Did you want the Tigers to get the best manager possible or take the symbolic moral high ground and go cheap?
The Tigers, under the circumstances, were wise to select the top manager.
Hiring A.J. Hinch will set the Tigers' course for years.
He is exceptionally qualified to oversee the Tigers' progressing rebuild, and prepared to get the organization over the top should it become a legitimate contender.
He was part of the Astros' cheating scandal, turning a blind eye. He did, however, destroy two camera monitors because of his disagreement with it. Hinch was the one person in the organization to speak out against the reprehensible treatment of female reporters by the assistant general manager, too.
Hinch has not hid from his role, but rather been appropriately contrite. He was punished with a season-long MLB suspension and subjected to justifiable criticism, scorn and embarrassment. It's time for a second chance, though. The Tigers are fortunate to be in position to give Hinch the opportunity.
"It's part of my story, not the Tigers' story," Hinch said during a virtual news conference announcing his hiring Friday.
"I've owned it."
The bearing of a manager is unclear, especially in this era of high-tech and advanced analytics. But the Astros, for all their flaws, have been the very best organization in regard to turning analytics into victories, pennants and a World Series championship.
No manager the Tigers could have possibly hired can remotely match Hinch in that regard.
As important, though, is his all-around experience. Hinch is a former catcher. There is a reason so many catchers have made quality managers, from Joe Torre to Bruce Bochy to Bob Melvin. They uniquely understand the nuances of hitting, pitching and strategy from a player's prospective. Hinch has been in player development. He has scouted.
Hinch played at Stanford, so there is a deep understanding of college baseball, which figures to take on added importance as MLB downsizes its minor leagues.
"Talent wins," Tigers owner Chris Ilitch said.
And A.J. Hinch is perhaps the most gifted manager in the sport.
"He's got a winning pedigree. He's won championships, and he's won a World Series,'' general manager Al Avila said. "We talk about analytics, and he obviously understands it and knows how to use it. At the same time, he has tremendous experience where he he can talk to an analyst and he can talk to a baseball guy. He can tell an analyst they're wrong, we're going this way. He can tell a baseball guy they're wrong, we're going to use the data.
"I was looking for a difference-maker I could partner with to lead this organization to a world championship."
Like it or not, A.J. Hinch is that guy.
The Tigers made the right decision to hire him.
