on the roster just now

So we can't use that as an excuse.
John
Lose or lose big -- it's still Tiger baseball.