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The Detroit Tigers have been non-contenders for a while and Friday essentially fired their manager. My initial reaction was that they actually did Brad Ausmus a favor, because this team is going to be bad for quite a while. 

Everyone saw this coming. For a few years, we didn't really blame them for continuing to try and squeeze every ounce of contention out of the Justin Verlander-Miguel Cabrera AL championship core. After all, having two generational talents like those guys at the same time so rarely happens. The team had to try and get one World Series title out of it.

When the window passes, however, there's sometimes nothing left. Such is the case with the current state of the Tigers. 

Since Aug. 4, the Tigers are 11-34. That's a 162-game pace of 40 wins against 122 losses. Every other team in that span has won at least 16 games. The Tigers are 4-17 in September, which is at least two games worse than every other team in baseball. 

However you slice it, the 2017 Tigers are utterly objectionable. Things don't look a ton better moving forward, either. 

Sadly, Cabrera is a shell of his former self. Heading into Friday, he's hitting .250/.330/.401 (93 OPS+). He's also due $184 million through 2023. Jordan Zimmermann is due $74 million for the next three seasons. With a 6.19 ERA and 1.58 WHIP, Zimmermann is one of the worst starting pitchers in baseball. He leads the majors in earned runs allowed. 

Victor Martinez, 38, is hitting .255/.324/.372, has posted negative-0.6 WAR and is set to make $18 million next season. Ian Kinsler will likely be gone via free agency after the season. If not, he's got a $12 million club option. He's 35 years old and hitting .234/.313/.406 this season. 

Obviously, this Tigers remaining core is old and overpaid. What about the younger guys with promise? 

Michael Fulmer is a good young pitcher, but he's had elbow surgery. He could be fine for next year, but who knows for sure with pitchers and elbows? We've likely seen the ceiling of shortstop Jose Iglesias. He's 27 and has been worth 1.5 WAR this year. Nick Castellanos is 25, but already in his fifth season and only hitting .269/.318/.486. It's hard to dream on much more upside. James McCann isn't bad, but he's not exactly a franchise centerpiece. 

The closest things to big-upside guys on the current big-league roster would be third baseman Jeimer Candelario, who is slashing .362/.457/.551 since he was shipped to Detroit from the Cubs, and starting pitcher Daniel Norris. Norris still hasn't really broken through, but he's only 24 and has good stuff. 

Again, though, would a foundation of Fulmer, Castellanos, McCann, Candelario and Norris really be that appealing to anyone? 

That means we need to turn to the minor leagues. The Tigers' system was widely considered pretty thin coming into the season, but in dealing the likes of Justin Verlander, Justin Upton, J.D. Martinez and Alex Avila this season, general manager Al Avila has turned up some promise. 

Of MLB.com's top 15 organizational prospects, six came this season via trade. In perusing those rankings, MLB.com gives each an "ETA" of when the player is expected to arrive in the majors. Seven of the 15 are expected to arrive before 2019, and we know there's a learning curve when players get to the majors. The players who immediately play well in the bigs aren't the norm. Some prospects bust, too. 

It's entirely possible the Tigers' system turns out to be awesome and yields multiple All-Stars by 2020. Franklin Perez could be an ace, while Candelario keeps hitting like this and the Daz Cameron-Christian Stewart outfield becomes like the new Chet Lemon and Kirk Gibson one. There are definitely pieces to like in the system, such as the names already mentioned along with Matt Manning (RHP), Beau Burrows (RHP), Jake Rogers (C) and Alex Faedo (RHP). 

It's just hard to see this system bearing so much fruit in the next two years to make the club a contender. Given that and the low likelihood that the Tigers spend big on impact free agents at this point in the building process, it's difficult to be optimistic about the club in the short run. 

Instead, expect the Tigers to be one of the worst teams in baseball for the next two years, maybe a bit longer. It's gonna be a long road back -- one that would have been much easier to bear with a 2012 World Series championship banner.