Brandon Inge "Nothing Against Trout" But Miggy Is MVP
By: Jeff Riger
Even though he is injured and out for the remainder of the season, Brandon Inge was at Comerica Park on Wednesday rooting on his new team, the Oakland Athletics.
Inge stood near the A's dugout wearing his green A's jacket and sporting a sling for his right arm after having season ending shoulder surgery earlier this week. The former Tiger spent a solid 7 to 8 minutes with reporters fielding a litany of questions ranging in topic from his time in Detroit to predictions on who should win the AL MVP.
Below are some of the more interesting comments from Inge...
Q: Is Miguel Cabrera the AL MVP?
Inge: "Personally, yeah I think so! Nothing against (Mike) Trout, Trout's unbelievable he really is. I love him as a player, I love the way he does things but no one makes an impact on a ball club the way Miguel Cabrera period."
Q: Such as?
Inge: "You don't have a note pad long enough to write down all the things: Everything, Everything, well everything offensively."
Q: "What about the fact that Trout does more overall; such as defense and stealing bases?
Inge: "I don't care. You never will convince me otherwise. Like I said, nothing against Trout because I love everything he does but nobody impacts the game like Miguel Cabrera does. Like last night, bases are loaded and I'm sitting here saying this is not good. Maybe Trout could do that also but I was confident that guy (Miggy) would come through."
Q: "Was he surprised of how polarizing and hated he became late in his career as a Tiger?
Inge: "I guess maybe, I don't really think about it much. I just go out there and play the way that I play and if people like it they like it and if they don't then they don't. The way I do it, I just go out there and have fun and people in Oakland like that I guess."
Q: "Did it bother you that the fans turned on you to an extent?
Inge: "I don't have a rude bone in my body but I really don't care what people think. I'm going out and playing the game the way I know how. To be dead honest with you, when it comes to the majority of fans and guys on the field, guys on the field know more than fans do. It's just bottom line the way it is.
Q: Will the Tigers make the postseason?
Inge: "I have no idea, from looking back now, it doesn't look great. You never know. They are a good group of guys and have so much talent, it wouldn't shock me if they won every game the rest of the year, that's just the way they are. I'm on a different team now, so ...
Q: How much were you looking forward to this series once you signed with Oakland and how disappointing is it that you can't play in it?
Inge: "It's very disappointing! I don't have evil intentions coming and playing against these guys, it's fun playing against these guys. It's like when you have siblings and you want to play baseball in the back yard, that's how it is. I want to come out here and compete against these guys because its fun and you get a little bragging rights. That's alright I left on good terms when last facing these guys, I want to end it that way."
Listen to the entire Inge interview below to find out why Inge decided to end his season early and more.
