Back in 1985 and ’88, Gibson had better things to do. He politely turned down offers from managers Sparky Anderson and Whitey Herzog to rest, go hunting and spend time with family.

Gibson also wasn’t afraid to fire off a salvo or two, like when he said, “There are players in this game that want to be stars – let them go play.”

Today, he probably wouldn’t say such a thing, although he still refuses to publicly endorse any of his own players as reserves for next week’s game.

Avila’s never played third in the majors but he’s not the first Tigers player to be pressed into action there. Did you know that Al Kaline appeared in two games at third during his career?

In 1961, he played a full nine innings at third, fielding a pair of chances cleanly, with a putout and an assist. Four years later he played 5.1 innings of a game with three chances, two putouts and an assist.

Johnny Wockenfuss, who played mostly at first, catcher and in the outfield, became even more of a utility man for Sparky Anderson when he played … parts of two games – all of 2.1 innings – at third base but never saw any action.

Like Kaline, in 1965 Willie Horton played third but outlasted him be two-thirds of an inning. In one game he played six innings, fielded two chances and earned an assist on both.

Others taking a turn at the hot corner include:

• Mickey Stanley: 18 games over two seasons (1975 and ’76), 61 chances, 13 putouts, 46 assists and two errors
• Alan Trammell: 43 games in two seasons (1993, ’96), 100 chances, 26 putouts, 69 assists, five errors
• Ty Cobb: 1 game in 1918, two chances, with an assist and a putout.
• Charlie Gehringer: 6 error-free games (and 26 chances) in 1926 for The Mechanical Man

I’m looking forward to this experiment. Having Avila’s bat in the lineup is huge and having him at third, well, can’t be any worse than Ryan Raburn.

What do you think?

Not this weekend.

Detroit’s recent good fortune against the Sox continues. (Right?)

• Here’s a terrific piece about Sparky Anderson from someone who knew him in his southern California community for 40 years.
• Out here in Phoenix, there’s some noise about the Diamondbacks pursuing the Mets’ David Wright. All things being equal — and Brandon Inge’s mono notwithstanding — I’d sure rather see him in Detroit. What about you?
• The Tigers’ all-time record against the White Sox heading into play tonight is 1,012-996-1. Why does it seem as if  half those losses have come since 2004?
• Two tidbits about tonight’s starter Andy Oliver: 1. He was selected to participate in the Futures Game held prior to last year’s All-Star Game in Anaheim, but was unable to participate because he’d been called up to the Tigers. 2. Following last season, Baseball America named Oliver the third-best prospect in the Tigers organization, the 13th-best prospect in the EasternLeague and the 19th-best prospect in the International League.
• On this date in 1952 the Tigers acquired lefty Bill Wight, infielders Johnny Pesky, Walt Dropo and Fred Hatfield and outfielder Don Lenhardt from the Red Sox for righthander Dizzy Trout, infielders George Kell and Johnny Lipon and outfielder Hoot Evers.
• Have you been itching for a closer look at the Tigers’ platoon situations? ESPN.com’s Christina Kahrl has you covered:

The Tigers might be the team with the most potential variations, to the point that Jim Leyland could flirt with multi-positional solutions every bit as creative as [Rays skipper Joe] Maddon’s. After all, the Tigers broke in Ryan Raburn in a multi-positional utility role with a lean toward starting him against lefties in the past, and using youngsters Andy Dirks and Casper Wells as platoon outfielders now. Raburn and Brennan Boesch have struggled to stick in regular roles, opening up a host of possibilities for Leyland to try to hide some of his players from the sources of some of their struggles.

• Over at The Platoon Advantage, Bill offers up three ways to improve the All-Star Game.

Finally, Happy 61st Birthday to singer Suzi Quatro, who played Leather Tuscadero on Happy Days. Did I just date myself?

Have a great weekend.

On Saturday against the Royals the Tigers will play game number 40 and, at worst, will finish that game at an even 20 and 20. So what conclusions can we draw from these first 40 games? For that matter, what conclusions can we draw from the past week, which delivered some terrific baseball?

Are they as bad as they looked against the Royals in April and the Tribe two weeks ago? Or are they as good as the club the swept Chicago at home?

I hate to punt on this, but I think we’ll know more about the Tigers after another series against the Royals, Indians and White Sox.
What do you think?

