Former Brewers star first baseman Prince Fielder signed a 9 year, $214 million deal with the American League Detroit Tigers, which is the fourth largest contract in MLB history. This is why the Brewers never had a chance to keep him, they didn't have enough money to keep him in Milwaukee.
Detroit already has an experienced slugger at first base, Miguel Cabrera, but had no replacement for DH Victor Martinez that they were pursuing in free agency. Now with the addition of Fielder, the Tigers have the option of alternating Cabrera and Fielder at 1B/DH, or moving Cabrera back to his original position third base. The Tigers won the American League Central Crown in 2011, and will now be the favorite to do so again with the signing of Fielder. Detroit fell short of the World Series, losing to the Texas Rangers in the AL Championship Series, but this move proves they plan on making that next stop into the World Series.
During his six years plus with the Brewers, Fielder established himself as one of the most feared hitters in the game. He batted .282 with 230 home runs, 656 runs batted in, a .390 on base percentage, and a .540 slugging percentage. In 2007, he became the youngest major- leaguer at the age of 23, to sock 50 home runs in a season.
He and Albert Pujols are two of the most feared hitters and to me are very similar, both can give your team the rbi's and home runs that you need. Although Fielder can give you some strikeouts as well, he strikes out fairly often. He has improved on lowering how many times he strikes out in a season. He keeps on improving and if he keeps on improving that can only mean bad things for the rest of the league.
Last season Fielder finished with a .299 avg, 38 homeruns, and 120 RBI's. He also was last year's All Star Game MVP, after blasting a three run homer that gave the NL home field advantage in the World Series.
With the addition of Fielder, I believe the Tigers are now the favorite to win the AL, and possibly the World Series. Keep an eye out for the Rangers (especially now with the addition of Japanese phenom Yu Darvish), Angels (with the addition of Albert Pujols), and as always the Yankees. I'm ready for Spring Training to see how the additions help their new teams
Dedrick Hendrix - I am a 20 year old college student. I am majoring in journalism. When I graduate I plan to become a sports writer for the NBA. I ...
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