Untitled Page

Detroit Tigers News

Avila: Miguel Cabrera has lost 20-25 pounds
February 11
Detroit Free Press
 
"Detroit Tigers catcher Alex Avila today talked to ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" about consistency, pitching, consistent pitching and the expectations of this year's team. He did not talk about third baseman Miguel Cabrera losing weight -- at least not during the phone interview with host Karl Ravech. But Ravech said and tweeted afterward that Avila told him Cabrera has lost 20-25 pounds this off-season. Avila has been working out with Cabrera and infield prospect Nick Castellanos in Florida, Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski said at the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association's Tiger Day on Tuesday."
Alex Avila: Pitching key to Tigers' success this year
February 11
Detroit Free Press
 
"On ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" on Friday, catcher Alex Avila discussed what he thinks needs to happen often this year for the Tigers to meet expectations: consistent play in the field, at the plate and, especially, on the mound. "Throughout the course of the season, you're not going to do all three of those consistently all the time," Avila told host Karl Ravech. "Each aspect has to pick each other up, and being able to get consistent pitching is at the top of the list. "Then everything else will follow, and you kind of gain confidence as the season goes on when you're able to play consistent baseball in all aspects of the game." He said the Tigers know about the target on their back as"
Miguel Cabrera loses 20-plus pounds for 3B prep, Alex Avila says
February 11
Detroit News
 
"Miguel Cabrera doesn't just want to play third base. It's become a consuming desire to be the best he can possibly be at his old, but new position. "Since Prince Fielder signed," said Alex Avila, the Tigers' catcher who works out with Cabrera in Florida, "he's thrown himself into being a third baseman. It's all he's thinking about." Avila spoke about Cabrera's conditioning program on Friday with ESPN, but also over the phone with The Detroit News. Avila said Cabrera has lost 20-plus pounds with the intention of losing "at least 15 more." "You know, you can make up your mind that you're going to be able to do something," Avila said, "but in this situation, Miguel has thrown himself into"
Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski: Season ticket sales going 'very well'
February 10
Detroit Free Press
 
"Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski said this week that the team has surpassed last year's equivalent of 15,000 season-ticket holders. "They have been going very good," Dombrowski said of season-ticket sales Tuesday during the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association's Tiger Day. Dombrowski said the organization was not in a position to disclose specific numbers for this coming season, only saying that the Tigers were "doing very, very well with our ticket sales.""
Tigers will take young starters for test drive before handing out the keys
February 10
Detroit News
 
"Your personal car is probably sufficient to get you where you need to go. But unless your name is Verlander and your ride is a Ferrari, you likely would prefer to turn in your existing ride for a more appealing model. Dave Dombrowski has a five-car garage filled with four perfectly acceptable vehicles by the name of Verlander, Max Scherzer, Doug Fister and Rick Porcello. He needs a fifth set of wheels. The Tigers front-office chief has said several times since last October's playoff run ended that he would be happy to choose a fifth starter for his five-man rotation from an existing fleet of young pitchers: Jacob Turner, Duane Below, Adam Wilk, Andy Oliver, Drew Smyly, or even Casey"
Tigers tight-lipped on Yoenis Cespedes, but confirm he didn't visit Detroit
February 10
Detroit News
 
"What do we know about the Tigers' pursuit of Cuban sensation Yoenis Cespedes? The Tigers still are interested. After that, the chase lacks details. Cespedes arrived in Miami to much fanfare Wednesday, and later that day met with the Marlins and toured the new ballpark. It's unclear if the Tigers' brass met with Cespedes in South Florida after the Marlins made their pitch, though GM Dave Dombrowski did confirm Thursday that Cespedes did not visit Detroit. "Other than that," said Dombrowski, "not much else to say about his situation.""
FanGraphs ranks Prince Fielder signing second-worst this offseason
February 10
Detroit News
 
"Folks around here seem to like the Tigers' signing of Prince Fielder to a nine-year, $214 million contract. Outside of Detroit, others disagree. One, Dave Cameron of the popular baseball site FanGraphs.com, called the signing the second-worst move of the offseason."
While intriguing, Cuban star Yoenis Cespedes not worth the risk for Tigers
February 9
Detroit News
 
