Fielder: Family circle is complete
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Prince Fielder, left, with son Jadyn, 7, at a news conference Thursday in Detroit to announce the elder Fielder's signing. -
Prince Fielder in 1994 at Tiger Stadium
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DETROIT -- It was a happy, and eerily familiar, scene at Comerica Park on Thursday, as the new Detroit Tigers slugger Prince Fielder sat at a dais for a news conference, next to his cute, curly-haired 7-year-old son Jadyn.
Father and son both wore No. 28 Tigers home white jerseys, with the name Fielder emblazoned on the back. Dad was holding court, as son curiously watched the throng of reporters in front of him asking questions.
It was the same as 22 years ago, when Prince Fielder's father, Cecil, was introduced as a Tiger and brought his cute, baseball-playing son to the spotlight.
Prince Fielder's world came full-circle as he officially became part of his favorite childhood team with a nine-year, $214 million contract.
"It's really awesome, don't know what to say, I never thought it could happen and now it's happened," said Fielder, 27. "This is an awesome moment. A special day."
The addition of Prince Fielder augments and changes the look of the American League Central-champion Tigers. Slugger Miguel Cabrera will move to third base, Fielder will play first, and manager Jim Leyland said the designated hitter slot will remain flexible.
"The fans are really excited, and it's nice they remember me," Fielder said. "To play in front of the fans who watched me grow up, it's cool."
Cecil Fielder was a superstar for the team from 1990-96 before being traded to the New York Yankees, known for his big homers and oversized frame and personality to match. He also had a pint-sized doppelganger in Prince, with the duo virtually inseparable in and out of the ballpark. Prince Fielder played in the Tigers' clubhouse, with players loving to goof around with him and sneak him candy when his dad wasn't looking.
Prince Fielder said one of his favorite memories was "being thrown into clubhouse trash cans by Tony Phillips and Pete Incaviglia," two former Detroit players.
The father-son pair filmed a memorable McDonald's commercial in 1992 that had Prince Fielder striking out his dad in a backyard game. Fans and the Tigers also got to see Prince Fielder's baseball talent develop in real time, as he starred as a home run hitter in Little League and took fielding and batting practice with his dad at Tiger Stadium.
The Tigers wanted to draft Prince Fielder in 2002, but he went to the Milwaukee Brewers with the seventh pick. The Tigers had the eighth pick, and took shortstop Scott Moore, who ultimately had little impact and was traded away in 2005.
Tiger's owner Mike Ilitch said he relishes bringing Prince Fielder "back home."
"At the old ballpark, Cecil would come up to the box after Tigers games and bring me food. He'd sit down, and all he did was talk about Prince," Ilitch said. " 'And Prince is going to do this and that.' I said to myself, 'Typical father, bragging about one of his kids.' But I know Cecil well, and how often Prince was in the ballpark, getting very familiar with it at a young age."
Ilitch turned to Prince and said, "What were you, 14, when you hit it into the upper deck?"
Prince Fielder memorably ripped a homer into the upper deck of Tiger Stadium during a batting practice session with dad.
But Ilitch's math was a little off, and Fielder politely corrected the record.
Fielder smiled, shook his head and said, "No, 12," as he looked down at his baseball-playing son standing next to him in a Tigers jersey.
First Published January 29, 2012 12:00 am
