Detroit Tigers Fire General Manager After Season Gone Wrong

The Detroit Tigers spent some big bucks this past offseason, expecting that they were on the verge of contention. But at 43-68, buried in last place in the worst division in baseball, enough was enough for Tigers ownership, and general manager Al Avila is now out of a job.

The Al Avila era is over. https://t.co/WQt8w1VoLy

— Cody Stavenhagen (@CodyStavenhagen) August 10, 2022

Tigers Chairman and CEO Christopher Ilitch said in a statement, "once I decided to make a change, I sat down with Al and thanked him for his nearly 22 years of service to our organization.

"I want to re-establish our momentum and progress towards building a winning team and I am driven to find a talented executive to help us do that. They'll be entering an organization with many foundational elements in place and an exciting path forward. Tigers fans deserve winning teams, and I'm highly focused and committed to deliver that to the people of Detroit and Michigan."

With Avila at the helm, the Tigers signed free agent Javier Baez to a 6-year, $140M contract, and LHP Eduardo Rodriguez to a 5-year, $77M deal. Both have been busts this season.

Baez is hitting only .220, 80 points below his 2021 mark, along with a career-low (since his rookie season) .634 OPS. Rodriguez sat out months of the season for "personal reasons" and has delivered one victory in 8 starts, with a 4.38 ERA and a drastic reduction in his strikeout rate (7.8 K/9, down from 10.6 last season).

A lot more was expected of this squad, and Ilitch is hoping a new GM can help turn it back around in a hurry.

Kirthmon F. Dozier / USA TODAY NETWORK