The Last Thing the Tigers Needed...
Was an off-the-field distraction. After leading the AL Central for 162 days this season, the Detroit Tigers find themselves playing in a one-game playoff for the division crown on the road against a surging Twins team.
With the pressure of an entire season on their shoulders, the team now has to answer questions about first baseman Miguel Cabrera who was involved in a domestic disturbance with his wife after coming home drunk at 6 a.m. Saturday morning. Here's a copy of the police report obtained by the Detroit Free Press as well as audio of Mrs. Cabrera's phone call with a 911 dispatcher.
Cabrera was never charged and never arrested (though he did spend time in jail because he was requested to leave his residence), as neither Cabrera nor his wife has cooperated with the police.
This news explains the bruises on Cabrera's face during Saturday's game against the Chicago White Sox and might also explain his 0-for-7 performance over the final two games of the series. Between having a .26 blood-alcohol content and spending a night in jail, you can understand how one might not play particularly well, though that doesn't explain the 0 for 4 he registered in Friday night's series opener.
Regardless of his recent struggles on the field, Cabrera clearly needs to get things in his personal life sorted out as this is not the first instance this season that the four-time all-star has had issues with alcohol abuse.
Cabrera's Detroit teammates, however, must find a way to put this distraction out of their minds and concentrate today on a Minnesota club that has won four straight, 10 of its last 13 games and has a near-.600 winning percentage at home.
By CJ Holley |
October 6, 2009; 10:12 AM ET
| Category:
Playoffs
,
Tigers
,
Twins
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Posted by: PhilliesPhan | October 6, 2009 10:33 AM
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If I am Jim Leyland, I am tempted to keep him out of the lineup today. Of course he is trying to win the game, but is it okay for your highest paid superstar to pull this kind of shenanigans with the season at stake? I would sit him and deal with the consequences. Leyland not taking action is essentially condoning the behavior.