Reactions to the Tiger's Trades and Off-Season Activity

This past week, Tigers’ GM Dave Dombrowski has shown that he neither fears change, nor losing seasons.  In the interest of trimming the Tigers’ expenses, he’s traded Curtis Granderson and Edwin Jackson, failed to retain Placido Polanco and Brandon Lyon, and said that we’ll probably lose Fernando Rodney as well.  This may sound like terrible news, but there’s an upside to everything.  So fear not Tigers fans, I’m going to show you that for every negative that has come out of the Winter Meetings for the Tigers (i.e. every single one of these deals), there is a positive aspect that you may not have considered:


Con:  Curtis Granderson, a fan favorite in Detroit, has been traded off to the Evil Empire.  It’s going to be horribly depressing to see Grandy in those ugly Yankee pinstripes next year.  I mean, how can you not like the guy?  He’s one of the most intelligent players in all of baseball (both of his parents were teachers), he’s a natural leader in the clubhouse, and he’s a stand up member of the Detroit community (he runs sports clinics for inner-city kids in his free time).  And if you’ve ever heard him talking to the media you know he’s one of the nicest and most humble guys around.  On the field he’s known for hitting clutch home runs and making superhuman diving catches.  He’s a great all-around player and it’s a damn shame he’s being traded, especially since many of the New York sports writers are already bitching about how the Yankees don’t need him. 
Pro:  The only upside to this trade is no longer having to watch Granderson strike out against left-handed pitchers.  This was always a problem, especially late in games.  All the opposing team had to do was call up the bullpen for a lefty and it was a guaranteed out most of the time.  So, no longer will you have to restrain yourself from throwing the remote at the TV when there’s two men on in the eighth with one out and Granderson whiffs on four southpaw pitches.  Seriously though, Curtis, you need to work on that in the off season or the crazed horde of jackals that is the New York sports media will be calling for you to get sent down to the Charleston River Dogs (what the hell’s a River Dog, by the way?)


Con:  In another brilliant move the Tigers declined to re-sign Placido Polanco and he’s now headed back to Philadelphia.  I know it would’ve been expensive to keep him, but he’s worth every penny.  The guy went all of 2007 without committing an error, he’s won two Gold Gloves, and he’s one of the few players we could rely on in the clutch last year, bringing in 72 runs all by his lonesome.  That’s almost 10% of the Tigers’ anemic offensive output last year.  Placido is going to be nearly impossible to replace in the short run.   
Pro:  You’ll no longer have to stare in horror at the man’s giant goddamn head.  Seriously, that thing is enormous!  It’s like a f***ing moon, with its own geography of hills and valleys.  With his batting helmet off, he looks like some sort of comic book super villain.  I don’t think I would be all that surprised if someday, after a strikeout, his bulbous cranium started pulsating and he lit the umpire on fire with his mind. 

Con:  Further proof of Detroit’s financial woes can be seen in their failing to re-sign Brandon Lyon, who was one of the few bright spots in the bullpen last season.  Making matters even worse, Dombrowski has commented that re-signing Fernado Rodney would be a “long shot” at this point.  This just seems to be putting our already shaky bullpen in a situation where they have the power to cause f***ups of epic proportions. 
Pro:  Get ready for Pitching Prospect Musical Chairs, everybody!  With the possibility of an abysmal bullpen comes the opportunity for a different bright-eyed youngster to try his hand at The Show every night.  Imagine the possibilities!  Will this eager young lad’s arm give out after a month?  Or will he simply suffer a mental breakdown before a live TV audience?  Maybe he’ll fuck up in some way that you never even thought possible!  The possibilities are endless and the chances for exciting wild pitches are numerous. 