In the meantime, here’s a look at the Tigers’ record after 40 games since Jim Leyland arrived in Detroit.

• 2010: 23-17
• 2009: 24-16
• 2008: 16-24
• 2007: 24-16
• 2006: 27-13

—

As I’m writing this, Justin Verlander has kept the Royals hitless through four innings. Earlier this week I was wondering how he fared in the start following his June 12, 2007 no-hitter. Well, it was a bit different from his 12-strikeout torching of the Brewers. Verlander’s next start came against the Phillies on Sunday, June 17 at Citizens Bank Park. His final line: six innings, seven hits, two walks, three earned runs.  The Tigers won, 7-4.

—

I sure hope we haven’t seen the last of Magglio Ordonez, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list today.

“He’s been feeling the effects of his ankle off and on during the season here,” trainer Kevin Rand said. “We decided to look at it, and to err on the side of caution, we’re shutting him down.”

The stats are ugly: .172 with one home run and five RBIs in 26 games this season. I can’t believe that his hitting skills have plummeted to Gerald Laird levels simply due to age. You?

—

Buried at the bottom of the Ordonez story is this little update on Carlos Guillen.

Guillen was in the clubhouse as well and has started baseball-related activities again.

Guillen says he’s been able to hit, run and take ground balls, although there’s still no timetable for his return.

Talk about a forgotten man.

–

Finally, on this date in 1913, Joe Louis was born. He was the world heavyweight champion for a record-setting 12 years.

Have a great weekend.

So, when I saw Tom Gage’s piece about Enos Cabell over the weekend, I was interested to read why Cabell, who hit .311 for the 1983 Tigers, moved on after that season.

He wanted to stay a Tiger, and they weren’t averse to him staying.

“But they wouldn’t give me a raise,” Cabell said Saturday. “I hit .311, played with a knee brace the last two months of that year, and they wouldn’t give me a penny more.

“So I said bye-bye. I was pretty sure the Astros wanted me back, anyway.”

As Rob Neyer might say, well, maybe. I remember there was talk about Cabell having a drug problem and that Sparky Anderson wanted none of that in his clubhouse. Then, in 1986:

Commissioner Peter Ueberroth gives seven players who were admitted drug users a choice of a year’s suspension without pay or heavy fines and career-long drug testing, along with 100 hours of drug-related community service. Joaquin Andújar, Dale Berra, Enos Cabell, Keith Hernandez, Jeffrey Leonard, Dave Parker, and Lonnie Smith will be fined 10 percent of their annual salaries to drug abuse programs. The commissioner also doles out lesser penalties to 14 other players for their use of drugs.

Somewhere in the middle is the truth, right?

The focus seems to be on how he and his staff, which includes bench coach Alan Trammell, will shape this relatively young team — Melvin Mora notwithstanding — and emphasize the positive.

In his blog today, the Arizona Republic‘s Nick Piecoro writes about how Gibby is falling in line with the organization’s new fan friendly mindset — specifically, autographs. As one whose autograph requests of Gibson as recently as three years ago (actually it was a photo request at Spring Training; I was wearing a Fungo t-shirt for crying out loud) have been spurned, this interested me:

The Diamondbacks’ daily schedule is posted on video boards in and around the clubhouse, and right there, before the day’s work is complete, is a required task for every player: sign autographs.

Diamondbacks CEO Derrick Hall loves to call his organization the most fan-friendly in baseball, but it isn’t just the front office that’s on board with the autograph policy.

There’s agreement coming from the manager’s office.

“They’ll sign every day,” Gibson said. “When the catchers are done, they’ll sign. That’s something that’s important.”

Gibson admitted to being “terrible” at signing when he was a young player but said Detroit manager Sparky Anderson convinced him of the importance of treating fans well.

“Sometimes, when we’re young, we think we’re the most important thing about the game,” Gibson said. “The reality of it is, when you leave the game, it just keeps right on going.”

Anderson’s point to Gibson: What happens if the fans leave?

“None of us would be around,” Anderson told him.

“It really is important,” Gibson said. “As good as times are right now, I went through five work stoppages. The last one was 1994 and I remember how the game was after that. We don’t want to destroy that. They’re very important. They’re great human beings and support our game of baseball. They deserve to be treated with respect as well.”

