Thank you
A night of plays at the plate for Tigers throughout the system
https://x.com/tigersMLreport/status/2044565757330137116?s=20
I hear ya bud. Been there and done all of that. Losing friends, family, jobs. Burning the candles at both ends for work, family, responsibilities, etc. It can affect your sleep.
Not sure what your social circle is like, but stay close to the people you can trust. This means friends and/or family. People who will actually listen and spend time with you, earnestly. Talking and discussions help the process.It’s cathartic, at least for me it is. Also, for me, I pray. Not enough, but I do, and it seems to help.
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Its amazing how good our organization is at developing players. These guys blow up faster than I can keep track of them. It’s a good thing we have @frm710 to help us out with that.
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It’s a serious improvement over the last front office.
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Randy Smith taking Seth Greisinger, Kenny Baugh, and Matt Wheatland and Eric Munson and a facking reliever #1OA in Matt Anderson ffs
Literally the draft after he left we get Grandy and Zumaya
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I forgot about how much I used to dislike Smith. This reminded me.
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Max Clark, Detroit Tigers prospect, is making progress on the field and in tuning out critics
Full article at link
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“Performance-based, I give it an F on the A to F scale,” Clark said the other day, during batting practice before a game with his new team (for now), the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens. "But in terms of learning and experience and understanding how the game is played at the highest level, I give it an A-plus. Trying to figure out ways to come out of that was tough, but we found ways, we talked to a lot of people. Obviously, Riley (Greene) and Tork (Spencer Torkelson) were great to talk to throughout hitting and defense and all of the above. Parker (Meadows) was awesome to be around each and every day, and learn from him. And then just AJ (Hinch, Tigers manager), as a whole, the entire clubhouse was great up there. And I learned a lot and am able to apply that here.
“Just what it takes each and every day to go out there and compete, whether it’s your routine, whether it’s your mentality, when it’s your actual swing. There’s just so many different pieces that go into it that you may not see on the outside, but once you’re in that clubhouse each and every day, you see what those guys put in each and every day to have success.”
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Alvarez is just now getting to know Clark, and consider him already impressed, not just with the skills, but his IQ for the game (“He has an idea what he’s doing up there”), his handling of all the attention (“He’s had this buzz around him since way before he was a professional”), and his willingness and eagerness to be a good teammate, even being the youngest player on the team (“The guys love him”).
Perhaps what’s impressed Alvarez the most, though, is Clark’s love of listening and learning. He wasn’t lurking outside of Alvarez’s Fifth Third Field office last week wondering if he was going to get called up after the Meadows injury. But he’s a regular walk-in visitor to Alvarez’s office.
“He’ll come in and ask questions, and actually very good questions,” Alvarez said in the home dugout the other day, bat in hand and a smile on his face. "I think more players should be like that. I think once you kind of get in your head that you’ve reached a certain level, and you stop wanting to learn, and you stop searching for knowledge, then you’ve kind of hit the end, I think.
“But he wants to get better, and he’s always in the search for something new that can help him.”
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“You’ve got to be as present as possible,” said Clark, who’s leaning on plenty of Mud Hens with big-league experience, most notably (and interestingly) a pitcher six years his senior, Ricky Vanasco. “Because you have to be as present as possible in the big leagues, too. So, just taking it day by day, understanding what it takes to have success on that night, to win ABs, to win pitches, to win the game, that’s what’s most important.”
Clark dreams often about one day winning a World Series one day in Detroit.
Of course, he wants to win every day, no matter where he is.
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Clark’s biggest strides, in his eyes, aren’t necessarily at the plate or on defense — which, by the way, he might just love most of all; he fancies himself a “wide receiver” in the outfield, and he loves that big outfield at Fifth Third Field (you know where else there’s a big outfield?) — but rather in the mental parts of the game. He was admittedly “struggling mentally.” One bad game would lead to another and another.
“It was just tough,” said Clark, “to accept failure.”
And now? Clark said even in slumps, he’s looking for and finding ways to positively impact a game.
“I think that’s the biggest win for me,” said Clark, “just maturing as a mental standpoint.”
Perhaps it’s that matured maturity — it’s also worth noting here that Clark got married in December, to Kayli Farmer; the two met as freshmen in high school in Franklin, Indiana, and had their first date at Applebee’s — that made the spring scrutiny easier to handle for Clark, who’s never really been one to hide in the corner anyway
….“Continue to find ways and talk to those around you that are going to make you better, instead of listening to noise that’s only going to make you worse.”
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It’s easy, of course, to have a preconceived notion of somebody or something you don’t know.
Alvarez knew all about Clark’s talent, of course. …..But Alvarez didn’t know Clark, the young man. He does now.
“People have their perception of him. They see him on social media, they see him with the chains,” said Alvarez, who knows a little bit about prospect hype — he once was a top-100 prospect (No. 92, pre-1996, according to Baseball America). "They assume that he’s a certain type of person, but he’s a very humble, down-to-earth kid.
“And he’s a terrific teammate.”
Those opinions — teammates’ and coaches’ — are the ones that actually matter to Clark.
After all, they’re the ones on the inside, by his side in the foxhole, that are there to pick him up, while so many on the outside seem to want to tear him down.
This is not to say Clark pays the critics absolutely no mind. He often responds, so therefore, he clearly hears. But the noise doesn’t consume him. The diamond necklaces don’t define him. It’s all about what happens on the baseball diamond, where some days are good, some days are bad, and, frankly, all days are hard.
“It’s the hardest game I’ve ever played,” Clark said. "It’s the hardest thing in life, to be honest with you. But it’s the most fun. And there’s no bad days at the ballpark when you’re getting the chance to play for money, play in front of fans, play for your family. It’s incredible.
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Clark went 4 for 5 with a homer tonight.
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That’s at AA, btw. Dang.
Better days are coming, you already know the score and are helping to make it work. Stay in the moment, yesterday and tomorrow come and go. There’s still plenty going on that you don’t want to miss so don’t. Above all be yourself and don’t be afraid to share that with anyone.
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And his replacement heading to Lakeland, last years #1 pick.
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