Ian Kinsler Hopes Worst For Former Team: 'I Hope They Lose Their Ass'
By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak
CBS DETROIT - Now more than ever, it seems that the Detroit Tigers swapping Prince Fielder for Ian Kinsler put both players in much better situations. For Fielder, the trade put him in a new situation in a hitter-friendly park, away from fans who booed his poor postseason performance and considered his giant contract an unpardonable burden.
For Kinsler, the trade got him away from a Texas Rangers team with which he evidently grew increasingly frustrated in recent years. In a recent interview with ESPN, Kinsler did not hold back about his aggravation with his former club. While he will miss certain teammates, he hardly wishes the best for the Rangers in the future.
"To be honest with you, I hope they go 0-162," Kinsler told ESPN. "I got friends, and I love my friends, but I hope they lose their ass."
Kinsler lashed out particularly viciously against Texas general manager Jon Daniels, who asked Kinsler to move from second to first to make room for young Jurickson Profar and who Kinsler said was the last one inform him of his trade to Detroit. Certainly, neither of those incidents thrilled Kinsler, but more than anything Kinsler seemed upset with the way Daniels worked around former Rangers CEO and Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan.
"Daniels is a sleazeball," Kinsler said. "He got in good with the owners and straight pushed Ryan out. He thought all the things he should get credit for, Ryan got credit for. It's just ego. Once we went to the World Series, everybody's ego got huge, except for Nolan's."
A three-time All-Star, Kinsler has recorded two seasons with 30 home runs and 30 steals. In 2013, he turned in fewer extra-base hits than he had the previous couple of years, but he batted .277 with an on-base percentage of .344. For Detroit, Kinsler will mainly add consistency in the outfield plus quickness and instincts on the base paths.
In addition those skills and statistics and eight years of experience, Kinsler clearly brings a healthy dose of motivation, too.