OT: Prince Fielder to Tigers

Submitted by AlphaBlue on
According to several sources, Prince Fielder is very close to a 9 year deal with the Tigers

French West Indian

January 24th, 2012 at 5:35 PM ^

...to keep pursuing the Cuban centerfielder Yoennis Cespedes.  It is outside-the-box thinking, but they could then put Cabrera in centerfield sandwiched between Austin Jackson and Cespedes.  Fielder can have first and Martinez can return to the DH.

Brillant, no?

LSA Aught One

January 24th, 2012 at 4:00 PM ^

Do we really need confirmation?  I think we all know the answer to that question...  Shane's going to single-handedly return the State of Michigan to where it once was.  We should just call him Neo.  Is that too much pressure?

GoBlueGB

January 24th, 2012 at 3:39 PM ^

As a huge Brewer's fan, I am sad to see Prince go, but I wont lose any sleep over it.  His inconsistencies will drive you guys nuts.  He will go on MVP type streaks and carry the team, and at other times he looks lost and he gets extremely frustrated.  Also his first base play is one of the worst in the leagues, but you guys have the DH which will help him.  But overall Prince loves the game of baseball, and is a very competitive guy.  He never takes a day off, and will always give it his all.  Just one warning for you guys, Prince does get off to slow starts to start the year, so dont get on him too soon if he struggles to start the year.  But as a Brewer fan, congrats to the Tigers and to Prince on getting a huge contract he wanted.

MichFan1997

January 24th, 2012 at 8:25 PM ^

Is there a player in baseball who doesn't go on streaks? No there isn't. Prince has been on base at a .400+ clip for 3 years running. He walked more than he struckout last year. Whatever inconsistencies he has, they are nothing compared to 95 percent of the rest of the league's players.

hail2mich

January 24th, 2012 at 3:07 PM ^

Very interesting. I thought it would be just a one year thing, but it's nine years. Victor is out this year, but what about 2013? Does Cabrera go back to 3rd? Holy crap though, what a huge signing. GO TIGERS!!!!

lunchboxthegoat

January 25th, 2012 at 8:06 AM ^

Except that he can't play multiple positions very well, he's near the end of his career and has a pretty big contract for a dude who can only DH and doesn't hit for much power anymore. I love Vmart and am happy he's a Tiger, but there's not much of a market for him. 

lunchboxthegoat

January 27th, 2012 at 12:43 PM ^

The number of times he's hit .330 or better: twice in 10 years. times he's hit 100 RBI: 4. Its not like this is Miguel Cabrera. He's not very good at catcher and can't give you more than maybe 30 games a season there without being a serious liability and has little to no experience playing 1B...and he doesn't hit for power. 

Trader Jack

January 27th, 2012 at 3:54 PM ^

10 years ago he was a Rookie and only played in 12 games. The year after that he only played in 49 games. It seems pretty ridiculous to count those two years as an accurate representation of the calibur of player he is. In the 8 seasons since V-Mart became an everyday big leage player, he has hit over .300 six times, had over 100 RBIs four times, and hit 20 or more homeruns five times, including two out of the last three seasons.

The guy is a career .303 hitter that drives in runs and has a decent amount of pop. He may not be a superstar, but to say he has no value is totally incorrect. Victor Martinez is a very good player, and there are many teams that would love to have him.



Fortunately, it sounds like the plan for now is to keep him around, so it doesn't matter anyway.

AAB

January 24th, 2012 at 3:19 PM ^

who held their peak value into their mid-30s is not long.  And they're basically paying him like he's going to hold his peak value for the life of the deal.