Hopes haven't been this high for the Tigers since Miguel Cabrera neighbored Ian Kinsler in the clubhouse, with Justin Verlander across the way. That was at the end of an era. This is the dawn of a new one.
The bright young arms are here. The big young bats are coming. The rest of the roster has been reinforced, a roster that played winning baseball for most of last season and beat playoff teams at every turn. With the right breaks this season, the Tigers could be a playoff team themselves.
But don't take it from us. Take it from a manager who took eight teams to the playoffs and three to the World Series, including two teams in Detroit.
"I’m really encouraged," Jim Leyland told 97.1 The Ticket. "I think the Tigers are going to be a really good team this year. Do I think they have a chance to compete for the division title? I do. I think the big question mark is, do Mize and Skubal and Manning and the young players like that, Baddoo and those guys, do they take a step forward? Or have teams figured them out a little bit? Can they make the adjustments?
"I think that’s a big thing this year -- do those guys continue to get better or do they take a step back and then get really good? There’s a lot of ways that can work. But I think really good things are in store for the Tigers."
Between Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning, the Tigers have the makings -- the makings -- of a stout rotation. That's why they paid $77 million for a proven arm in Eduardo Rodriguez and another $7.5 million for a steady catcher in Tucker Barnhart. In 77 starts last season, Mize, Skubal and Manning produced 19 wins and an ERA of 4.42 ERA. They'll have to produce a lot more this season for the club to take the next step.
Between Jeimer Candelario and Akil Baddoo, and Spencer Torkelson and Riley Greene whenever they arrive, the Tigers have some potentially special players. That's why they paid $140 million for an established star in shortstop Javier Baez. As the manager of Team USA, Leyland could hardly take his eyes off Baez in the 2017 World Baseball Classic when he made the All-Tournament team playing for Puerto Rico.
"He’s a dynamite, exciting type player," said Leyland, who now serves as a special assistant in the Tigers front office. "Managing against him, my opinion would be you’d like to see him at times play under a little bit more control, but he’s a difference-maker. There’s no question about it. He can be a difference-maker on the bases, sometimes good, sometimes bad because he’s such an aggressive player."
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Baez brings all types of tools to the Tigers, but also a propensity for striking out. He whiffed more times (184) last season than any player in the NL. In this regard, Leyland expects Baez to benefit from working with Tigers hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh.
"Coolbaugh is a terrific coach and I think he’ll get to him. I think he’ll get him to cut down a little bit on the strikeouts, and I think Miggy could be really good for him in that area," Leyland said. "But this guy’s a dynamite talent, there’s no question about it. He’s a guy that excites people when they watch him play. He’s got a chance to be really good for us."
Coming off a fourth-place finish in the AL Central, the Tigers surged to the World Series in their first season under Leyland. They wouldn't have done it without huge contributions from a pair of rookies in Justin Verlander and Joel Zumaya. Torkelson and Greene did big things last season in the minors. Question is, how quickly can they make it in the majors?
"I saw a lot of Torkelson and Greene (last year)," said Leyland. "They’re the real deal. But you have to remember, they’re not going to just step into the big leagues and tear it up. There’s going to be some growing pains and they’re going to have to mature a little bit more, but things are really, really looking good for the Tigers.
"They’re not home-free yet and they’re still taking some baby steps, but they've got a chance to be really good."