As his teammates trickled off the field at the end of batting practice Tuesday afternoon, Shane Greene made a pit stop behind home plate. There was a crowd of fans waiting for him, and the freshly-minted All-Star took about five minutes to shake hands, pose for photos and fulfill each request for an autograph. He acknowledged with a smile, a few minutes later, that his autograph has never been in such high demand.
The 30-year-old stood outside Detroit's dugout and agreed it all feels a little strange. Just as he's found his footing as a big-league reliever, the ground beneath him threatens to cave in. By next Wednesday, there's a strong chance the Tigers trade him to another team.
"I was traded here (in 2014), so I've dealt with it before," Greene said. "The difference between now and then is, then I had no idea it was coming and now it’s a part of the business. I’ve been around the game long enough now to have lost teammates and friends in trades. As long as I'm pitching well and I'm in the backend of a bullpen, I’ll have rumors around me every day.
"The only thing I know for sure is that I don’t know anything."
Part of Greene would welcome a trade to a contending team. He's yet to pitch in the playoffs in his six-year career, and the best season of his life has been dulled by loss after loss. A larger part of him, it's safe to say, would like to stay. He talks often about being here when the Tigers' turnaround takes hold, about playing a part in that renaissance. As frustrating as the losing is now, it wouldn't come close to the satisfaction of winning down the road.
Especially when he's the guy nailing down each game.
This isn't Greene's call, of course. With terrific numbers and another year of team control on his contract, he's one of the most valuable relievers on the market. The Tigers, with no real use for an elite closer, will do their best to cash him in for prospects. If he's sent somewhere else, Greene's prepared to "show up and work my tail off" -- just like when the Tigers moved him to the bullpen in 2016.
But if he were Al Avila ...
"If I’m Al Avila and I’m watching Shane Greene pitch and I’m seeing the strides he’s made in his career, and obviously hoping that he’s not peaking right now and he’s going to continue this success for the next three, four, five, six, seven years, it’s easy to build around a team that has a guy at the backend of the bullpen that makes the game eight innings instead of nine," said Greene. "That’s what I take pride in. Shortening that game for my teammates and them having the confidence in me to pitch with the game on the line."
It's not feasible to build around a closer, obviously. And it's not happening with the Tigers and Greene. As his long list of suitors would suggest, a high-end reliever is often the last piece added to a much larger puzzle. Still, it's a window into Greene's thinking that he views himself as part of the solution here. Has he voiced these feelings to Avila, that he wants to see this rebuild through?
"No, but I think he knows," said Greene. "He’s in the clubhouse, he’s around, he sees me play. He’s been watching me play for a couple years now. I think he understands how much I care, not only about myself but about my teammates and about the organization, and how much time I’ve put in to help the young guys when they come to me with questions or whatever it may be. I've embraced that role a little bit. I don’t have all the answers, but if I can help I try to."
The Tigers don't have all the answers yet either. In fact, their rebuild has question marks across the board. It's why Greene, along with Matthew Boyd, is on the trade block to begin with. If he can net the Tigers a promising position player, they have to pull the trigger -- and they will. And then Greene will get to chase a championship for the first time in his career. But if the choice were his, it feels like he'd rather chase that championship in Detroit.
Greene came to the Tigers in 2014 as a starter with high expectations. A couple years later, he was a bullpen transplant trying to find his way. Now he's an All-Star closer with a distinctive save celebration -- slap the chest, chest-bump the catcher. He's an example of the kind of growth the organization is aiming for at large. Greene would like to know what it looks like when the organization catches up.
Sometimes he allows his mind to go there, like earlier this season when he looked across an empty Comerica Park on the morning of a rain-out.
"Hopefully one day we win the World Series," he said with a smile, "and the whole place is slapping their chests."
As for when that might be, it's anyone's guess. But any realistic timeline doesn't give the Tigers a chance until 2021. Greene, who will be a free agent after 2020, said he thinks about the timeline often. And then he thinks about the destination, and reaching it with the same people who are dreaming about it now.
"On top of everything, the city of Detroit wants a team to bring back a championship, whether it’s us, the hockey team, the basketball team or the football team," he said. "This city loves their sports. To be a part of the organization that brings that championship back to the city, that’d be pretty special."
In all likelihood, Greene won't get the chance. But he sure would relish it if it ever came.