I’m extremely disappointed in Miguel Cabrera. It’s nauseating almost. Minus the glove and baseball flying at my nuts, the picture of Miguel above is pretty similar to how I look right now.
Here’s the deal: I don’t have as much of a problem with him hanging out with the enemy, or even having a few beers the night before a game, as much as I do with getting rip roaring drunk, coming home at 6 A.M. and then getting into a fight with his wife that causes him to be detained and picked up by the Tigers’ General Manager. Absolutely unacceptable actions from someone who is supposed to be one of Detroit’s leaders.
So what now?
First of all, Miguel owes everyone an apology. I hope it started with his wife and daughter, then his General Manager, skipper, and teammates. Assuming that has all happened already, I feel it’s absolutely mandatory that he sincerely apologize to the fans. By going out and not only drinking, but enough to still be completely obliterated just thirteen hours before a must-win game, Miguel has disappointed the very people Detroit claims they are playing for is a major understatement.
Which leads me to wonder if Detroit should take any further action with Miguel. Is spending a couple hours at the station, the embarrassment of getting picked up by his GM at 8 in the morning, the evident scars, and the guilt of a terrible performance while being hung over (or still buzzed) in a key loss enough punishment?
‘Duk at Big League Stew thinks Miguel should stay home when Detroit plays in Minnesota tomorrow night:
By reportedly heading out for a night of drinking with the opposing White Sox on Friday night before returning home early Saturday morning and getting into a domestic dispute with his wife, Cabrera abandoned both his team and fans in some of the worst ways possible.
How can anyone trust or root for him after he blew a Breathalyzer test (.26) that was double the number of hours remaining until a Saturday night game that could have prevented the need for the Twins showdown? (The Tigers lost, 5-1.) How can Dombrowski continue to play a player he had to pick up from the police station that morning?
The answers are 1) no one can and 2) he shouldn’t. Opponents will argue that taking Cabrera’s bat out of Detroit’s lineup will only punish everyone further, but there’s no guarantee that Cabrera will produce. He went 0-for-7 after showing up to Comerica Park on Saturday with fresh scratches on his face and his mind will be a clouded and distracted one. You can throw out season totals when a player enters a situation like this one, so let the players who were fully on board with winning a division title get the playing time
I don’t know if sending him home is going to make the fans any happier. I think an apology and giving Miguel the opportunity to help the Tigers into the playoffs and toward a World Series could help the fans forget. After all, barring a trade, Detroit has the rights to Miguel through 2015.
Then again, if Miguel has another 0-4 showing and Detroit loses, it’s going to be a very long offseason.
What do you think the Tigers should do, if anything?
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