Remember when the All-Star Game was at Comerica Park in 2005? The Tigers lone representative was Pudge Rodriguez. Pudge had a nice enough season in '05, but with 14 homers and a .274 batting average on a team that finished 20 games under .500, it's clear he was an All-Star because every team gets an All-Star. And there wasn't anyone else even remotely All-Star worthy on the 2005 Tigers.
It's easy to forget how bad the Tigers were after Randy Smith wrecked the franchise so completely. The defining moment of that 2005 season was the spring training decision to keep Bobby Higginson on the roster simply because his salary was so high, even though Marcus Thames was clearly the better option to fill the last outfield spot.
That's why, even if the All-Star Game isn't what it used to be in many fans minds, it'll be pretty cool to see six Tiger players suit up as American League All-Stars, including AL starting pitcher Max Scherzer. Fellow Tiger All-Star Torii Hunter offered Scherzer some advice that Tiger fans be wise to heed as well.
Detroit Free Press: Now that Scherzer, 28, has reached his first All-Star Game, he’s planning to follow the advice that teammate and fellow All-Star Torii Hunter gave him: “Just enjoy it.”
This franchise has come a long way from the days when Alan Trammell was named manager because the reflected glory of the 1984 World Series might sell tickets to fans who otherwise had little interest in watching the AAA-stylings of Warren Morris and Gene Kingsale.
The defending AL champs sport a roster with back-to-back All-Star Game starting pitchers, back-to-back AL MVPs, and legitimate All-Stars at first, third, shortstop, right field, and at the top two spots of their starting rotation. It's a rare thing to see this much talent assembled on one roster. Let's not take that for granted as fans. It's just a short trip back to the days when the likes of Craig Paquette is a regular part of the lineup.
