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Detroit Tigers Team Notes Over 3 Million Views!!! Thankyou!

December 1 in Tigers and mlb history:

1911: Tigers manager Hughie Jennings is nearly killed in a car accident in Pennsylvania. He will recover and return for 8 more seasons.

1911: Future Hall of Fame member Walter Alston is born in Venice, Ohio. Although Alston will come to bat only once during a brief major league career, he will have far greater longevity and success as the manager of the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1954 to 1976.

1912: Boston Braves owner James Gaffney purchases the Allston Golf Club on Commonwealth Avenue with a plan to construct a ball park there. Ground breaking will commence on March 20, 1915.

1928: National League President John Heydler becomes the first person to propose a baseball rule change calling for a 10th man, or a designated hitter, to bat in place of the pitcher. The NL will vote in favor of the proposal, but the American League will turn it down.

1931: The Chicago Cubs trade future Hall of Famer Hack Wilson and pitcher Bud Teachout to the St. Louis Cardinals for pitcher Burleigh Grimes. Wilson slumped to .261 and 13 home runs after hitting .356 with 56 HR and setting a major league record with 191 RBI in 1930.

1942: At major league meetings in Chicago, World War II travel restrictions are the order of the day. Owners decide to restrict travel to a three-trip schedule rather than the customary four. Spring training in 1943 will be limited to locations north of the Potomac or Ohio rivers and east of the Mississippi.

1949: Attendance in the major leagues is 20.2 million, down from 20.9 in 1948.

1952: The Detroit Tigers drafted Johnny Bucha from the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1952 rule 5 draft.

1953: The Detroit Tigers drafted Sammy Meeks from the Chicago White Sox in the 1953 minor league draft.

1953: The Boston Red Sox trade for slugger Jackie Jensen, sending P Mickey McDermott and OF Tom Umphlett to the Washington Senators. Jensen will average 25 home runs a year for his seven seasons in Fenway, lead the American League in RBI three times, and win the Most Valuable Player Award in 1958. A fear of flying will end his career prematurely.

1954: Tigers owner Spike Briggs oversees the removal of right field seats to make more room for Al Kaline in what would be come to be called "Kaline's Corner".

1954: The Yankees and Orioles complete the largest trade in major league history as 17 players, including Don Larsen, Gene Woodling, Bob Turley change teams. The first phase of the transaction began November 18th and will conclude today after the major league draft.

1954: The Detroit Tigers purchased Bob Schultz from the Pittsburgh Pirates.

1955: The Detroit Tigers bring back pitcher Virgil Trucks after a trade with the Chicago White Sox for third baseman Bubba Phillips.

1956: Outfielder Frank Robinson of the Cincinnati Redlegs is unanimously voted the National League Rookie of the Year.
In the American League, Chicago White Sox shortstop Luis Aparicio is voted Rookie of the Year with 22 points, beating out Baltimore's Tito Francona and Rocky Colavito of the Indians.

1958: The Chicago White Sox drafted Lou Skizas from the Detroit Tigers in the 1958 rule 5 draft.
1958: The Kansas City Athletics drafted Wayne Terwilliger from the Detroit Tigers in the 1958 rule 5 draft.

1961: The Houston Colt .45's traded Sam Jones to the Detroit Tigers for Bob Bruce and Manny Montejo.

1962: A complete overhaul of the classifications in the minor leagues is made. The Eastern and South Atlantic leagues are promoted from Class-A to Class-AA.
Meanwhile, classes B, C and D are abolished with those leagues being promoted to Class-A.
The Class-B leagues were the Carolina and Northwest leagues;
the Class-C leagues were the California, Mexican Center, Northern and Pioneer leagues.
The Class-D leagues were the Florida State, Georgia-Florida, Midwest, New York-Pennsylvania and Western Carolinas leagues.
The Appalachian League moves from Class-D to Rookie classification.

1963: Major league owners agree to allow the expansion clubs four protected first-year players who can be optioned to the minors without being subject to a draft.

1964: The Houston Colt .45s officially change their nickname to "Astros." The change coincides with the team's impending move from Colt Stadium to the Harris County Domed Stadium, also known as the Astrodome. The change in name for the three-year old franchise is prompted by a dispute with the Colt firearm company and the team's proximity to NASA headquarters.

1966: The Los Angeles Dodgers trade former National League stolen base king Maury Wills to the Pittsburgh Pirates for infielders Bob Bailey and Gene Michael. Wills upset the Dodgers when he left the team during its recent tour of Japan.

