Miggy has had two good games in Chicago and while I’m not saying, ‘he’s back’, his production has been nice to see. That being said, I have noticed a few differences in his normal demeanor. First, when he hit his home run yesterday, he put his head down and ran around the bases, foregoing his usual stutter-step before third base. Second, I haven’t seen him constantly clowning around with everyone at first base whether on offense or defense.
While the commentators play off his incessant clowning as ‘a love for playing the game, IMHO, he takes it to the extreme and this extreme clowning projects a lack of seriousness. Perhaps his lack of seriousness is understandable considering the amount of success he’s had and his success came immediately. The Marlins brought him up at 19, he hit the ground running, and never looked back. Maybe his recent struggles have humbled him a bit and forced him to refocus and take this craft a bit more seriously. Like I said, I’m not sure he’s back, but the last few games have been fun to watch him again.
On another note, I wasn’t a big fan of Jack Morris’ color commentary with Mario Impemba but I like him a lot with Dan Dickerson. They seem to have good chemistry. I don’t like Gibson period. The booth rotation has to get Rod on more and get rid of Gibson for good. He’s horrible.
I’ll catch plenty of heat for this, but I would trade Miggy in a minute if I could get the right deal. The Tigers are going nowhere right now, and Miggy’s value probably won’t get any higher than right now. Plenty of teams out there that would give up the farm, and then some, to have him on their playoff roster. It would be a gamble, and I’m sure some backlash from the fans, but if they the right players in return, especially pitching, I’d be ok with.
-Mike
Mike, I hate to say it, but I agree with you. However, I’m not sure how many teams would take the contract. If the Dodgers, Mets or Yankees were buyers, maybe. Unfortunately, I think Miggy’s best days are behind him.