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In praise of the defense, which is better than ever

Jose Iglesias has been a notable upgrade at shortstop for the postseason-bound Tigers.

Jose Iglesias has been a notable upgrade at shortstop for the postseason-bound Tigers.

People like to complain about a slippage in the quality of play -- that hitters don't know how to bunt any more, that pitchers get forced into the majors before they know how to pitch, that outfielders don't have strong arms like they used to, that runners don't know how to run the bases, or that expansion has watered down the competition . . . It's almost all baloney, but such complaints feed our sense of nostalgia. When it comes to defense, though, there is no room to complain. It's better than ever.