Health & Fitness
Brandon Inge: A Tiger no more
My thoughts on Brandon Inge being released from the Tigers after 12 years with the team.
We all saw it coming sooner or later. Many of us anticipated, prayed, even wished for it. It has finally happened. After 11 seasons with the Tigers, Brandon Inge has been released by them. It was a move that he took pretty well.
Inge was hitting only .100 which is well below the minimum standard. To make matters worse, his shaky defense was being booed all over Comerica Park, and it seemed that his time was done.
The bigger question is how will we remember Brandon Inge? Whether you love him or hate him, you can't help but respect how much class he has. Twice in his career he could have been traded, but decided to stay with the Tigers through thick and thin.
We he first got here, I liked his defensive capabilities, but offensively, he couldn't hit and struggled at the plate. In fact it became so common for him, he literally heard boos from the Tigers' fan faithful.
As a player, he never could get it going. His only good season was 2008 when he hit .302 with 30 HR. As a person and teammate, I thought he was a pure class-act. I feel his personality will be missed by the Tigers, but as the saying goes:
If you can't hit, you can't play. Baseball is a business game, and the Tigers had to do what was right for business, and Inge became the odd man out. I wish him well though. He was a class guy. Baseball needs more players like that.
