Marquette, Michigan – 10/5/16 – The Detroit Tigers have exercised their option to retain Manager Brad Ausumus for the 2017 season. Ausumus took over the ball club in 2013 when long-time manager Jim Leyland retired. In his three years with the team, Ausumus has compiled a 250-234 record. The Tigers won the AL Central in his first year at the helm, but have failed to appear in the postseason in consecutive seasons since. Detroit was in the wild card hunt this year, but the season came to an end when the team dropped two out of three to the last-place Braves in the final series of the season.
General Manager Al Avila issued a press release Wednesday giving his reasons for the decision. In the release, Avila cites Ausumus being “instrumental in leading the team through adversity and with the development of our younger players.” Avila also claims the team improves and he wants “to build on that progress” moving forward.
I have not been shy about my thoughts on what the future of the Tigers should look like, and it does not involve Ausumus. There is a reason managers such as Joe Maddon and Terry Francona can win wherever they go. They each took over franchises in the dumps, and this year they have each led their teams to division championships. Brad Ausumus has squandered two years while having one of the best rosters in all of baseball. Tigers fans are in for another roller-coaster disappointing season in 2017. After two World Series appearances and four AL Central titles, Tigers fans didn’t know how good they had it under the leadership of Jim Leyland.
