Tigers and Brad Ausmus seem ready to move on and that's good for both sides
As the end of the regular season nears, there will be plenty of speculation over which managers on the hot seat will be fired or retained. In some places, that speculation has been gaining steam for most of the season. In others, it’s apparent the manager is already resigned to his fate.
That appears to be the case in Detroit, where Tigers’ brass is fully expected to make a decision on manager Brad Ausmus with the team limping to its worst season since losing 119 games in 2003. If you ask Ausmus himself, he believes his fate has already been sealed.
[Sign up for Fantasy Football before it’s too late! Draft now for free]
Despite using a joking tone, Ausmus seemed to make that clear while speaking to the media before Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to the Oakland A’s.
Brad Ausmus made a joke about next year's manager just now. Asked if he felt his fate has been determined. He said he thinks so
— Katie Strang (@KatieJStrang) September 20, 2017
Further on Ausmus' comments: He was asked whether he felt anything that happens in next few weeks will impact decision. He seemed doubtful
— Katie Strang (@KatieJStrang) September 20, 2017
Ausmus was hired by the Tigers before the 2014 and has since posted a 312-324 record. The team was coming off three straight postseason appearances at that time, and most recently had lost in the ALCS four games to two against the Boston Red Sox.
Despite an aging roster, Detroit seemed poised to continue contending under Ausmus, but have only managed one postseason appearance during his tenure. That was a quick three and out loss to Baltimore in the 2014 ALDS. Detroit finished last in the AL Central in 2015, winning only 74 games, before bouncing back to win 86 last season. That wasn’t good enough to earn even a wildcard entry.
Obviously, the team went off the cliff in 2017. To the point where ownership and general manager Al Avila finally agreed it was time to start the rebuilding process. With that being the case, it would definitely make sense to put a new manager in place to help see that process through.
It might be good for Ausmus too to step out of this situation and regroup, knowing that some lean years lie ahead. We suspect managing is still his long term goal, and the best way to make that happen might be taking a step back and reevaluating what worked and what didn’t in Detroit. He definitely has some things to work on, and now that he has experience to draw from it might be easier to connect the dots when another opportunity comes along.
Obviously, no manager wants to get fired, just as no team really wants to fire the person it selected to call the shots, but sometimes it’s the best for everybody. This seems like one of those times.
– – – – – – –
Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