1966: Happy Birthday to Hall of Famer Larry Walker born this day in Maple Ridge, Canada.

1969: The Boston Red Sox drafted Mike Derrick from the Detroit Tigers in the 1969 rule 5 draft.

1971: The Chicago Cubs release longtime star and future Hall of Famer Ernie Banks, ending his 19-year major league career. The Cubs also announce that Banks will serve as a coach on manager Leo Durocher's staff next season. Mr. Cub finishes his playing career with 512 home runs and 1,636 RBI.

1983: Alan Trammell & Lou Whitaker made their theatrical debut on Magnum P.I.

1983: Lynn Jones of the Detroit Tigers granted free agency.

1987: The Detroit Tigers signed Mike Heath as a free agent.

2002: Former major league starting pitcher Dave McNally dies from lung cancer at the age of 60. A four-time 20-game winner over the span of four consecutive seasons, McNally helped anchor a Baltimore Orioles pitching staff that featured Hall of Famer Jim Palmer and standout left-hander Mike Cuellar. McNally won Game 4 of the 1966 World Series, cementing Baltimore's sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also won Game 3 of the 1970 World Series, as the Orioles defeated the Cincinnati Reds in five games.
At the end of his career, McNally helped change baseball's basic financial structure. After playing the 1975 season without a signed contract, McNally, along with pitcher Andy Messersmith was declared a free agent by arbitrator Peter Seitz. The decision paved the way for the advent of the free agent system.

2007: The Detroit Tigers signed Francis Beltran as a free agent.

2009: "Old Reliable" Tommy Henrich, who played on seven World Champion New York Yankees teams in the 1930s and 1940s dies in Dayton, OH at age 96.

2010: The Detroit Tigers signed John Bale as a free agent.

2013: Tigers trade Doug Fister to Nationals for Steve Lombardozzi, Ian Krol, and Robbie Ray.

2015: After finishing last season with the largest payroll in major league history, at $298.3 million, the Dodgers are assigned the largest luxury tax bill ever, $43.7 million. This amount is slightly less than the $50 million in salary that the Dodgers paid to players who did not even appear with them during the season.
Only three other teams exceeded the threshold of $189 million, with the Yankees having to fork out $26 million in penalties and the Red Sox and Giants a little over $1 million each.

2015: Reports indicate that the Red Sox have landed one of the biggest catches of the off-season, signing free agent P David Price for 7 years and $217 million. If confirmed, it will be the largest deal ever for a pitcher.

2017: Bruce Rondon of the Detroit Tigers granted free agency.

2021: At 11:59 p.m., Major League Baseball owners decree a lockout when their self-imposed deadline for concluding a new Collective Bargaining Agreement with the Players Association expires without a deal. At stake is the contention by the players that they are receiving an ever-shrinking share of revenues and that practices such as revenue sharing, tanking and manipulation of service time all conspire to hold down salaries, especially for younger players in their prime, while many veterans can no longer find jobs because many teams are more interested in the bottom line than in giving fans a quality product. Before the lockout imposes a freeze on transactions, there is a huge flurry of deals, whose total value surpasses $1.4 billion, an irony not lost on any observers. This figure largely consists of deals reported over the previous three days but not made official yet, but a few more are added, including the Cubs signing P Marcus Stroman for $71 million over three years, OF/IF Chris Taylor re-signing with the Dodgers for $60 million over four years, and P Raisel Iglesias returning to the Angels for $58 million, also over four years. But a number of prominent names are still in free agency limbo, including Freddie Freeman, Nick Castellanos and Carlos Correa, and will remain so until the two sides come to an agreement, which is unlikely to be before next spring.

2021: The Detroit Tigers signed Javier Baez as a free agent.

2022: Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry, a 300-game winner and best known for allegations that much of his success came from doctoring the baseball, passes away from natural causes at his home in Gaffney, SC at age 84.

Tigers players and coaches birthdays:

Willie Mitchell 1916-1919.

Ernie Alten 1920.

George Lerchen 1952.

Pete Wojey 1956-1957.

Jim Ray 1974.

Dan Schatzeder 1980-1981.

Dan Warthen coach 1999-2002.

Javier Baez 2022-present.

Tigers players or coaches who passed away:

Skinny Graham 1929.

Tony Piet 1938.

Tommy Henrich coach 1958-1959.

Baseball Reference
 
OPEN MIKE.
Totally Tigers

On this long holiday weekend, we welcome readers to share their thoughts about the Tigers or baseball in general. Your observations, comments and questions. Extra credit to those who create topics or questions that generate thoughtful dialog threads.
For this day only, a maximum of 6 sentences please.
 
