TOLEDO, Ohio - The Detroit Tigers have decided not to offer a minor league contract to Phil Mickelson.
Detroit Assistant General Manager Al Avila said, ‘We appreciate his competitive efforts and also appreciate the first class manner in which he has handled himself.’
Phil Mickelson said, ‘I am certainly disappointed but I completely understand and respect the decision. If I can get my velocity up, we may revisit this in the future.’
‘I appreciate manager Larry Parrish, pitching coach Jeff Jones and all the Toledo players for letting me come out and share this experience.’
Mickelson added, ‘Golf is my No. 1 priority and always will be. Throwing a baseball is an important part of my workout program, so if I can get my speed to 85 mph or above consistently, I wouldn’t rule out trying this again in the future. That would be the benchmark.’