Mullis: Detroit Tigers’ 'rebuild' gets personal
Just after midnight on September 1st, my son sent me a text from the party he was attending. The Detroit Tigers had traded Justin Verlander to the Houston Astros. He wasn’t happy. Neither was I.
It isn’t about agreeing or disagreeing with the direction the Detroit Tigers are taking. Justin Verlander represents the end of an era, one that is personal to me because of the 18-year-old who texted me the news.
I became a die-hard Tiger fan at the knee of my father, another die-hard Tiger fan. He taught me what a balk was, the difference between a 6-4-3 and a 5-4-3 double-play, and how to properly behave during a no-hitter. Through good seasons and bad, we bonded over ball games, broadcasts, and box scores.
The Tigers were our team.
One April night in 2006 while watching the Tigers on TV, my first-grade son plopped down next to me and started asking questions. The next Tiger game, he was back. I taught him what a balk was, the difference between a 6-4-3 and a 5-4-3 double-play, and how to properly behave during a no-hitter.
The 2006 Tigers went all the way to the World Series, led in part by pitcher Justin Verlander, who would go on to earn Rookie of the Year honors. Many games were won in fantastic underdog fashion, making a die-hard believer out of my son.
The Tigers were our team.
Every season since 2006, if one of us turned on the game, the other would appear. It was our pattern, whether he was a happy-go-lucky kid or a reclusive teenager, whether I was a cool mom or a pain in his side.
When we lived in Canada from 2010 to 2012, we streamed the games over the Internet. For my son’s birthday in 2011, we drove to Toronto to see the Blue Jays plays the Tigers. Justin Verlander pitched the second no-hitter of his career that day. I remember my son shooting me pointed looks throughout the game, eyes dancing. He kept his seat and his silence, however, just like I had taught him.
Pitching fascinated my son. He dented the garage door with a tennis ball aiming for accuracy, then the fence mastering the feel of a hardball. He went through a few makeshift backstops and one bathroom window, and wore a rut in the grass retrieving balls.
I didn’t mind. Hearing the gunshot of his rapidly developing fastball smacking the tarp or watching him develop a nasty slider made me smile. After he pitched his first no-hitter in high school, we listened to the Tigers game and relived the highlights. After his team lost in regionals, we listened to the Tigers game and said nothing.
The Tigers have changed a great deal since 2006. My son is sentimental like me. Whenever a trade or a retirement or a bad season claimed another 2006 Tiger, we marked the loss but kept following the team.
Verlander was the last 2006 Tiger on the team. There’s a reason he has survived. He’s the real deal, someone who will likely be in the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Tigers, however, are having a rough year. They traded Verlander for a handful of prospects, who may or may not live up to the hype. In baseball, we call this “rebuilding.”
My son has as spot on the Kellogg Community College baseball team this year. Twelve hours after Verlander was traded, my son wore a KCC uniform for the first time. He’s a prospect, one of many, who may or may not play. The game was in Battle Creek and I decided to go.
Rebuilds don’t scare me. I’m a die-hard.
Nicole L.V. Mullis is the author of “A Teacher Named Faith.” You can reach her at nlvm.columns@gmail.com or www.NicoleLVMullis.com.