second overall pick in the 2004 draft, was the Tigers' reward for enduring 2003's 119-loss season.
You remember 2003, right? Mike Maroth's 20 losses, Gene Kingsale, Warren Morris, Craig Paquette. Without Randy Smith's bumbling incompetence, there's no way the 2003 team would have been that bad. But it was. After he fired Smith in 2002, Dave Dombrowski let the team hit rock bottom, yielding Verlander in the draft.
If that team didn't suck so bad, this team would not have Justin Verlander. So thank you Randy Smith. Thank you for being you and trading with your daddy 50 million times for Brad Ausmus. -- JTW
Read more:
Baseball Reference
