It's that time of year again ...

Wouldn't it be ironic if the Minneapolis–St. Paul Win Twins stuck another fork into the Tigers and signed John Smoltz to close their games this season? 

After all, it was Smoltz who allowed the Tigers to win the American League East in 1987 before bowing out in the American League playoffs to the far inferior foes from Minnesota. The Twins beat us and Jeff Reardon enjoyed slamming the door. How did Smoltz allow the Tigers to make the playoffs in '87? Well, he was the youngster the Tigers dealt to the Braves in exchange for Doyle Alexander who went 9–0 down the stretch run. I still cringe everytime I think about Sparky Anderson going with the hot hand instead of following the normal rotation in the playoffs, but he's won a lot more Major League Baseball games than I …

Now, the Win Twins (their old logo said that … now they live by that mantra, so let's call it like it is) are said to be interested in hiring the out–of–work Smoltz to close games in the absence of Tiger killer Joe Nathan, who is out for the season with ligament damage.

On the other hand, I'm enjoying what I've been hearing (thanks Mom and Dad) and reading (thanks Tom Gage and Lynn Henning) about the Tigers. It sounds like Johnny Damon has had an incredible impact on the Tigers' clubhouse (maybe the exact opposite of the effect Pudge Rodriguez had?) With the pitching the Tigers have and their developing offense, things could be good in the Motor City in 2010.

A great slogan: It's two–thousand ten, let's roar again!

Go, Tigers.

T

There is no logo like the Old English D.