I’m heading over to the Dbacks’ new Spring Training site on Monday to watch some workouts. Do you think Gibby or Tram will agree to a photo for one of their fanboys?

What about you? Do you have any experiences with Gibson or any other big leaguer brushing off your autograph requests?

Two months after Sparky’s death, todaythe Tigers announced they’ll retire his number 11 and wear a patch with the number all season.

I understand his passing happened after the season and there wasn’t much they could do, but couldn’t the Tigers have chosen another time — any other time — to honor (or at least announce their intention to honor) their winningest manager?

Here are just a few opportunities they wasted:

• 1994: The 10th anniversary of the 1984 World Series championship
• 2000: His induction in to the Baseball Hall of Fame
• 2004: The 20th anniversary of the ’84 championship
• 2005: Comerica Park All-Star Game festivities
• 2006: Any time during the postseason
• 2009: The 25th reunion event for the ’84 club, when it was clear that Sparky’s health was declining.

Yes, the fact the Tigers are honoring Sparky is a good thing — and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was Dave Dombrowski that finally convinced Ilitch that the Great Sparky Schism needed to end.

But still, two months after his death? 18 months after the last, best opportunity?

Sorry.

“Better late than never” just doesn’t work for me in this instance.

• Born: July 6, 1954 in Hollywood, Calif.
• Bats: Left Throws: Left
• Height: 6′ 4″ Weight: 200 lb.
• Acquired: Drafted by the Tigers in the fourth round of the 1975 amateur draft.
• Seasons in Detroit: 5 (1976-80)
• Uniform Number: 30
• Stats: .256 avg., 98 HR, 354 RBI, .779 OPS
• Awards: Three-time All Star (1977, ’78 and ’82)

On May 27, 1980, Tigers GM Jim Campbell traded my favorite player, first baseman Jason Thompson, to the California Angels for outfielder Al Cowens.

The Hollywood native joined the Tigers full time in 1976 and played 123 games that year, hitting .218, with 17 home runs and 54 RBI. Two of the homers cleared the rightfield roof at Tiger Stadium. It was in 1977, though, that he made his mark: .270, 31 homers and 105 RBI — and earned an All Star Game selection.

The 1977 Tigers yearbook noted:

Jason led the Tigers with 31 home runs and 105 RBI — the first Tiger since Norm Cash (32) in 1971 to top 30 homers and the first since Willie Horton (100) in 1966 to attain the century mark in RBI.

At that point, the Tigers had to like their team of the future: Thompson, Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell, Lance Parrish, Steve Kemp, Ron LeFlore, Jack Morris, et al, with a third baseman to be named later.

Thompson had another solid year in ’78, hitting .287 with 26 homers and 96 RBI.

The Beginning of the End in Detroit…Already?!

In 1979 he continued to hit homers and drive in runs — 20 and 79, respectively — but his average dropped 40 points to .246. That was also the year that Sparky Anderson arrived and, so the story goes, Thompson and Sparky didn’t mesh.

In 1980, Thompson got off to a slow start: .214/4/20 in 36 games, and Sparky invoked his My Way or the Highway clause and sent his first baseman to Orange County.

As I’ve said before, Thompson’s replacement, Richie Hebner, was a favorite of mine too. But, who were the Tigers kidding? Hebner over Jason Thompson?

From Anaheim to Pittsburgh to Montreal

Back home in southern California, Thompson thrived. In 102 games he batted .317 with 17 homers and 70 RBI. (Hebner hit .290/12/82.) On the eve of the 1981 season the Angels traded the three-time All Star to the Pirates for Ed Ott and Mickey Mahler.

In his five seasons in Pittsburgh, Thompson hit 93 home runs and averaged 93 RBI (not counting the 42 in the shortened ’81 season).

On April 4, 1986, the Pirates traded him to the Montreal Expos for players to be named later. Thompson played only 30 games for the Expos, hitting .196 with no home runs and just four RBI. On June 30, at the age of 31 and with balky knees, Jason Thompson was out of baseball for good.

The Jason Thompson Curse

If you remove the years that Darrell Evans and Cecil Fielder manned first base, the Tigers have had a revolving door at the position since they traded Jason Thompson. I call it The Curse of Jason Thompson: Hebner, Enos Cabell, Dave Engle, Keith Moreland, Tony Clark, Eric Munson, Carlos Pena, Chris Shelton, Sean Casey and Carlos Guillen. (And now, of course, Miguel Cabrera. Though I’m not convinced he’s long for first base.)

