Anderson: The 2003 Tigers and rebuilding lessons for today’s teams
From R.J. Anderson at CBS Sports on May 3, 2018:
Fifteen years ago, the Detroit Tigers played one of the worst seasons in baseball history.
Winning five of their last six games spared the Tigers, who finished 43-119, the indignity of tying the 1962 New York Mets for the most losses since integration. Those Mets went 40-120 but had a legitimate excuse: they were an expansion team. The Tigers weren’t, they just played like one.
Anybody with an internet connection can list off morbid facts about the ’03 Tigers: they started 0-9, then 1-17; they recorded only three more wins than blowout losses (40 by five-plus runs); they were outscored by nearly two runs per game; and so on. There’s sufficient statistical humiliation for the quant masochists in the audience to savor.
But those Tigers serve a purpose greater than their near-constant belittling suggests. The 2003 Tigers are relevant again all these years later because few teams are better qualified to speak about the modern baseball landscape.
Read the full article here: https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/the-2003-detroit-tigers-one-of-the-worst-mlb-teams-ever-provide-rebuilding-teams-lessons-to-learn-from-15-years-later/
Originally published: May 4, 2018. Last Updated: May 4, 2018.