General manager Dave Dombrowski said yesterday that the Tigers “would ideally like to” sign free agent-to-be Brandon Inge to a new contract before he hits the open market five days after the World Series:
We have a month advantage over anybody else, so I would hope to find out. I never, ever hold it against anybody if they want to see what’s out there. They’ve earned that right. But I think he would rather get something done, and we would rather get something done.
Inge was paid $6.6 million this season to complete a four-year, $24 million contract that saw him hit just .231 with a .314 on-base percentage and .389 slugging percentage in 569 games while producing an OPS below .725 in all four seasons. He’s also 33 years old, so it seems likely that Inge will have to settle for a one- or two-year deal worth a fraction of that salary, making a return to Detroit a pretty strong option given their apparent interest.