Con:  With the departure of Edwin Jackson, the Tigers starting pitching could be less than great next year.  We’ll still have Verlander and Porcello, hopefully, but the rest of our possible starters don’t give me much hope.  Willis would probably have trouble hitting the strike zone if he were throwing underhand in the Beer Leagues, Galarraga seems to take perverse pleasure in blowing games with multiple-run innings, and Bonderman can’t seem to stay healthy (probably due to the massive amount of tobacco he chews and always being pissed off).  Robertson only started a few games last season and wasn’t all that impressive.  The prospect of Bonine and Miner getting more starts doesn’t make me all that excited either. 
Pro:  Free seat upgrade!  All you have to do is go to Comerica on a night that Verlander or Porcello aren’t pitching and wait until the third inning.  Whatever sorry excuse for a starter we’ve put in that night will probably have been torn a new asshole by now so people will be leaving in droves.  That $5 obstructed view Skyline seat that you bought has now been upgraded to a $70 On-Deck Circle seat!  Who cares if you’re watching the Tigers go down in flames, you’re sitting in the lap of luxury like a stone cold playa’.  Maybe you’ll even get on TV!  So put your feet up, take a long pull off of your $8 Bud Light, and be happy that at least you don’t have to be out on the field getting lit up by the f***ing Royals. 

Nike Pro Combat Close Up Part 5: Personal Favorites

Both the Florida State Seminoles and the Missouri Tigers have way outside the box Pro Combat uniforms, and I think they are the best of the group. 

Missouri Tigers
Traditional Road Uniforms:

Nike Pro Combat Road Uniforms (View Full Size)

 I always liked the traditional Mizzou uniforms. Their striping is done in a different but cool way. I thought that if they went to black pants with maybe a yellow stripe instead of all whites that they would look even better. Not only did Nike add the black pants, but they added some other cool touches as well. According to Nike, these Mizzou uni's are in "Beast Mode." If I'm not mistaken, that's from the cartoon Transformers: Beast Wars. Not sure why they're using that but it's cool with me.

The helmet is mainly what does it for me. Black on Black on Black. Easy to see from the stands? No way. But really cool. You never see anything like this with uniform design. The numbers on the uniform remain black but have a slick leather look to them. The same goes for the stripes on the black pants.

 

In college football today, white everything seems to be the most popular. The Mizzou Tigers flipped that upside down by putting black, black, and more black on their jersey's and I think they look really cool. 



Florida State Seminoles
Traditional Home Uniform:

Nike Pro Combat Home Uniforms (View Full Size) 

Who needs Gold? I don't even know how to describe these, they're are so good. Look for yourself.

I was always a big fan of the Nole's spear head helmet, but turning it black just took it to a whole new level. Awesome.

 

Final Judgment: In this case, I have to say screw tradition. These are so well done that it would be a shame for the Seminoles to not roll out in these next season. I can't even imagine how cool it would be if they made them black on black with gold and red accents/feathers. I often think black on black is just a lame plot to fire up a team but those would be seriously intimidating. Two thumbs up.

Check our poll to vote for your favorite Nike Pro Combat Uni's!

Nike Pro Combat Close-Up Part 4

Florida Gators
Traditional Home Uniform:

Nike Pro Combat Home Uniform (View Full Size)

 The Gators have two primary home uniforms, blue on white as seen above and blue on blue. Nike decided to upgrade the blue on blue uni's. For the Pro Combat's, the traditional striping on the shoulders and pants has been removed and replaced with a small orange stripe (shoulders), and a HUGE white stripe surrounded by a small orange stripe (pants). The chest numbers are very much the same and the Gator logo has been moved from the chest to the pants.

 The helmet is major change from the traditional orange helmet with script "gators" written across it. The middle stripe has been changed from blue and white to blue and orange. This is a modernized version of the helmet worn in 1966, which has been used as a throwback.

 

Final Judgement: The blue on blue works well for Florida and I like the modernized-throwback helmet. What I don't understand is the giant white stripe on the pants. Combined with the white stripe on the lower-back, it looks like the Gators are running downfield wearing ass-less chaps. Just because Tim Tebow might wear them in his spare time does not mean that they should be put on a pair of football pants.