When looking back on the 1984 World Series team, I often think about how that team, or three-quarters of the starting nine, could’ve been homegrown talent — if Thompson were still in Detroit then.

With the exception of Chet Lemon and Larry Herndon, the Tigers could’ve had six of eight starters developed from Lakeland on up. (Or seven of nine if Morris or Dan Petry were on the hill.) Quite a different scenario from the 2008 Tigers when only two full-time, homegrown position players — Curtis Granderson and Matt Joyce — roam the field.

Today Thompson runs “Jason Thompson Baseball” in Auburn Hills, where kids can get hitting and fielding instruction from old #30 himself. He’s also an executive with Wachovia Securities.

If you can’t tell, even 28 years later I’ve still not gotten over the trade involving my favorite childhood player. I quickly hitched my wagon onto Hebner as a way to ease the pain. But that didn’t last long either, come to think of it.

So I threw my allegiance behind Kirk Gibson and five years later, when Gibson signed with the Dodgers, had to deal with the anguish all over again.

• Born: Sept. 17, 1954 in Trenton, N.J.
• Bats: Left Throws: Right
• Height: 6′ 1″ Weight: 180 lb.
• Acquired: Traded by the Reds to the Tigers for Pat Underwood on June 30, 1983.
• Seasons in Detroit: 1 (59 games in 1983)
• Uniform Number: 15
• Stats: .278 avg., 1 home run, 16 RBI

The summer of 1983 gave Tigers fans a glimpse of what was to come a year later: a young core of star players ready to move to the next level in the American League East. Detroit was in the race until September when the eventual World Series champion Orioles pulled away for good.

That season also introduced fans — ever-so briefly — to a role player with one of the best names in baseball history: Wayne Krenchicki.

He came to the Tigers in a late-June trade with the Reds for once-promising lefty Pat Underwood. With Alan Trammell nursing injuries, the club needed some infield help.

As he always did with newly acquired players, manager Sparky Anderson put Krenchicki right to work, inserting him in the starting lineup against the Orioles and rookie Storm Davis.

On July 1, batting eighth in the lineup, Krenchicki went hitless in three at bats against Davis and the Tigers lost 9-5. He got his first Tigers hit two days later, a third-inning double off Tim Stoddard, in a 10-1 Tigers win.

In all, Krenchicki appeared in 59 games for the Tigers in 1983, seeing time at every infield position but played primarily at third. His time in Detroit was brief; in November that year, the Reds purchased his contract from the Tigers.

He finished his eight-year big-league career with the Reds and Expos, and retired after the 1986 season.

• Born: Aug. 15, 1961 in Jackson, Miss.
• Died: Dec. 26, 2006 in Houston
• Acquired: Traded by the Padres with Keith Moreland to the Tigers for Walt Terrell on Oct. 28, 1988.
• Seasons in Detroit: 1 (1989)
• Bats: Right Throws: Right
• Height: 6′ Weight: 185 lb.
• Uniform Number: 35
• Stats: .193 avg., 0 HR, 4 RBI, .449 OPS

Perhaps no other word best describes third baseman Chris Brown like enigmatic.

After a promising start to his career with the Giants in 1985, his .271 average and 16 homers earned him a fourth-place finish in the National League Rookie of the Year Award, and an All-Star Game appearance in ’86, Brown began frustrating his managers and his teammates with a string of questionable and bizarre injuries. In fact, he never appeared in more games than he did that rookie season (131).

By the middle of the 1987 season Brown was shipped to the Padres with Keith Comstock, Mark Davis and Mark Grant for Dave Dravecky, Craig Lefferts and Kevin Mitchell. He didn’t fare well in San Diego either, hitting .232 in 44 games. In 1988 he hit just .235 in 80 games.

The Tigers were in complete freefall when they traded Walt Terrell to the Padres for Brown and Keith Moreland, whose best years were behind him. Why Detroit thought Brown and his “Tin Man” reputation would be transformed under Sparky Anderson is mystifying. His reputation for injuries — real or imagined — ranged from shoulder tenderness, a bad tooth and a sore eyelid. At least those are the more legendary ones — who knows if they were true.

