Anyways, in 2008, Mayo wrote a column criticizing Brandon Inge (calling him a "cowardly tiger") because Inge wouldn't talk to him about the Tigers' acquisition of Miguel Cabrera (at the time Cabrera played 3rd base and some thought Inge would have to move to catcher to keep his roster spot). Apparently, Inge was upset about this, privately told the front office he didn't want to catch and wanted to be traded. During a guest autograph signing in Grand Rapids, Mayo wanted an interview where Inge criticized the Tigers' front office publicly. Mayo didn't get his tabloid interview and went off.
To me and every sane person, this made no sense. Mayo was mad at a professional athlete for acting professional. I wondered if Mayo was on drugs.
The column received so much response, the Grand Rapids Press had to devote an entire page to the responses.
About a year later, Mayo was busted for growing marijuana in his house.
In his most recent column, Mayo discusses Inge's demotion to the minors and describes the controversy over his past Inge column thusly:
A few years ago, I wrote a column that irked many Inge loyalists when he rejected the team’s request to catch. The premise was Inge wasn’t doing the best thing for the Tigers, because his pea-sized average and microscopic power numbers were acceptable if he caught, but not if he played third base. He became an impediment by holding down a position that mandates offensive punch without providing it, and no, his excellent defense didn’t compensate.Sorry, David. The premise wasn't that Inge wasn't doing the best thing for the Tigers. The premise was that Inge was a coward for not publicly airing his feelings about the situation in an interview with you.
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