Curtis Granderson

Curtis Granderson is now officially a New York Yankee. 

More importantly, he is now an ex-Tiger.  Granderson came up through the ranks in Detroit and debuted way back in 2004 and has been a fixture in center field since that magical 2006 season.

Now that he’s gone, where does Granderson rank in team history? 

His time in Detroit was relatively short lived, but here are a few facts about Granderson that helps make some sense about where he falls in Tigers history:

One of 31 Tigers to hit at least 100 homers in a Detroit uniform.

At first glance, it seems like the Yankees get the best part of today's three-team trade because of Curtis Granderson's name, experience, and All-Star potential.  Let's look at this trade from each team's perspective a little closer:

New York Yankees

Yankees receive 28-year-old Curtis Granderson.

According to several reports published today, the Yankees are close to acquiring center fielder Curtis Granderson from the Detroit Tigers, in a three-way deal with the Diamondbacks and Tigers, which involves the Yankees giving up Phil Coke, Ian Kennedy, and prized outfield prospect Austin Jackson.

When I saw the trade yesterday that sent Clay Rapada from the Detroit Tigers to the Texas Rangers, I thought it might have been the start of something.  It was like the calm before the storm.

And sure enough, today the storm came through as Detroit sent Curtis Granderson and Edwin Jackson their separate ways, in a three-team blockbuster deal.  Granderson was sent to the New York Yankees, while Edwin Jackson was sent to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

No one ever said doing the right thing would always be the most popular thing.

There is a 3-team deal in place that would send CF Curtis Granderson to the Yankees; RHP Ian Kennedy and RHP Edwin Jackson to the Diamondbacks; and LHP Phil Coke, Daniel Schlereth and CF Austin Jackson are sent to the Tigers.

This deal is horrible for the Yankees. Austin Jackson was their top ranked prospect and set to start in CF for the squad this upcoming year. In Scranton-Wilkes Barre he hit .300 with 4 homeruns and 65 RBIs. He added 24 stolen bases in 132 games. He currently is 22 and will be 23 starting the '10 season.

Over the past 10 days or so, rumors have encircled the Detroit Tigers and the Chicago Cubs, centered around the potential trade of current Tigers center fielder Curtis Granderson to the Cubs. Chicago has made it a priority to find a center fielder with an above-average bat this winter, and with a career line of .272/.344/.484, Granderson certainly fits that bill.

Rumors ran wild this past week about the potential of the Cubs trading for Roy Halladay or Curtis Granderson.

What is sad is that the Cubs have the highest payroll in the league, and both of these players are going to be considered too expensive.

What's worse? Both of these players would fulfill enormous needs for the Cubs. In fact, they are the two biggest needs of the current Cub team.

I've been doing my fair share of reading on this site among others about the Cubs' interest in Granderson and what people think of the possible acquisition. Very interesting.

Right now on the Cubs' depth chart, young gun Tyler Colvin is the starting center fielder. As of now, I don't see the Cubs taking a risk on the young guy by throwing him into the mix right away. At least I wouldn't.