Gage: Tigers' off day is convenient buffer between turmoil, tranquility
DETROIT -- Incident? What incident?
If you're going to be a good major-league manager -- for that matter, if you're going to be a good manager at any level -- there are certain skills you can't afford not to master.
That's what I understand to be true, anyway, never having been a manager. That's what I've even been told is true by more than one individual who mastered those skills.
Establishing your authority is first and foremost. You can be friendly with players. You can even be their friend if you want to be. But they need to know who is boss.
Being decisive is another must. You're not always going to be right. You're not always going to be wrong. But you can't be shrugging your shoulders when players are looking at you for direction.
Equally important, however, is the ability to stamp out small fires before they spread.
Before they get big.
Before they cause trouble.
Such as the "miscommunication" on Sunday between Ausmus and his starting pitcher David Price.
In a free-for-all that blanketed talk radio and Twitter on Monday, being passed back and forth like the hot potato it seemed to be -- and was trying to be -- the dugout mix-up between Ausmus and Price was dissected, trisected and basically cut into as many pieces as it could be.
How did it happen? Whose fault was it? Were they both at fault?
Fortunately, it didn't cost the Tigers or else the restlessness of the wolves would have turned into outright howling. There's not as much to complain about, however, when a team wins despite a blunder.
In case you missed it, Price was not back from the clubhouse on Sunday when it was time for him to take the mound in the seventh.
Making matters worse, Ausmus did not know he wasn't back in the dugout. Plus he had no one warming up at the time.
The Tigers were down 4-0 and Price, believing he was done for the day, was back in the clubhouse -- far beyond being able to throw another inning.
It was an awkward, public mistake, catching Ausmus by surprise -- while prompting those murmuring about it to question whether they had ever seen anything like it before.
Most said they had not.
At the very least, if it had happened before, it hadn't happened often.
But off days can be convenient buffers between turmoil and tranquility. Two days later is a long time.
So when Ausmus was asked about the incident before Tuesday night's game between the Tigers and Pirates at Comerica Park, it was almost as if it hadn't happened at all.
Here's how the question was posed: "When you know that a situation is going to be a media topic, do you pay attention to the reaction the next day?"
Ausmus wanted to know what situation was being referred to.
"The one involving Price."
He didn't immediately seem to recall there had been one involving Price.
When reminded there had, he responded as if to say "oh, that one."
"I didn't think twice about it, quite frankly," he said.
"I mean, it's like anything. Me and my wife will be talking about our daughters, and she misunderstands what I'm saying. Or I misunderstand what she is saying. It happens.
"There's no grand secret here. I thought he was still in the game. He thought he was done. He reacted like he was finished. I reacted like he was still in -- and he wasn't there.
"Really, no big deal," said Ausmus. "You can make all the conspiracies you want, but there really weren't any."
But, Brad, isn't it usually conveyed to a starting pitcher with a handshake that he is out of the game?
"I usually tell them "that's it", shake their hand or whatever the case may be," he replied. "In this case, he went up the tunnel."
And also in this case, a small fire remained small. It was a big on the off day.
But not beyond. The manager saw to that.