December 2 in Tigers and mlb history:

1916: The National Commission orders that injured players shall get full pay for the duration of their contracts. The injury clause previously let clubs suspend players after 15 days' pay.

1928: St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Jim Bottomley, who hit .325 with 31 home runs and 126 RBI, is voted National League Most Valuable Player with 76 points against 70 for runner-up Fred Lindstrom, whose .358 batting average was third in the NL behind Rogers Hornsby (.387) and Paul Waner (.370).

1936: The Detroit Tigers traded players to be named later and cash and 3 players to be named to Indianapolis (American Association) for Bob Logan and Dizzy Trout. The Detroit Tigers sent Red Phillips (December 2, 1936) and Salty Parker (December 2, 1936) to Indianapolis (American Association) to complete the trade.

1936: The Tigers purchase 21-year old pitcher Dizzy Trout from Indianapolis in one their best transactions of that era.
The young pitcher, who adopted the nickname ?Dizzy? because he wanted to be as famous as Cardinals? pitcher Dizzy Dean, makes his way into the Detroit rotation in 1939. During World War II he becomes one of the league?s most dependable pitchers, winning 47 games in 1943-44. He will win 163 games for the Tigers in 14 seasons with the club.

1937: At the minor league meeting in Milwaukee, WI, the Detroit Tigers send Gee Walker, Marv Owen and Mike Tresh to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for Vern Kennedy, Tony Piet and Dixie Walker.
The trade causes an uproar with Tigers fans, and owner Walter Briggs issues an announcement from his Miami, FL home that "the deal was made with my approval". Kennedy will start next season with nine straight wins, but end up the year at 12-9.

1941: The New York Giants replace one future Hall of Famer with another. Mel Ott is named player-manager replacing Bill Terry, who moves up as the head of the Giants' farm system.

1941: The Detroit Tigers purchased Bob Garbark from the Chicago Cubs.

1948: Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals is named National League Most Valuable Player. In one of the best seasons ever, Musial led the NL in batting average (.365), runs (135), RBI (131), hits (230), doubles (46), triples (18) and slugging (.702). His 39 home runs were one short of Johnny Mize and Ralph Kiner.


1952: The Pittsburgh Pirates draft relief pitcher Elroy Face from the Montreal Royals, the top minor league affiliate of the Brooklyn Dodgers. During a 15-year career with the Pirates, Face will lead the National League in saves three times. In 1959, he will win an incredible 18 of 19 decisions in relief.

1952: Brooklyn Dodgers executive Buzzie Bavasi dismisses the New York Yankees reaction to Jackie Robinson's charges. Commissioner Ford Frick plans no action against Jackie Robinson. Two days earlier Robinson had called the Yankees a racist organization for its failure to promote a black to the parent club.

1952: The Detroit Tigers drafted Buddy Hicks from the Milwaukee Braves in the 1952 minor league draft.

1957: The Detroit Tigers drafted Hy Cohen from the Chicago Cubs in the 1957 minor league draft.
1957: The Los Angeles Dodgers drafted Walt Streuli from the Detroit Tigers in the 1957 minor league draft.

1957: In the Pacific Coast League, some franchises are forced to relocate when the Dodgers and Giants confirm their long-rumored move to California for the 1958 season. The Hollywood Stars move from Los Angeles to Salt Lake City; the Los Angeles Angels move to Spokane, and the San Francisco Seals transfer to Phoenix.

1958: The Detroit Tigers traded Herb Moford to the Boston Red Sox for Lou Berberet.

1961: Major league clubs vote to curb bonuses. All first-year players not on major league rosters, except one minor leaguer, can be drafted by any other club for $8,000. Clubs are expected to be unwilling to pay large bonuses for players who will be subject to a draft for just $8,000.

1963: The MLB Rules Committee bans oversized catcher's mitts, effective in 1965.

1963: The Washington Senators drafted Howie Koplitz from the Detroit Tigers in the 1963 rule 5 draft.
1963: The Philadelphia Phillies drafted Dave Watkins from the Detroit Tigers in the 1963 first-year draft.

1971: The Detroit Tigers traded a player to be named later and cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Tom Haller.
The Detroit Tigers sent Bernie Beckman (minors) (March 31, 1972) to the Los Angeles Dodgers to complete the trade.

1974: At the Major League Winter Meetings in New Orleans, LA, the Rules Committee institutes several changes; among the changes is one permitting the use of cowhide, rather than just horsehide, in the manufacture of baseballs.