In Detroit, the Chris Brown Experiment — such as it was — got off to a poor start when he arrived to spring training overweight. It ended after just 17 games, 11 hits and a .193 average. Worse yet, if possible, was a .909 fielding percentage in that time. On May 19, he was released. A few weeks later he was signed by the Pirates but never appeared in a big-league game for them.

He died in a mysterious Houston house fire on Dec. 26, 2006, at the age of 45. According to this MLB.com story:

Brown was employed by Halliburton Co. in Iraq, driving and repairing 18-wheel fuel trucks, and in a 2004 interview with The Associated Press, he said, “It’s a place I would’ve never thought 20 years ago that I’d be.”

His final career line: .269 average, 38 home runs, 184 RBI and a .725 OPS.

• Born: Sept. 16, 1960 in Oklahoma City
• Height: 6′ 2″ Weight: 200 lb.
• Acquired: Traded by the Orioles to the Tigers for Jeff Robinson on Jan. 11, 1991.
• Seasons in Detroit: 4 (1991-94)
• Uniform Number: 20
• Stats: .249 avg., 112 HR, 333 RBI, .867 OPS
• Awards: Silver Slugger (1991, ’92) All Star (1994)

Who didn’t like Mickey Tettleton? He was built like a tank, stood ramrod straight at the plate and could crush the ball from either side of the plate. And, he wasn’t half-bad behind the plate.

Tettleton came to Detroit in a steal of a trade from the Orioles 20 years ago next week, the Tigers sending once-promising righty Jeff Robinson to Baltimore in the deal.

After four nondescript seasons with the A’s in which he never hit more than 10 home runs, Tettleton was released by Oakland and signed by the Orioles at the end of March 1988. That season he hit 11 homers but struck out 117 times in 411 at bats.

In 1989, however, he became a dangerous hitter, clubbing 26 homers and earning an All-Star appearance. And while his strikeouts rose along with his plate appearances, so did his walks. In 1990, he fanned 160 times (a career high) but walked 106.

Why would the Orioles, who weren’t exactly brimming with offensive talent, want to part ways with Tettleton? According to this story, they “did not want to pay him more than $1 million to be backup to Bob Melvin.” Bob Melvin! And shortly thereafter his ticket to Detroit was punched.

“He has good defensive skills and is adept at working with pitchers,” acting Tigers General Manager Joe McDonald said. “In addition, he brings even more punch to our lineup.”

And how.

Tettleton joined a Tigers club that was constructing a roster full of mashers: Cecil Fielder, Rob Deer and Pete Incaviglia.

He averaged 32 homers in his first three years with the Tigers … and 136 strikeouts. But, he also averaged 110 walks over those three seasons including a league-leading 122 in 1992.

Sparky Anderson penciled him in primarily at catcher in 1991 and ’92, with a few dozen starts at designated hitter. In 1993 and ’94, Tettleton began to see more time at first base and the outfield.

But Tettleton was known for his hitting and at Tiger Stadium he was a perfect fit. More than half his homers as a Tiger came at home.

After the strike-shortened 1994 season, he was granted free agency by the Tigers. He signed with the Rangers just before the 1995 season began and played parts of three seasons in Arlington before retiring in July 1997, with 245 career home runs — good for eighth place in major-league history by a switch hitter.

“This wasn’t a roster decision,” said an emotional Tettleton. “This was totally my decision. It was something I had talked about before and it just didn’t happen then. The time is right. Every athlete has the day when they have to come to that decision.”

Let me know what you think — and feel free to suggest players you’d like me to highlight.

So, with that, here’s the first installment.

Lynn Jones

• Born: Jan. 1, 1953 in Meadville, PA
• Acquired: Drafted from the Reds in the 1978 rule 5 draft, Dec. 4, 1978.
• Seasons in Detroit: 5 (1979-83)
• Uniform number: 35 
• Stats: .264 avg., 6 HR, 71 RBI, .658 OPS

The Tigers selected Lynn Jones from the Reds in the December 1978 Rule 5 Draft and, as they were required to do, kept him on the 25-man roster the entire 1979 season. In 95 games that year Jones batted .296 with four home runs, seeing time mostly in the outfield but also as a pinch-hitter.

