LAKELAND, Fla. – It’s finally official; Johnny Damon is a Detroit Tiger.
After reports first surfaced this weekend on SI.com on Saturday night that Damon had signed a one year deal for 
approximately $8 million with the Detroit Tigers pending a physical, Tigers’ GM Dave Dombrowski told MLB.com that “significant progress” had been made in talks with Damon but he could not confirm a signing.
Today, in a press conference held at the Tigers’ spring training facility in Lakeland, Florida, Damon was officially presented as the newest Tiger.
The 36-year-old outfielder has an impressive resume that includes being a part of two World Series winning teams, the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees.
A two-time American League All-Star, Damon hit 24 home runs and drove in 82 runs for the Yankees last year and since 2007 has batted .325 at Comerica Park.
Over the past couple of weeks, rumors were flying that the Atlanta Braves had thrown a hat into the ring along with the Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago White Sox. Both Atlanta and Detroit hold spring training in Florida near Damon’s Orlando area home so they were the front-runners when the bidding began.
According to MLB.com reports, when the Braves learned Damon was interested in the team, he was offered a one year contract that included deferred funds. However, according to one MLB.com report, the Braves made the offer “with an understanding that they would likely be outbid by the Tigers or another Major League club.”
Other reports surfaced that Damon’s wife wanted to go to Chicago. During today’s press conference when Damon was introduced and given a Detroit Tigers No. 18 uniform, he said repeatedly that Detroit was where he and his family wanted to be.
He also warned that talk that his wife did not want to go to Detroit was untrue and that if the quotes did not come directly from him or his wife, then they probably were not true.
“This is where I wanted to be. Detroit is the team I wanted to play with. It finally worked out, “said Damon.
In addition to writing her Chicago Cubs column for Examiner.com, Miriam Romain has been published in several Cubs annuals by Maple Street Press and is a contributor to SportsClimax.com . She is also writing a book with the working title “Summers at Wrigley with my Dad.”
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