Ian Kinsler is sitting on top of the bench, talking about baseball, batting gloves on, bat in hand, trying to explain his approach to playing the game with an analogy about board games.
“You ever play, like, a board game with somebody that’s just a jerk about it?” he says. “Like, really, you’re going to do that? It’s in the rules, but, ‘Come on, man, we’re playing Sorry. Or we’re playing Monopoly. Take it easy.’ ”
It is Tuesday afternoon, and the Tigers’ second baseman is sitting in the visitor’s dugout at Cleveland’s Progressive Field, hours away from not being selected to the American League All-Star team.