Magglio Ordonez' arrival in Detroit seems to have met with almost universal applause. Color me surprised. I really expected venom over a potential seven year deal to consume every newspaper column in Metro Detroit. Ordonez' health and the structure of the contract certainly dominanted the press conference. So much so, in fact, that I don't recall hearing Ordonez utter much more than a paragraph in total.
However, in spite of all the contract questions, most of the scribes opted for caution over negativity when offering their perspectives. I would go so far as to say that 90% were just plain positive in tone. Even some of our more cynical Detroit sport writing vets offered up some praise for the Tigers latest, boldest move. The Free Press' Drew Sharp and Oakland Press' Jim Hawkins, two of the more negative Tiger on-lookers (rightly negative, I should add), are examples of the far more upbeat message the media sent forth from the Ordonez press conference. (Even Peter Gammons threw the Tigers a curveball of love. Sort of. See link below.)
Again, I am very, very surprised. Maybe the Pudge Rodriguez signing, which seemed to draw far more ire as I remember it, has worked out so well that we've all taken a more cautiously optimistic approach to such deals? I just don't know. I do know that it nearly every writer suggested the risk was worth the reward. I completely agree with that premise, but I hope none of them beats up Tigers management should Ordonez fail to live up to expectations.
Here is more all-Magglio, all-the-time coverage:
Crystal Evola, Oakland Press
Michael Rosenberg, Detroit Free Press
Gene Guidi, Detroit Free Press
Krista Latham, Detroit Free Press
Bob Wojnowski, Detroit News
Tom Gage, Detroit News
Gage, again
Lynn Henning, Detroit News
Peter Gammons, ESPN.com
No comments:
Post a Comment