9 Years, 214 Million...

[4everwarriors]

For Fielder. Always said Pujols set the market and Prince would come in north of 200 mil.

[tower912]

And this tiger fan hasn't stopped giggling in an hour.   

[BenCat12]

Not much to giggle about.....that is a horrible contract, that the Tigers and their faithful will regret by 2016....better hope Miguel stays off the bottle and Victor's knee gets better or you will have 3 severly overpaid fat guys on your roster for the next decade. 

Tigers need to win 2 world series' by 2016 or this is a major mistake

That said, happy for Prince, sad to see him go.....good luck to him

[dwaderoy2004]

Martinez is only signed through 2014

[tower912]

Ilitch is 80-ish and wants a WS title before he dies.   I will worry about 2016 in 2016.    The whole "what-are-you-going-to-do-with-3-slugging-DH-types?" discussion is a year away.   It will sort itself out.   Probably with a couple of defensive minded middle infielders to place next to Cabrera and Fielder.       Still giggling.   If they stay healthy, Detroit is the team to beat for the AL championship.  

[BenCat12]

Whatever the motives are it is a bad business decision....which I'd be willing to bet the Tigers will regret. 

BTW, can't you find a better way to celebrate than to giggle?  Just sayin' 
Have a Beer.....?
Jump up and down.....?
Fist in the air......?
Clap.....?

[4everwarriors]

Whatever the motives are it is a bad business decision....which I'd be willing to bet the Tigers will regret. 

BTW, can't you find a better way to celebrate than to giggle?  Just sayin' 
Have a Beer.....?
Jump up and down.....?
Fist in the air......?
Clap.....?

[/quote

Bang your old lady.

[tower912]

Stuck at the fire station.   No beer, no sex.    Jumping up and down is a good idea, though.  BTW, Martinez' contract goes through '14, Cabrera's through '15, Verlander's through '14.   By '16, the whole team could look completely different.   Hell, if the Mayan's are right, the only thing that matters is this season.    These things work themselves out.   

[MUBurrow]

as a Brewers fan, this is about as good as I could have hoped for. Prince got his money, far more than the crew could ever scrounge up for him. The Brewers were vindicated in spending what they had early in FA. He's in the AL, and plays for a blue collar city with a good fanbase and its easy to want to see him do well.  all in all, once the pipe dream of keeping him was gone, this was about as good as it could go.

[jsglow]

Congrats Prince.  The Tigers and their fans will be a good fit.  Please remember to tip your cap to the Brewers faithful when inter-league play brings you back to your roots.  You'll be sure to get a long standing ovation on your first plate appearance.

[brewcity77]

Not much to giggle about.....that is a horrible contract, that the Tigers and their faithful will regret by 2016....better hope Miguel stays off the bottle and Victor's knee gets better or you will have 3 severly overpaid fat guys on your roster for the next decade. 

Tigers need to win 2 world series' by 2016 or this is a major mistake

That said, happy for Prince, sad to see him go.....good luck to him

Wow, those grapes are sure sounding sour.

The deal, I suspect, is intended to be a 6 year deal. I know it's longer, but 6 years is the window. Prince is only 27 and in the AL I can easily see him having 6 more productive years. He won't fall off at 30 like his dad did. Granted, I imagine his knees will start to go as he reaches his mid-30s, but even one WS and regular playoff appearances will pay that off.

Not to mention, this is a huge coup in terms of bring back any old fans of Cecil that might be knocking around but not coming out to the ballpark. I know the Tigers are already good, but I think in terms of marketing, this is comparable to Griffey Jr. going to Cincinnati. Maybe to a lesser extent, but still with similar marketing potential.

Not many teams this would have been a good deal for. The Tigers are definitely one of the few.

[jmayer1]

No teams this would have been a good deal for.

Fixed for you. This contract will end badly just like every other that has been close to this in terms of money and years. Just too much money to spend on one guy, especially given the makeup of that team.

[🏀]

Fixed for you. This contract will end badly just like every other that has been close to this in terms of money and years. Just too much money to spend on one guy, especially given the makeup of that team.

If Prince helps them win one WS, its worth it.

If they don't, then its wasted money.

Plus, why do any fans really care about money spent? At least Tigers fans can see why it costs so much to see a game.

[Real Chilly Podcast]

as a Tigers fan...  I have no problem with this deal.

although it may hurt on the backend of the deal, it ensures that the return on the investments on Cabrera and Verlander are realized while those players are in their primes.  Also, the AL Central is as down as it has ever been in recent years, paving the way for the Tigers to rack up a gaudy regular season record and the #1 seed in the AL, as undoubtedly the battles in the other divisions will hurt those teams' records (Angels v Rangers; Yankees v. Sox v. Rays)

in essence, it is an all-in play, but it solves an immediate need and puts the Tigers in position to compete for WS's over the next 3-5 yrs

[Spotcheck Billy]

I like that the Brewers now have 3 first round picks 

[GGGG]

Congrats Prince.  The Tigers and their fans will be a good fit.  Please remember to tip your cap to the Brewers faithful when inter-league play brings you back to your roots.  You'll be sure to get a long standing ovation on your first plate appearance.