1976: The Detroit Tigers released Joe Decker.

1978: The Sporting News announces the Gold Glove winners. Shortstop Mark Belanger wins for the eighth and final time.

1981: Following the strike-shortened season, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela becomes the third consecutive Dodgers player to be named National League Rookie of the Year. The Mexican lefthander posted a 13-7 record with a 2.48 ERA and led the NL in strikeouts (180), games started (25), complete games (11), shutouts (8) and innings pitched (192 1/3). His 13 wins tied him with Steve Carlton in second place behind Tom Seaver, who finished with 14. Valenzuela also made his first All-Star Game appearance and received the Cy Young and TSN Rookie of the Year awards.

1992: The Detroit Tigers signed Alan Trammell as a free agent.

1997: The Detroit Tigers signed Joe Siddall as a free agent.

2010: Zach Miner of the Detroit Tigers granted free agency.

2013: Bad Trade Day In Tigers History:
The pitching-rich Tigers send Doug Fister to the Nationals in return for IF Steve Lombardozzi and Ps Ian Krol and Robbie Ray.

2014: The Detroit Tigers signed Alberto Cabrera as a free agent.

2015: The Detroit Tigers signed Thomas Field as a free agent.
2015: Al Alburquerque of the Detroit Tigers granted free agency.
2015: Neftali Feliz of the Detroit Tigers granted free agency.

2016: For the sixth time in seven years, Reds 1B Joey Votto is named the recipient of the Tip O'Neill Award given out by the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame to honor the best baseball player in Canada. Votto hit .326 with a National League-leading .434 OBP, 29 homers and 97 RBIs in an outstanding all-around season for the last-place club.

Tigers players birthdays:

Deacon White Detroit Wolverines 1886-1888.

Roscoe Miller 1901-1902.

Tom Doran 1905.

Dan McGarvey 1912.

Bob Jones 1917-1925.

Tigers players, coaches, and managers who passed away:

Bill Armour manager 1905-1906.

Dave Skeels 1910.

Art Herring 1929-1933.

Steve Hamilton coach 1975.

Baseball Reference
 
FAN FEEDBACK.
Totally Tigers

As we continue to recover from the holidays, this is the perfect day for our readers to submit blog ideas to Totally Tigers.
What topics do you want to see covered in the coming months?
Your requests don’t have to be only about the Tigers. Here are just a few ideas you may want to consider:
  • The changes happening within Front Office departments.
  • TV broadcast rights and payroll.
  • Team building strategies.
  • MLB’s proposed changes to the game.
  • What is happening within the farm system.
  • Comparing team payrolls.
Of course, we will continue to dig into the team and roster. But we’re also looking for some specific blog topics you’d like to see addressed.
And if you see someone’s topic posted and are excited to see it addressed, please click their “like” (the star underneath their comment) button.
Ready, set, go!
 
December 3 in Tigers and mlb history:

1901: At the league meeting, the Milwaukee Brewers franchise is officially dropped from the American League and is replaced by the St. Louis Browns.

1933: Philadelphia Athletics owner Connie Mack sells catcher Mickey Cochrane to the Detroit Tigers for $100,000. Cochrane is named Detroit manager.
Nine days later, Mack sells Lefty Grove, Max Bishop, and Rube Walberg to the Boston Red Sox for $125,000, and George Earnshaw goes to the Chicago White Sox for $20,000 and another player.

1954: The St. Louis Cardinals traded Sal Yvars to the Detroit Tigers for Frank Carswell.

1955: Yogi Berra (.272 BA, 27 HR, 108 RBI) is named AL MVP. It's his third time winning the award, along with 1951 and 1954. Tigers 20 year old Star Right Fielder Al Kaline finishes second while leading the American League in Batting with a .340 Average, Hits with an even 200, and 321 Total Bases.

1956: Once again, the Detroit Tigers trade pitcher Virgil Trucks. This time, Trucks will go along with Ned Garver, Gene Host, Wayne Belardi and $20,000 to the Kansas City Athletics for Bill Harrington, Jack Crimian, Eddie Robinson and Jim Finigan.

1956: The New York Giants drafted Bill Froats from the Detroit Tigers in the 1956 minor league draft.
1956: The Detroit Tigers drafted Eddie Phillips from the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1956 minor league draft.
1956: The Detroit Tigers drafted Bob Thorpe from the Milwaukee Braves in the 1956 minor league draft.

1958: American League President Will Harridge announces his retirement.

