Detroit Tigers: A.J. Hinch around for the long haul despite struggles

Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch is staying the course.

For the Detroit Tigers, things have not gone the way they hoped to start out the 2023 season. The team is not exactly expected to be some sort of juggernaut competitor. They're trying to avoid losing 100 games.

With that in mind, there has been the initial panic and overreaction from the fanbase that the Detroit Tigers skipper, A.J. Hinch, may be on his way out. The thought that A.J. Hinch will jump ship and walk away from the Tigers is plausible.

He wants to win. Call it what you want, asterisks or not, but the man coached the Houston Astros and had a good thing going in Houston. That team competes and continues to compete with many of the pieces he had installed during his time there.

Hinch has to be looking to get back to that level of competition, and the Tigers have not been able to provide that yet. They are still looking to turn a corner. But pump the brakes on any thoughts about Hinch abandoning ship.

Back in 2021, when it was announced that Hinch was taking over as manager of the Tigers, it was reported by Baseball Insider Ken Rosenthal, had reported that the deal will run five seasons, running through 2025.

On top of that, it was reported that Hinch does not have an opt-out in his contract either. During Al Avila's GM tenure, he did put to bed any speculation that Hinch had an opt-out. However, it is a managerial contract, which in the baseball world can sometimes be compared to that of a mythical creature.

They are ever-changing, and the details are almost never 100%. However, given our information, Hinch does not have an opt-out, and he will be with the Tigers through the 2025 season. Even if the Tigers go on to lose 120 games this season, Hinch is here to stay.

For the Tigers, this has to be a sigh of relief. While some folks are ready to cut ties with Hinch and find someone else because, you know, Tigers fans exist. But the Tigers have their guy, and he will continue to run the ship in Detroit.

After all, the Tigers are still trying to move in the right direction. They have a new President of Baseball Operations, who deserves a chance before this fanbase attacks him for every move. The 2023 season was lost before he even really got started; there was a lot of work to be done, and Harris deserves a chance to do it.

While Hinch was a product of the Avila regime, he's sticking around and not going anywhere. Harris trusts him, and the Tigers faithful should too. Sure, the results may not be super exciting but give it some time.

In what feels like year 30 of the rebuild, there's not much patience, but time is the key element here. Give the new guy a chance and give Hinch time to work with the pieces Harris provides for him.