Miguel Cabrera Needs His Own Thread

Cabrera's brutal September (since Aug. 27, technically--got this from SweetSpot): 23 games, .257/.382/.311, one double and one home run. In a full season, that'd be...14 extra-base hits.

It's like the Tigers should consider resting him.

That's baffled me since day one. (Being Aug. 27, I guess.) I understand that another TC was kind of sort of within reach for a time, that there's the chance of another MVP, and--what's really driving this, I suspect--that Cabrera is one of those players who, for reasons either noble or selfish or somewhere in between, likes to stay in the lineup. But the Tigers will go into the postseason with a clearly weakened lineup, and on a personal level, he's damaged, not helped, his MVP case. Again, I have no idea whether this is 100% Leyland's call.

"He's not 100 percent. He's been playing in a lot of pain. He's a real tough guy. I think if anybody knew the pain he's playing in, they probably wouldn't believe it."

http://espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/9760412/2013-mlb-playoffs-miguel-cabrera-detroit-tigers-playing-lot-pain-jim-leyland-says

Oh I think we can believe it.

A stubborn myth:

http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/42494/cabrera-wont-suffer-without-fielder

(I'm expecting normal decline if Cabrera's healthy, worse if he's not; Fielder won't be a factor, though, even though many will say he is.)

That last month of 2013 really put a damper on his whole year--the question of why he was playing every day, and having to watch what could have been among the greatest offensive seasons ever slip away. Much better September this year (after an up-and-down rest of the year). Here's where he'd be today if you took the first five months of 2013 and combined them with this year's September:

AB - 579
H - 211
2B - 35
3B - 1
HR - 51
TB - 403
R - 114
RBI - 148
BB - 82
BA - .364
OBP - .445
SLG - .696

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2014/10/01/cabrera-declines-playoff-share-just-want-ring/16545473/

i love the "why am i writing this" tone throughout this article facebook really wanted me to see

Not promising:

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/10/25/dave-dombrowski-on-miguel-cabrera-its-worse-than-what-we-ever-would-have-anticipated/

sorry dave

Hey, no worries.

https://igcdn-photos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/10632163_1589951094551199_806747511_n.jpg

I was visiting my goddaughter this afternoon and noticed this plate as I was leaving. Long odds. You never know.

http://i1059.photobucket.com/albums/t427/sayhey1/miggy_zps07741f50.jpg

Having a phenomenal partial season; just about to re-enter the yearly leaderboards.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/145158510/miguel-cabrera-set-to-re-enter-al-batting-race

Working on his highest BA and OBA by a wide margin; highest OPS+ of his career, too. His time off and the Tigers' season will possibly break his streak of getting MVP votes every season of his career--he'll probably get a handful of down-ballot votes, though. I would have bet money before the season that his health issues would guarantee further decline.

don't really care about BA so much, but his .367 is waaaaaay ahead of anyone else in the AL (next closest are fielder and kipnis at .320)

@Pele
Good luck tonight to my brother @miguelCabrera in your pursuit for the batting crown !

https://twitter.com/MiguelCabrera/status/639539007832092672

‏@Dan_Dickerson 27s27 seconds ago
...3 hits leave no doubt - Cabrera has won his 4th batting title - becomes just 7th player in AL history to win as many 4 batting titles...

@beckjason
Miguel Cabrera said he wasn't playing at full strength down stretch: "The calf, my ankle. I've been battling my ankle the whole year."

Two HRs off Rivera in the same series.

― Andy K, Sunday, August 11, 2013 4:12 PM (2 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/miguel-cabrera-detroit-tigers-what-makes-him-great-in-the-words-of-his-peers-030316

Torii Hunter, former Tigers teammate and opponent: We were playing the Yankees in 2013. Mariano Rivera came in to close the game out. He's pitching his butt off. And now Miggy's at the plate.

We had a man on (second). The score is 3-1. It's the top of the ninth. Miggy is battling. You think Mariano is going to throw a cutter. But he kept throwing two-seamers (sinkers) the whole time to mix up Miguel, kind of mess him up because he knows he's good.

He's throwing two-seamers in, and Miguel kept fouling balls off his ankles, his knees. He had to call time out and walk around. Then he threw another two-seamer right by his ankle. Miguel moved his front foot out of the way and hit it to center field, home run, tie game.

(Two days later), guess what? Similar situation. Mariano in the ninth inning, Miggy at the plate, leading off the inning (with the Tigers trailing, 4-2). Mariano this time tries to throw a cutter low and away. Miggy just stays with it. Oppo home run.

I was like, what? I couldn't believe it. I was screaming like a little kid.