1960: The Cleveland Indians trade OF Harvey Kuenn to the San Francisco Giants for OF Willie Kirkland and P Johnny Antonelli.

1962: Former players Frank Crosetti and Johnny Schulte file a suit to halt any increased Major League Baseball pension benefits that fail to include old-time players.

1962: Dick "Night Train" Lane intercepts Johnny Unitas at the goal line to seal a 21-14 win over the Colts at Tiger Stadium.

1968: The MLB Rules Committee adopts a series of changes designed to increase the amount of offensive run production in both leagues. In the most significant alterations, the committee agrees to decrease the size of the strike zone and lower the height of the pitcher's mound from 15 inches to 10 inches. The rules changes will result in increased run-scoring in 1969.

1969: The Montreal Expos traded Jerry Robertson to the Detroit Tigers for Joe Sparma.

1973: The Detroit Tigers drafted Gene Lamont from the Atlanta Braves in the 1973 rule 5 draft.
1973: The Detroit Tigers released Tony Taylor.
1973: The Detroit Tigers traded Fred Scherman and cash to the Houston Astros for Jim Ray and Gary Sutherland.
1973: The St. Louis Cardinals traded John Wockenfuss to the Detroit Tigers for Lawrence Elliott (minors).

1979: The Montreal Expos traded a player to be named later and cash to the Detroit Tigers for Rusty Staub.
The Montreal Expos sent Randall Schafer (minors) (December 3, 1979) to the Detroit Tigers to complete the trade.

1980: Don Sutton, the winningest pitcher in Los Angeles Dodgers history, signs a four-year contract with the Houston Astros. Sutton posted a 13-5 record in 1980 with a National League leading 2.21 ERA.

1984: The Detroit Tigers drafted Jim Weaver from the Minnesota Twins in the 1984 rule 5 draft.

1990: The Detroit Tigers drafted Buddy Groom from the Chicago White Sox in the 1990 minor league draft.
1990: The Detroit Tigers signed Bill Gullickson as a free agent.

1992: Frank Tanana of the Detroit Tigers granted free agency.

2002: The Detroit Tigers signed Chris Mears as a free agent.

2007: The Veterans Committee picks Bowie Kuhn, Walter O'Malley, Dick Williams, Billy Southworth and Barney Dreyfuss as new members of the Hall of Fame. Whitey Herzog and Doug Harvey miss by one vote, but will gain entrance in two years.

2007: The Detroit Tigers signed Dane Sardinha as a free agent.

2012: The Veterans Committee elects three candidates from the pre-integration era to the Hall of Fame: owner Jacob Ruppert helped build the New York Yankees into the most successful franchise in the major leagues; Hank O'Day was an outstanding umpire who called the shots for the first-ever World Series game; and Deacon White was the first great catcher in baseball history, with one of the longest careers of the 19th century.

2013: The Detroit Tigers sign reliever Joe Nathan, who moves to the Tigers on a two-year contract.

2015: The Detroit Tigers signed R.J. Alaniz as a free agent.

2018: P James Paxton is named the winner of the Tip O'Neill Award given by the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame to the best baseball player from Canada. His win breaks a stranglehold on the award by Joey Votto, who had won it in seven of the previous eight years.

2023: Long-time manager Jim Leyland, who won pennants in both leagues, is elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee.

Tigers players birthdays:

Delos Drake 1911.

Chad Durbin 2006-2007.

Gary Glover 2008.

Andy Oliver 2010-2011.

Tigers players who passed away:

Pete LePine 1902.

Jack Ness 1911.

Harry Baumgartner 1920.

Chad Kimsey 1936.

Earl Johnson 1951.

Herb Moford 1958.

Baseball Reference
 
RUMORS CAN BE REAL.
Totally Tigers

Around this time of the year, there are rumors. And then there are rumors.
It’s the latter that is our focus today.
When I hear a rumor, I look first to the source to determine its possible legitimacy. Only established publications and writers get my attention. If it’s a solid rumor, I store this in my memory bank. Then I wait to see if someone else writes about it.
Sometimes, it’s the agent or his/her people who are attempting to create interest and thus, a nice contract. Especially just before the Winter Meetings that often kick off the Hot Stove season in earnest. So you have to be careful.
But when you hear the same rumor from 3 different solid sources, you need to pay attention.
And that’s what I was doing over the past week.
 
Nolan Arenado’s contract just isn’t a good fit for the Detroit Tigers.
There was a time when trading for the veteran third baseman would’ve been an exciting development, but that time is past.
BYBTB
 
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