Jones was a role player and pinch hitter for Sparky Anderson’s earliest Detroit teams, posting a decent on-base percentage in his first three seasons. The 1982 and ’83 seasons, though, saw his production slip and as a result his playing time was limited to 64 at bats in ’83.

That offseason the Tigers made him a free agent and he promptly signed with the Royals. In 1984, Jones hit a career-high .301 in a similar role to what he played in Detroit. He faced his former team in the American League Championship Series, going just 1 for 5.

The next season Jones appeared in 110 games for Dick Howser‘s Royals — a career high — but saw his average plummet 90 points. It wasn’t a total downer though, he won a World Series ring that year and had two extra-base hits in the Series against the Cardinals.

1986 would be his final big-league season — and his worst statistically. He hit .128 in 67 games with a single RBI and after that season he became a free agent but didn’t sign with another team.

Jones was the Royals’ first base coach in 1991 and 1992 before managing in the Marlins system. In 2001, he was the Marlins’ first-base coach. He earned his second World Series ring in 2004 as a member of Terry Francona‘s coaching staff in Boston. Today he’s the Braves’ baserunning coordinator.

The answer was: they’d be relevant. And that, ladies in gentlemen, is the extent of the analysis in this post. Instead of a deep dive into 2010, let’s look at the year in the form of randomly selected lists:

2010 At A Glance*

• Record: 81-81, 3rd in American League Central, 13 games back of Minnesota
• Days in First: 13, the last on July 10
• Biggest Lead: 1, last on July 7
• Farthest Behind: 15.5 on Sept. 15
• Most Games over .500: 11, last on July 10
• Most Games under .500: 5, last on Aug. 19
• Longest Winning Streak: 7, June 11-18
• Longest Losing Streak: 7, July 11-20
• Most Runs Allowed: 15, June 9
• Most Runs Scored: 13, Aug. 15
• Longest Game (innings): 14, July 19
• Times Shutout by Opponent: 10
• Times Opponent Shutout: 5

Month-by-Month Records

• April: 14-10
• May: 12-14
• June: 15-12
• July: 11-15
• August: 13-16
• September: 15-11
• October: 1-3

Top 11 Stories, Loosely Ranked

1. Armando Galarraga’s Near-Perfect Game
2. The death of Ernie Harwell
3. The death of Sparky Anderson
4. Miguel Cabrera’s MVP-caliber Season
5. Austin Jackson’s Rookie Year
6. The Post-All-Star Game Collapse
7. Magglio Ordonez Season-ending Injury
8. Max Scherzer’s Rebound
9. The Other Rookies: Brennan Boesch, Casper Wells, Danny Worth
10. Phil Coke’s Reliability
11. Jose Valverde’s Outstanding First-Half

Day-by-Day Records

• Monday: 8-9
• Tuesday: 7-16
• Wednesday: 11-16
• Thursday: 12-4
• Friday: 11-14
• Saturday: 14-13
• Sunday: 18-9

Random Nuggets of Uselessness

• Number of games without an extra-base hit: 11
• Max St. Pierre’s caught-stealing percentage: 0 percent
• The Tigers’ record when Jeff Larish was in the starting lineup: 1-2
• The Tigers’ record in Dontrelle Willis’ starts: 4-4
• Most runners left on base in a game: 18, April 11 versus the Indians
• Offensive production from Tigers designated hitters: 8 home runs, 67 RBI

And with that, I wish you a safe, healthy and happy new year.

*Courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com

Until then, here are some notable notes from around the Web:

• If you want one more Sparky Anderson photo gallery, ESPN.com is happy to oblige.

• Austin Jackson, in the eyes of Ian and many others got robbed on Monday when he finished second in the American League Rookie of the Year voting. His catch during Armando Galarraga’s near-perfect game should’ve cinched for him.

• The 1934 Detroit Tigers infield tonight was featured in a new episode of MLB Network’s Prime 9: Infields. If you missed it this evening, fret not, MLB Network airs its Prime 9 series almost on the hour in the offseason. The ’34 Tigers will be ranked alongside other infields, including the ’13 Athletics, ’27 Giants, ’75 Reds and ’99 Mets. As always, check your local listings.

