Johnny Damon still has until Wednesday afternoon to decide whether or not he wants to waive his no-trade clause and accept a move to Boston after the Red Sox claimed him off waivers from the Tigers on Monday, but quotes from the outfielder indicate he's leaning toward staying with Detroit.
"My gut and everything else tells me Detroit's the place for me," he told reporters.
At the very least, the Red Sox successfully blocked Damon from Tampa Bay. More from Damon, who spoke with reporters in Detroit after Monday's game (he went 2-for-4 with two runs scored).
"Obviously, (the Red Sox) claimed me to go out there and play left field and lead off for them. They have a lot of big games with Tampa Bay coming up. They have six more games with New York coming up. That's why they're trying. What a scene that would be, playing for the Red Sox while the Yankees go (to Boston), and everybody there hates me. That's the craziness that's involved. I'm just going to try not to think about it tonight. [...]
"Varitek knows what I brought to the table, night in and night out. Ortiz does. And Wakefield. So, obviously, I know they want me. But I love it here in Detroit, and I love my teammates here. I hope this can work out to something that I can be back here in Detroit. I'm kind of weighing all my options, seeing if I could help improve this team for next year. That's ultimately what I want is to grow together with the Tigers and help develop their young Tigers and see where it takes us.
"That's my feeling right now, and I don't want to go home tonight and talk to my agent and talk to everyone who's involved and change my mind. I'm definitely leaning towards staying."
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