LSU Tigers

Traditional Road Uniforms:

Nike Pro Combat Road Uniform (View Full Size)

  A major color change here for the LSU Tiger's. Instead of wearing a goldenrod color, they're wearing a true gold color. This makes sense because their colors are purple and gold, but now they just look like Washington, which is strange. Instead of a vertical stripe, the shoulders now have a horizontal stripe, the stripe on the pants is more stylized and an L can be seen right above it. The pants have also been changed from colored to white. The helmets remain the same design, but are now true gold and have a single purple stripe instead of purple and white stripes.

 

Final Judgment: The true gold color is an homage to the LSU teams of the 1940's, so it's understandable why they did this, but I don't like it. This uniform says Washington to most if not all football fans in today's world. I also think that they would be better off with the traditional colored pants. I do however really like the styling of the stripes on the pants, pretty cool. Instead of having a block of white, Florida should have done something similar to this. For LSU and Nike, not bad but not great.

Nike Pro Combat Close-Up Part 3, Canes and Horns

Miami Hurricanes
Traditional White Uniform:

Nike Pro Combat White Uniform (View Full Size)

For the Pro Combat uni's, The Canes dropped the green striping on the front of their jersey's, changed the numbering from green with an orange outline to a half orange-half green atrocity, and switched from orange pants, to white. The green and white pant stripes were dropped in favor of one green and one orange stripe. Yet another example of a team going to all white. Here's a closer look:

 

Final Judgment: I can't think of any other word to describe these than awful. The traditional "U" helmet is fine but the two-colored numbering and the two different color stripes is just terrible (even if they're meant to mimic the "U" logo). Miami typically has some strange uniforms but the 2009 away white's weren't too bad at all. These are a huge step backward.


Texas Longhorns
Traditional White Uniform:

Nike Pro Combat White Uniform (View Full Size)

The Nike Pro Combat version of the Texas road uniform is simply a slight upgrade. There are very few changes. The chest numbering and "Texas" is basically the same. The all-white pants are the same, and the shoulder striping is the same.

A pretty noticeable change comes here with the helmet. The large numbers that are usually on the back of the helmet have been moved to right above the longhorn logo.

Final Judgment: Although I think I've made it clear that I'm not a huge fan of all-white uniforms, Texas is one of the first teams that I can remember doing this. I don't feel strongly for or against these uni's because there aren't any significant changes. As far as the helmet goes, why mess with greatness? UT has one of the best looking helmets in college football. Leave the numbers on the back where they belong.

Am I crazy, or is the Cane's Pro Combat uniform terrible? Leave a comment and let me know.

Nike Pro Combat Close-Up Part 2

Oklahoma Sooners
Traditional Away Jersey:

 Nike Pro Combat Away Jersey (View Full Size) 

As you can see, the color scheme of the Oklahoma jersey and pants has remained the same. As with the Hokies, the Sooners went from a dark colored helmet, to a white helmet to complete the look.
Here's a detailed description from friends of the program:

Nike designers immersed themselves in Oklahoma Sooners history and lore to bring inspirational cues to the look and direction of the Nike Pro Combat uniforms.
The uniforms respect the past of Sooner football, drawing inspiration from Bud Wilkinson’s famed “fast break offense” that led the nation in scoring and won National Championships in 1955 and 1956. An all-white helmet is a nod to the teams that played during that era (1946 to 1956), as are the clean lines on the jersey and pant.
Oklahoma’s team mantra “Sooner Magic” is printed on the inside of the jersey collar and on the cuff of the Nike Vapor Trail 2.0 gloves the team will wear.

Final Judgement:
I love the fact that Nike stuck with tradition (both recent past and way back) with these jerseys and I also really like the bold clean lines on the jersey and helmet. I think the helmet should include the OU symbol and I think it would look better as maroon with a white stripe and a white OU. Unlike Virginia Tech, these all-whites are done well. Not perfect, but a pretty good looking uni.


