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Dombrowski Explains Why Tigers Will Not Re-Sign Torii Hunter

By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak

COMERICA PARK (CBS DETROIT) - The Detroit Tigers will not re-sign outfielder Torii Hunter, general manager Dave Dombrowski announced Friday.

"I called him today and let him know," Dombrowski said. "I saw his representative Larry Reynolds out there in Arizona, it just so happened, and we've been in touch, talked to Torii, talked to Larry. In Larry's case explained to him that at the time we had conversations going on with Victor [Martinez], and if we signed Victor it would most likely preclude us from going strongly after Torii, and he understood.

"I said, 'It kind of depends what role and all that Torii wants,'" Dombrowski continued. "I said, 'I even heard that he might not play.' He said, 'No, Torii wants to play for sure, and he wants to go out there and play, basically, on an everyday basis if he can, and he thinks he might even be able to play for a couple years.'"

Dombrowski wanted to wait until the Tigers got a deal done with Martinez to tell Reynolds for sure that Detroit would not be interested in bringing Hunter back, and he did so Friday.

"If something changes where we make some changes for one reason or another that we're not anticipating, we would still be open," Dombrowski said. "It's just really probably not as much of a fit right now."

Hunter turns 40 next season, and though he came through for the Tigers offensively in 2014 with a batting average of .286 and 17 home runs, his defense was marginal at best. Hunter said when the 2014 season ended that he was tired and would contemplate retiring if he did not return to the Tigers or another team for which he had played previously.

"We knew he would like to play here if it was possible, but just the way we shape up, we had to get a center fielder, and then all of a sudden when you look at where we are with [J.D.] Martinez and [Rajai] Davis out there, there's really not enough playing time to go around," Dombrowski said.

Hunter spent two years with Detroit. In 2013, he recorded a batting average of .304 and hit 17 home runs.

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