Yep.  The guy was great when he was here.  Played hard.  A great guy off the field.  Never double spoke about it not being about the money.  No reason for me to be bitter about this.

[The Lens]

Cecil Fielder made 9.5 million in 1995.  Paying his son 23 million in 2020 seems like a bargain to me.

Teams like the Cubs who passed are idiots.  Prince is a rock. 

[Goose]

After the State of the Union address Prince might want more money. Sounds like a hefty haircut coming from Uncle Sam before he pays Boros.

[MUBurrow]

Cecil Fielder made 9.5 million in 1995.  Paying his son 23 million in 2020 seems like a bargain to me.

Teams like the Cubs who passed are idiots.  Prince is a rock. 

disagree. no need for the cubs to take on this kind of contract right now. they need to get their own affairs in order, get some bad contracts off the books, and figure out what they have in the minors first. Rizzo was a great pickup, and if he doesnt work out, guys like Votto and other impact players will be FAs soon enough. Prince is a great talent, but he's not a once in a generation talent that won't come around again. Cubs were smart to sit this one out.

[MerrittsMustache]

disagree. no need for the cubs to take on this kind of contract right now. they need to get their own affairs in order, get some bad contracts off the books, and figure out what they have in the minors first. Rizzo was a great pickup, and if he doesnt work out, guys like Votto and other impact players will be FAs soon enough. Prince is a great talent, but he's not a once in a generation talent that won't come around again. Cubs were smart to sit this one out.

Agreed. The Cubs are building from the ground up and for long-term, sustained success. Best-case, they're competitive by 2015. Signing a long-term, big money guy in his prime would make no sense right now, especially one destined to become a DH.

[g0lden3agle]

The way I see it, the tigers realized that they had a ridiculously good value on Cabrera's contract, and used that value to invest in another slugger to protect that investment.  They have Cabrera and Fielder for an average of roughly 21.5 million each a year for the next 4 years.  I'd say that tandem is worth 43 million a year assuming they can get at least one WS out of it.  Cabrera is going to be putting up filthy numbers these next few years with Fielder behind him.  What may be considered overpaying for Fielder is easily rationalized in the value you are getting out of Miguel.

[ATWizJr]

Stuck at the fire station.   No beer, no sex.    
 

What? Since when?  You're probably too busy to celebrate what with the locals trying to torch the city.  LOL.  This is not in teal but should be.

[WI inferiority Complexes]

Cecil Fielder made 9.5 million in 1995.  Paying his son 23 million in 2020 seems like a bargain to me.

Teams like the Cubs who passed are idiots.  Prince is a rock. 

I don't think bringing up that Cecil Fielder contract is going to evoke warm memories from Tigers fans.  While he was a bargain when he came over from Japan in 1991, Prince's dad was the highest paid player in baseball in '95 and '96.

In 1995 Cecil lead the league in zero categories other than weight and Detroit wound up 60-84, 26 games behind Boston.

In 1996 the Tigers were 35-72 (seriously, 35-72) at the trade deadline when they sent their highly-paid albatross to the Yankees for Reuben Sierra.

And the Cubs shouldn't have signed Prince, for all the reasons mentioned already.

[shiloh26]

as a Tigers fan...  I have no problem with this deal.

although it may hurt on the backend of the deal, it ensures that the return on the investments on Cabrera and Verlander are realized while those players are in their primes.  Also, the AL Central is as down as it has ever been in recent years, paving the way for the Tigers to rack up a gaudy regular season record and the #1 seed in the AL, as undoubtedly the battles in the other divisions will hurt those teams' records (Angels v Rangers; Yankees v. Sox v. Rays)

in essence, it is an all-in play, but it solves an immediate need and puts the Tigers in position to compete for WS's over the next 3-5 yrs

This is a good point, the Tigers have their window with Verlander and Cabrera, and Prince solidifies them as the favorites for the AL Central (and maybe even the AL) for the next 2-4 years.  Its hard to find fault with a team calling their shot and going for it all for the next few years.  And the reason its a good deal for the Tigers is why it'd be a bad deal for the Cubs.  Its way easier to justify that contract for the "last piece" of an already really good team than as the building block on an otherwise really messed up team. 

[Lennys Tap]

Am I the only one who thinks Cabrera at 3rd base will end badly for Detroit? And that to give a 27 year old, 320 lb vegetarian a 9 year contract is insane? If Prince ever falls off the wagon and replaces the hay in his diet with ribeyes he'll be 4 bells in no time.