Ohio State Buckeyes
Traditional Away Jersey:

Nike Pro Combat Away Jersey (View Full Size)

The color scheme for the Buckeye's Pro Combat jersey's is very much the same as their traditional look. They gray of the pants and shoulder stripes is slightly darker, and the scarlet used looks a bit more bold. The black stripes on the pants, jersey and helmet have been moved to only surround the chest numbers. These uni's are paying homage to the Ohio State teams of the 1950's.

 

The helmets are essentially the same as the Oklahoma Pro Combat's, with a slightly different red, and the addition of the player numbers. The color white replaces the traditional silver. The team logo makes an appearance on the pants, as well as two stripes instead of the traditional three.

 

Final Judgement: Just like the Oklahoma Pro Combat's, the Buckeye's are very well done. I like the boldness of the colors, the numbers on the helmet and the sleek, two stripe design on the pants. I like the white helmets with the black numbering but I think a silver version of these helmets would look good with the gray pants. These are a combination of new technology and throwbacks and actually look much better then the bland away whites that Ohio State wears today.

What's your take on the Buckey's and Sooner's Pro Combat Jerseys? Leave us a comment and let us know!
Explore the Nike Pro Combat Jersey's at the Official Site

Nike Pro Combat Football Jerseys. Ridiculous, or Ridiculously Cool?

 As the College Football season came to a close, I noticed that several teams were sporting the new Nike Pro Combat uniforms. Typically I like teams that stick to tradition, but I'm also a big fan of the third jersey. According to Nike, these uniforms are supposed to make athletes "faster, more violent and explosive." I'm assuming that these teams are just taking them for a test run and that they will return to tradition next season but there is the possibility of some of these teams making the change. Here's a look at the Pro Combat series.

TCU Horned Frogs
Traditional Dark Jersey:

Nike Pro Combat Dark Jersey (View Full Size)

For the Pro Combat Jerseys the helmet color was changed from purple to silver/black and a red stripe was added. The red stripe is supposed to symbolize the blood released from the horned frog's eyes when under attack. The actual picture of the horned frog was not placed on the Pro Combat helmet but it does feature a replication of the horned frog's skin. I like the color change, and the blood red stripe is something that looks good and has meaning, but I would like to see the actual horned frog back on the helmet.

There's an addition of black and silver frog skin to the sides of the jersey, as well as the black stitching on the shoulders. The Pants have a black stripe and a purple stripe with the silver frog skin pattern being the dominant color. The horned frog logo appears here on the pants.

 

Final Judgement:

I like the changes, EXCEPT for the frog skin pants. It looks really cool on the helmet but with those pants on it looks like the players are wearing some skin tight/snake skin/hair band pants. Move the pants back to all black with the purple stripe, maybe throw in small frog skin silver stripe and we have a winner. No football team should wear purple, but the Pro Combat changes make it look kinda cool.

Virginia Tech Hokies

Traditional White Jersey:

Nike Pro Combat White Jersey (View Full Size)

The Hokie's away uni's are terrible and the Pro Combat version isn't any better. Lately the trend of matching a white helmet to all white uniforms has become popular for teams who have a colored helmet. As you can see, the Hokie's are following this trend. In my opinion, the white hat just doesn't work for them. The team usually wears white on white, so there's no change there.

The shoulder stripes, pant stripes, and the numbering on the jersey are made up of dots and the numbers fade from orange to maroon. The team lettering and logo also show up on the pants. The terrible font that VaTech uses for their numbers appears to remain the same.

Final Judgement:

If you ask me, these are atrocious. Color fading has no place in the world of football, and what's with the dots? Although I love the all-white look of the Oregon Ducks for some reason, and I'm a big fan of the white helmet that USF added, it just doesn't fit with the Hokie's color scheme. The half color shoulder look of the traditional uni's looks bad, but the Pro Combat look is worse. These throwbacks are by far the best looking away jersey's that the Hokies have and they should stick with them.

Give us your opinion of the TCU and Virgina Tech Pro Combat Uni's! Love 'em, hate 'em?

Check out the official Nike Pro Combat Site