The Detroit Tigers made a trade in the 1980s that quite possibly cost them from being a championship team in the 90s, and in turn gave a player from Michigan the chance to become a world champion.

1984 was the last time the Detroit Tigers could call themselves world champions in baseball, and after that championship, the team struggled until the 90s.

107.7 WRKR-FM logo

 

But in 1985, the Detroit Tigers drafted one of the most decorated players of the 90s and 2000s, who could’ve been a promising acquisition and led them to another world championship eventually.

John Smoltz grew up in Warren, Michigan, and was an All-State baseball player at Waverly High School in Lansing, Michigan.

He would eventually go on to play baseball at Michigan State University and achieve what was most likely his dream by being drafted by his hometown Detroit Tigers.

Unfortunately, in 1987, the Detroit Tigers were chasing the American League East division lead with two other teams to try to overtake the Toronto Blue Jays.

In a desperate move to add some depth to their pitching roster, they sent the then 20-year-old John Smoltz down to the Braves to acquire some veteran help from the 36-year-old Doyle Alexander.

Alexander did help the Tigers eventually win the division title, going 9-0 down the stretch of the season, but by 1989, he retired, and Smoltz would eventually become one of the foundations of the Braves franchise for the next 20 years.

Smolts would go on to be an eight-time All-Star and eventually help the Braves win a World Series championship in 1995.

He won the National League Cy Young award in 1996 and the National League championship series most valuable player award in 1992.

He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015 and also had his jersey, # 29, retired by the Atlanta Braves.

He ended his career with a 3.33 earned run average, 3084 strikeouts, and 213 wins.

It’s easy to say that if tigers had held onto them, we could be saying that their last championship was in the 90s, but they decided to make a decision that may have cost them a more recent title.

Every Tigers Player Who Has Played On The Whitecaps

The Tigers have pulled off a miracle comeback of a season to make it into the playoffs. The West Michigan Whitecaps is an affiliate of the Tigers, so how many players on the Tigers used to play on the Whitecaps? Turns over half the team has been on the Whitecaps, with 15 players on the current Tigers having spent time here in West Michigan.

Gallery Credit: Tommy McNeill