Big game yesterday, .327/.401/.588; still one of the top 10 hitters in the game, I would think, although he tailed off after the injury last year, and I expect he'll wear down some as this year progresses.

Game 2000 for Miguel Cabrera
......gets hit # 2400.
....fifth fastest to get there.

(Was 7th fastest to 2000 hits)

5th youngest is what I'm seeing? (They're not nec the same thing.)

http://www.freep.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2016/06/12/detroit-tigers-miguel-cabrera/85807474/

http://www.mlive.com/tigers/index.ssf/2014/04/detroit_tigers_miguel_cabrera_103.html

It's 5th youngest, not 5th fastest. The first link puts him in a group with Cobb, Hornsby, Yount, and Aaron. Yount, whose career BA probably never exceeded .300, clearly points to youngest, and when I checked Ichiro, he was sitting on 2,696 hits after 2,000 games. There are 48 players with higher career BAs than Cabrera, and many if not most would have reached 2,400 hits faster.

Cabrera hit one out of Comerica tonight.

http://m.mlb.com/cutfour/2016/06/20/185223330/tigers-miguel-cabrera-hits-booming-homer-that-lands-outside-comerica-park

2500

https://twitter.com/TigresdeDetroit/status/777635908325703680

Youngest since Aaron in '67. (Would have guess A-Rod and/or Yount got there quicker.)

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/202014110/miguel-cabrera-reaches-2500-career-hits/

or jeter!

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/lets-watch-miguel-cabrera-make-a-run-happen/

this is hilarious

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C2pQmMPWEAAj_uu.jpg

@DetroitTigersPR
With his 3-run HR in the 5th inning, @MiguelCabrera now has 1,557 RBI in his career, passing Willie McCovey (1,555) for 44th in MLB history.

man i would've expected 1500+ to land him a lot higher on the list

i don't think i would've, given my suspicion that Harold Baines has more.

(looked it up; he does)

guess it's time to reconsider harold's hall of fame case

Just hit no. 450. Now ahead of Bagwell, Guerrero. Just behind Yaz.

.238/.319/.396 is he hurt, Andy?

Now at .265/.352/.442. He's been dealing with back, groin, oblique, and maybe other issues.

@darenw
This is Miguel Cabrera's base hit spray chart since 2008. Doesn't get much prettier than that.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAZKMMbU0AAnIVT.jpg

also oldness. he'll age well though, esp after he moves to DH full time

@msimonespn
MLB's new hard-hit rate leader for the season is ... Miguel Cabrera (27%)

@DetroitTigersPR
With his RBI double in the 6th inning, @MiguelCabrera now has 1,582 RBI in his Major League career, tying Al Kaline for 36th in MLB history.

hasnt hit a homerun in 3 wks

http://i.imgur.com/4HBGXTT.gifv

I only want to watch that in slow motion, for the rest of my life

to the tune of "I Only Have Eyes For You"

http://www.mlive.com/tigers/index.ssf/2017/07/miguel_cabrera_venezuela_threa.html

DETROIT -- Detroit Tigers star Miguel Cabrera is speaking out more forcefully than ever before about the ongoing crisis in his native Venezuela, breaking what he said was his long-standing rule against meddling in politics.

In a series of free-wheeling videos posted on Monday to the "stories" section of his Instagram account, Cabrera blasted the corruption of Venezuela's government, voiced his support for protesters and spoke of threats against his family that required him to pay vacunas, or protection money.

Never seen him more upset with himself.

i don't get to see him hit very often - is he hurt, or is he just getting old?

his wOBA (.328) is far lower than the low .400s that he posted the last decade or so, and even below his rookie year (.338)

if it's not a physical issue, i assume the insanity in venezuela / threats against his family can't help. :-/

Published before last night's game (during which he weakly popped up in a potential game-winning at-bat, and threw his bat into the ground):

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2017/07/24/cause-miguel-cabreras-slump-mystery-tigers/103968674/

Ausmus comparing 34-year-old Cabrera in 2017 to 27-year-old Bagwell in 1995 (coming off one of the greatest seasons ever) is bizarre. I wonder if he meant Bagwell's last two seasons.

@DetroitTigersPR
With 2 hits today, @MiguelCabrera has tied @TimRaines30 for 79th in MLB history with 2,605 career hits.

Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera is being sued by a Florida woman who says the two-time Most Valuable Player isn’t paying enough to support two children he fathered with her, setting up a legal showdown that could cost the superstar more than $100,000 a month.

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2017/10/13/tigers-miguel-cabrera-paternity-case/106604104/