In Lieu of the Standard Playoff Layoff Coverage

So now we wait. Of course, as we all know, the Detroit Tigers will play in their first World Series in nearly twenty years this coming weekend, and there will be plenty of ESPN commentary on how this layoff will either, a) crush momentum/render players' enthusiasm and focus weak/allow for a lot of time to let distractions set in, etc., or, b) give the team time to mend and rest/focus/prepare, etc. I am of the belief that neither of these things really matter to professional athletes because they are, after all, professionals - meaning that they already live and breathe their sport to a degree that we, as fans, cannot really comprehend or understand and that layoffs like this, or, on the other side of things, pressure packed travel days and gruelling schedules really have such little impact on their performance on the field, but serve more as fodder for the media, and for fans like us. Just be prepared to hear a lot of this talk in the coming days. For us, let's blog away……
A note about Trammell: Wasn't sure he was the best choice as manager, in fact, when it was announced that he'd assembled the 1984 Tigers as his staff it seemed a petty attempt to generate fan interest in Detroit for a waning and perenniallyy failing franchise. Publicity. Now, despite my love of him and the Tigers staff, I must admit that during his tenure I was constantly critical of his handling of his roster and his handling of the pitching staff. It always seemed to me that he wouldn't let the kids throw whenever they got within a hint of trouble, and it also seemed he was not putting his best lineup on the field when, in late 2005 when still sniffing the wildcard and hovering around that .500 mark he'd regularly pencil in what seemed to me the wrong choices, youth over experience. In any event, he was fired, something I wholeheartedly agreed with as it seemed to me that he was not going to make the right competitive decisions that would be needed to make this team a winner, something of which, even in the years directly following '03, I was convinced they were capable. This, of course, just comes from years and years of disappointment and losing, and I am now more than willing to concede that Tram and his staff were doing a good job of exercising what were likely directives from above to keep his young arms fresh and to give his young players needed major league experience - two things that I feel have paid off this year, and will continue to do so in the years to come. Think Liriano, Prior and Wood. Now think Bonderman, Maroth and Ledezma. Thanks, Tram. Nice work, and, it seems that you might have taken the fall for being cautious and preparing this team for the very near future.
A note about Dmitri Young: This is one guy who I really wish I could see taking his home-run trot around the bases in October - one of my favorite trots of all-time. He took a chance in coming to the baseball wasteland that was Detroit, embraced this city, boasted that he'd make everyone, one day, proud to sport that old English D, and defended Maroth in front of reporters when they were covering him after his 20th loss in '03. When he returned from the DL this summer he made an immediate impact, was on an RBI tear and seemed to step in at just the right time to make this team the one he'd hoped that he'd been the start of when he signed. On his first day back he gave us a big RBI and was greeted with screaming fans as he made his way back to the dugout at the end of the inning, stranded on base. Absolutely screaming for him. Beautiful. Then a really crappy "O-fer" followed and, well, he's gone. I miss his smile and his intensity. I understand that he'd become a distraction in the locker room following his return, enough to earn him his dismissal, but I still miss him and really feel like he deserved to be here, now. Thanks DY.