TIGER TALK: FOREVER YOUNG NO MORE...

O.k., count me as one of those Tigers fans who was simply shocked to hear that Dimitri Young had been released. Huh? Here's a solid left handed bat that has hit close to .300 since he's been back and his release is strictly performance based? Uh, sorry, not buying that. Unless I'm missing something, this team has not exactly been tearing it up at the plate for the last month collectively....Messrs. Ordonez, Inge, Perez, and a few others could have been released under the standard of not setting the world on fire...not to mention the guy was released , not benched or anything. And, they were so fed up with his "lack of performance" that he is slotted to hit third just last night in a game we have to have? What, he hits a homer last night and its all good? Please.

Look, I don't know how any sane mortal or Tigers fan (the two groups often being mutually exclusive) could complain loudly about anything that Leyland and Dombrowski have done so far this year, but this does not, as we used to say back in the Southern courts, does not pass the smell test.

I'm not saying this was not a good move...yet. But, to release your best run producer over the past five seasons and a guy hitting .292 with seven homers in the month or so he's been back when you are in a playoff race and in dire need of a left handed power bat in the lineup...you don't do that unless there is some major issue somewhere else. And, don't tell me its "performance based" when everyone can see that, if a nightmare of not making the playoffs does come true, it will likely be because of the lack of offense at key times, not due to the young pitching coming undone , as most had feared back in the late spring.

Do they owe it to us to tell us every detail, particularly when its a guy who has had significant personal problems? No, I don't think they do.
Do they owe it to us not to BS us? Yes, I think they do.
A simple statement saying it was for team chemistry reasons or off the field issues, or private reasons would have been fine.
At least, that's my take.