Tigers players helped new manager Ron Gardenhire by wearing matching jerseys
This browser does not support the video element.
One of the most stressful aspects of starting a new job is trying to remember the names of your new co-workers. For a new manager, large Spring Training rosters with Minor Leaguers and non-roster invitees is likely to be even more stressful than an office with 10 people.
Fortunately, new Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire has a system for dealing with just that problem: He's following in Todd Frazier's footsteps and calling everyone "Buddy" if he doesn't know their name. And, to ensure that there would be no hard feelings among his players, he told them about his "Buddy system" on day one.
So, of course his players took their manager's admission of being bad with names and ran with it, making custom Buddy jerseys so that Gardenhire could both employ his system and be correct:
The prank -- conceived by pitchers Michael Fulmer, Jordan Zimmermann and Alex Wilson -- was executed as an act of love toward their new skipper, according to Fulmer:
This browser does not support the video element.
There's definitely no better prank than one that makes the person on the receiving end feel more comfortable and welcome, so kudos to the Tigers on a well-executed tribute to their manager.