• Where will Jeremy Bonderman end up in 2011? As we learned at the end of this season, there’s an outside chance that he’ll return to the Tigers. Not every team can afford Cliff Lee, which means you’d think someone like Bonderman would be an attractive and affordable option. Nosing around online I found two potential suitors: the Pirates (story here) and the Padres (story).

• On Wednesday night I’ll be taking in my first Arizona Fall League game of the year — and likely the last seeing as the season ends on Saturday. I won’t be watching Tigers prospects though. Nope. I’ll be watching the Scottsdale Scorpions and Nationals’ phenom Bryce Harper. I don’t like what I read about this kid but what the hey? When am I ever going to see him again for just $5?

Finally, Happy 60th Birthday to actor David Leisure, a.k.a., Joe Isuzu.

Besides, I don’t have the energy to get all riled up; watching that Michigan game wore me out.

• With the exception of the Detroit papers, most obituaries on Sparky Anderson have been wire copy. The notable exceptions include this one from The New York Times and this one from the closest thing to a hometown paper, The Los Angeles Times.

• On case you were wondering about how the newspaper in Sparky’s real hometown, his birthplace, Bridgewater, S.D., covered his passing, well, they didn’t as far as I can tell.

• Here’s one more for you on Sparky, courtesy of Chris Jaffe at Hardball Times.

• The guys at Stadium Journey keep churning out great reviews of ballparks and arenas around the country. Recently they posted their review of Fifth Third Field in Toledo.

• We all know that the Cardinals had no business beating the Tigers in the 2006 World Series. Now the rest of the world is reminded of it thanks to this piece by Joe Posnanski on SI.com in which he ranks the 10-weakest World Series winners since 1946. Savor the ’06 Cardinals’ ranking: the second-weakest.

• Speaking of Mr. Posnanski, he wrote a terrific piece, of course, on Sparky.

Finally, Happy 53rd Birthday to Christopher Knight, who played Peter on “The Brady Bunch.”

Upon hearing the news on WJR I ran over to the playground where my brother was playing basketball to tell him the news. He wasn’t as excited as I was, but he was happy the Tigers went after a big-name manager. In fact, Sparky was the first star coach or manager hired by any Detroit team.

By hiring Sparky, at least to my then 11-year-old mind, the Tigers were going to be good at last. Finally, I told my Dad, a good manager. He was quick to remind me that a manager is only as good as his players and that the Tigers “didn’t have the horses” to compete in the American League East.

Long-time first-base coach Dick Tracewski managed the Tigers for a few days until Sparky would arrive. Through some twist of fate I can’t recall, I ended up attending Sparky’s first game with the Tigers — sitting in the deepest part of the upper deck in right field. When Sparky ran out with the lineup card he received a standing ovation.

For the first few games in a Tigers uniform, he wore number seven but soon changed it to 11 because he said that seven was Mickey Mantle‘s number and added, “I ain’t no Mickey Mantle.”

(To this day it’s a crime that the Tigers haven’t retired his number. But Ian makes this case better than I.)

The 1984 season will always be remembered as Sparky’s enduring gift to Detroit and to Tigers fans everywhere. But for me, the 1987 season was just as thrilling in many ways. After 30 games the club was just 11-19 and looked tired. Then they woke up and hung around the top of the A.L. East before sweeping the Blue Jays during the final weekend of the season to win the division.

A few years later I sneaked into the Tigers’ Winter Caravan in Kalamazoo and asked Sparky about that ’87 team. “Of all the teams I’ve managed, that’s the one I’m most proud of,” he said. “No one gave us a chance and we shocked them all.”

People say that by winning the World Series in ’84 Sparky got a lifetime pass in Detroit. There’s probably some truth to that. After all, the Tigers’ record from 1985-95 was just 852-864 — not dazzling but not enough to get Sparky Anderson fired. That just wasn’t going to happen in Detroit.

When he left Detroit, I suspected Sparky would have one more managerial job. I thought maybe the Dodgers or Angels or Padres would call at some point. They didn’t and as a result he enjoyed his retirement in Thousand Oaks, Calif., playing golf and, as he always said, being in his pajamas by 7 p.m.

Since he was hired in 1979, Detroit has had many star coaches — Chuck Daly, Scotty Bowman, Steve Mariucci, Larry Brown, Jacques Demers — but none were brighter nor beloved more than the first.