Ron Gardenhire Admits Stealing CJ Cron and Jonathan Schoop From Twins is Sweet Justice After They Fired Him

The Detroit Tigers are rebuilding, but it didn't stop them from spending some money in free agency. This winter, the Tigers signed second baseman Jonathan Schoop and first baseman CJ Cron. Ironically, both played for Detroit's division rival last season: the Minnesota Twins.

When speaking with the media on Thursday, Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said he felt good about those acquisitions because he stole them from the Twins, the team who fired him five years ago.

Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire’s reaction to signing first baseman C.J. Cron and second baseman Jonathan Schoop last month: “I was really happy, because we took them from Minnesota, who fired me.”
— anthony fenech (@anthonyfenech) January 23, 2020

You've got to admire the pettiness by Gardenhire, as he didn't even try to deny his satisfaction in snagging productive players from his former club.

Gardenhire was signed by the Twins back in 2002 to be their skipper, and he retained that role all the way up to 2014. In that span, Gardenhire accumulated a 1,069-1,038 record and seven AL Central titles.

Cron and Schoop were both added by the Twins last year, and they paid dividends, helping the team win an AL Central crown. Now, they'll move to the Motor City to try to earn the Tigers some much needed wins.

“We’ve brought in some really good people who can help us...we’re gonna be better this year.” - Ron Gardenhire
— Jennifer Hammond (@HammerFox2) January 23, 2020

In 2019, Cron accumulated a .253 batting average and .780 OPS, alongside 25 home runs and 78 RBI. As for Schoop, he posted 23 homers and 59 RBI all on a .253 batting average.

Gardenhire hopes that Cron and Schoop put up even better numbers in Detroit, because it would sting that much more for the Twins. But let's face it, the Twins won't be too concerned about that, considering they were successful in signing Josh Donaldson.