The Detroit Tigers needed a bang.
Owner Christopher Ilitch knew it. General manager Al Avila knew it. The fans knew it, begging for a sign that the rebuild was speeding up, or at least getting an outside stimulus.
That's where AJ Hinch, hired by the Tigers as manager on Friday, comes into play. He is the bang — a direct sign that Ilitch is going to spend (either this offseason or next) to build a postseason-caliber roster by 2022, and that Avila won't hold prospects back because of service time.
He doesn't come without baggage — his involvement with the 2017 Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal is bound to upset many Tigers fans before he even takes the field.