Well. It’s happening. The thing we all knew needed to happen. The thing that was probably overdue from happening…is happening. I’ve been screaming sell, sell, sell for a while now, but when it actually happens…it actually really fucking sucks. And that’s what has happened- our Detroit Tigers have officially begun selling championship assets to build for the future, beginning with JD Martinez.

Of all the big names that have come up in trade discussions for Detroit, I seriously think JD was last on my list of those names I wanted to see go. I mean did you see that clip from his exit interview? Heartbreaking. He was a genuine guy with a genuine love for Detroit, the Tigers, baseball, and winning.

Julio Daniel Martinez. The first player drafted from Nova Southeastern University to ever start an MLB game. He hit rock bottom when he was released from the (at the time) putrid Houston Astros and had new life breathed into him when the Tigers signed him to a minor league contract, from there on out, most of us know the story. JD quickly became the always smiling, always saying the right things all-star we came to know and love… and, oh yeah, he absolutely crushed the ball. Usually at the exact time you needed him to crush the ball. Just look at this fucking clip. No seriously, watch it.

God Bless You Julio Daniel. You were an absolute diamond in the rough that we pulled out of the dumps and you became a shining star. You got your second chance, and you never looked back. You never made excuses, you just worked harder. You had your mysterious hitting book that you wrote in every game and it was truly visionary confirmation just how hard you were working to be the best player for Detroit you could be.

Detroit doesn’t deserve you. You deserve to be on a winner with players who want to win as much as you do. I, and I know many of us in Detroit, will be big fans of you no matter what uniform you are in. It is just an absolute shame with the roster(s) Detroit has had over the years that we were never able to put together a championship winner.

Speaking of the roster, and the Tigers as a whole, this is only the first (albiet a very tough) casualty of the rebuilding process. The Tigers have been too old, too slow, and too overpaid for about two seasons too long now…and it finally caught up with them. Since 2006 the Tigers have been in the preseason conversation as World Series contenders, and have never been sellers at the deadline. But with this mid-season shipment of the golden boy out to Arizona it is a resounding cry to the rest of the league that Detroit is waving the white flag of surrender and are going to officially enter into the rebuilding process. It sucks and it’s sad, especially with the lineups we’ve had throughout the years (in 2008 Pudge Rodriguez was batting 9th!!!). But with one trade, one depressing exit interview, and one bullshit “JD was like a son to me” quote from GM Al Avila- the window has been shut.

And who we got for JD? Three prospects who are pretty “meh” on the excitement meter. They aren’t superstar prospects and I’m not going to go into how I think they will fair, because in all honesty I have no idea who they are and also because it doesn’t really matter. Only time will tell.

But with this final note I will say goodbye Julio Daniel, goodbye championship chasing in Detroit, and welcome Tiger fans to the growing pains of a rebuild.

#EatEmUp 🍾

– Frank