Pennants aren’t won in December … but geez. What an act of generosity by the Marlins! Everyone’s down on Dontrelle (we think the Tigers just bought the former ROY and Cy Young runner-up very low), and loves the tubby Cabrera, but good luck finding somebody that doesn’t think this team is playoff-bound. One year removed from the World Series, the Tigers just added one of the best young hitters in baseball. It was a move that, in the AL Central, screamed, ‘Rook to King. Check.’ Your move, Indians.Â

We won’t go as far to proclaim the Tigers favorites in the AL, but only because pitching still rules in the postseason. Just a reminder: the best offense in baseball last year (Yankees) got shut down by a solid but not spectacular pitching staff (Indians). This is not to say the trio of Verlander-Bonderman-Willis is chopped liver … but it’s not quite Beckett-Schilling-Dice K. So we’ll hold off the coronation for now … but we don’t expect anything less than 95 wins. (Can everyone please stop saying the Tigers ‘mortgaged the future?’ Here’s how the system works – the big spenders will always have a shot at the best prospects … because the small market teams can’t/won’t pay them. Yes, the Tigers just lost a ton of prospects, but in 4-5 years – when the current offense will need updating, some young kids, somewhere, will be looking to get traded from Oakland or Florida or Tampa Bay because owners there don’t want to pay.)

Maybin (whom we love) and Miller should consider the trade to Florida like going to college. They’ll be cash-strapped for a few years, but live in South Beach, where they’ll get to party with the upperclassmen (D Wade, Shaq). And then in 3-4 years, they’ll be off to the real world (ie – a team that spends cash), where real money will be theirs. Enjoy the cafeteria food, kids!

A couple folks sent us a link to Sports Review Magazine, which may or may not have broken the story Tuesday morning.

Tigers pull of blockbuster trade (Tiger Blog)