Detroit Tigers: Could negative perceptions hurt chances at top free agents?

Jul 29, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Detroit Tigers pitcher David Price (14) talks with manager Brad Ausmus (7) in the dugout against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The David Price Factor

David Price certainly seems to be having the time of his life in Toronto over the last seven weeks, hasn’t he? Of course, winning makes everything better, but Price never seemed to fit and/or was comfortable as a member of the Detroit Tigers.

He even admitted so, saying he had a tough time with the transition from Tampa Bay to Detroit last year. Going from Detroit to Toronto has not been any biggie for Price, however. Although the Tigers lost in the playoffs, they still make it so Price was pitching in meaningful games, so it is not like he went from a winner to loser.

So what went wrong here? Why could Price not feel comfortable and/or why could the Tigers not make Price feel comfortable?

Perhaps it was leaving a place that he grew as a young man, in Tampa/St. Pete, with a team that he had been with his entire professional career in the Rays. Now that he’s experienced a trade once, he knows how to handle it and knows what to expect.

Nonetheless, it might be on some players’ minds, wondering why it would not work here for Price and thinking perhaps it wouldn’t work for them as well.

To close the book on David Price, while we discuss who would be better in the Tigers’ rotation, Johnny Cueto, Jordan Zimmermann, or someone else, one name that is never mentioned with the Tigers is Price.

That ship has clearly sailed….

Next: Fan support