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Justin Verlander continues to have his name mentioned, including making the final three for the Dodgers’ buying plans. But the other Justin — Justin Wilson — is the hottest commodity on the team and possibly in the league.
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As many as 12 teams are currently taking a look at Wilson, a list that now includes another intriguing team in the Yankees. It appears that the Astros still have the lead, as they have been in on Wilson since day one, but the rampant interest is a great sign for the Detroit Tigers.
That amount of interest also probably produced the story that the Tigers are “seeking a Chapman-like return for Wilson.” There is a zero percent chance that the Tigers will get that kind of haul, but my excitement level has slowly increased day by day. Wilson is definitely heading out of town, and the return should be a big help to the rebuilding process.
And I would like a million dollars
Do you want to read a bunch of things that are not going to happen? Take a gander at Local 4’s dream scenarios for the Tigers deadline. They used a simple math equation of Tiger players plus the best prospects of the trading team equals profit. I appreciate the imagination though.
Michael Fulmer is one of us
I really appreciate the honesty and transparency of Michael Fulmer here.
Michael Fulmer hasn't given up on this year's Tigers as the Trade Deadline nears. But if they sell, he doesn't want it to be half-hearted. pic.twitter.com/T4q1pQibVq
— Jordan Horrobin (@JordanHorrobin) July 26, 2017
Obviously, he hasn’t given up on winning. But, contrary to some reports, he knows he is going to be a Tiger for a long time. If that means a full fire sale to position the team to be better in two to three years, don’t hold back. Basically, Fulmer is saying what every single fan has been saying all year. Your move, Al.
Swag.
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The Ump show is here again
This happens every year. We hit the dog days of summer, tensions run a little higher than normal, and the umps start tossing people like John Cena at Wrestlemania. This year is only special because we got two spectacularly bad tossings within two days. The first is my favorite of all time.
I had never seen someone ejected for dragging an on-deck circle so thank you Adrian Beltre pic.twitter.com/8Trb8dbjN7
— Dave Lozo (@davelozo) July 27, 2017
Adrian Beltre is a national treasure. Only a real grouch’s first reaction is an ejection instead of laughter at that. Example number two was the quickest two-person toss an ump can do.
Stroman, Ejection Sequence. #StroShow > #UmpShow pic.twitter.com/RYbZ4EuEBC
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 27, 2017
Marcus Stroman was barking at him from the very beginning of the game, but there’s still no excuse for that. Making the game about yourself is the cardinal sin of umpiring and Will Little will definitely see some behind-the-scenes reprimanding for that. [Ed.: No he won’t.]
As I said, this is much ado about nothing. It will blow over in a week or two as the league warns the umps and they self correct.
For your free time
Jose Iglesias might be moved as well. Bruce Rondon incites rock bottom of 2017. Our friends at South Side Sox would like their team to lose better. After Wednesday night, I would echo that statement. Rick Hahn just keeps dealing. How Andrew McCutchen saved himself. Good guy Curtis Granderson almost prevents the Lucas Duda trade. Watch Yasiel Puig almost end Joc Pederson with a right arm shiver.