"Cuban sensation Yoenis Cespedes is expected to meet with Miami Marlins officials today, kicking off his "super star"-for-hire tour that's expected to include visits with the Tigers, Cubs, White Sox and Orioles, among others. It's the latest chapter in the never-ending saga of a five-tool outfielder who we've been hearing about for months, as he defected from Cuba and was granted citizenship in the Dominican Republic, before he recently — and finally — was declared a free agent. He's now free to sign with a major league team, even though he's waiting on the work visa that will allow him to play full-time in the United States. (That reminds me: Anyone heard from Francisco Cruceta?)"
Tigers talking up Miguel Cabrera -- at third base
February 8
Detroit Free Press
 
"The Hockeytown Café audience loudly chuckled at such an obvious declaration. General manager Dave Dombrowski assessed the Tigers' third-base situation by saying Brandon Inge would be a better defensive player but -- BREAKING NEWS ALERT! -- Miguel Cabrera would be a better offensive player than Inge. "I don't mean to be flippant," Dombrowski quickly interjected."
Drew Smyly might be dark horse for Tigers rotation
February 8
Detroit News
 
"The door is open for a long-shot left-hander to win the fifth starting spot for the Tigers, assuming it doesn't go to offseason leader Jacob Turner. In fact, the eventual winner might not even be on the 40-man roster right now. That's how open the competition will be this spring. In that case, get accustomed to hearing about Drew Smyly. What became clearer Tuesday is that Smyly will get a chance because there are those within the organization who've told president and general manager Dave Dombrowski the 22-year-old non-roster invitee, despite only one year of pro experience, is capable of pitching in the majors."
Agent Scott Boras says Tigers smart in using draft as trade bait
February 7
Detroit Free Press
 
"The Tigers used a lot of currency to sign Prince Fielder: $214 million worth. But it's the currency that's green in experience and not on paper that perhaps best points to the philosophy the Tigers preach these days. It's a philosophy that agent Scott Boras thinks largely helped the team cement itself as AL favorites in 2012. "The intellect here was ahead of the curve in Major League Baseball," Boras said at Fielder's signing last month."
Brandon Inge could be victim of Danny Worth's versatility
February 7
Detroit News
 columnist Lynn Henning
"For now, anyway, Miguel Cabrera is the Tigers third baseman. We'll see how that project works out once the big boys roll into Lakeland, Fla., in two weeks to begin a camp interesting for what it will say about offense and defense and the ratios manager Jim Leyland can live with. Which brings us to another issue relating to third base. Specifically, backups. What are the chances Brandon Inge will lose his presumed job to the younger and more versatile Danny Worth?"
Tigers 'most likely set,' but still are pursuing Yoenis Cespedes
February 6
Detroit News
 
"More and more, it's looking like the Tigers' fifth starting spot is Jacob Turner's to lose. Asked Monday if he's still hoping to bring another veteran pitching presence to spring training, which begins Feb. 20 for pitchers and catchers, Tigers president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said, "There's a chance it may not happen — which is fine. "We may still sign a guy or two. We'll just wait and see. We've talked to people, but we've not had any success in that regard. The closer we get (to spring training), unless something happens, we'll just go with the people we have." Going into camp that way, however, doesn't mean the Tigers will come out that way. "There's still plenty of time to"
Justin Verlander loves Detroit, says Taco Bell routine started rookie season
February 6
Detroit Free Press
 
"Justin Verlander has been making his rounds across the country. He has gone from award show to award show this off-season, appeared on Conan O'Brien and is the poster boy for this year's "MLB 2K12" video game. And at each of those spots, he's greeted by the same question: "Obviously the first question everybody asks is, how do you like Detroit?" Verlander said Sunday morning in an interview with WXYZ-TV (Channel 7). "And my answer is I love it," he said. "I think that it's a very unique city, the people here are fantastic, it's unbelievable. I think we have the best sports fans in the world.""
Ron Myers keeps the Tigers' Lakeland training facility running
February 6
Detroit News
 
"In these baseball-hungry regions, Lakeland, Fla., means spring training. Tigers spring training. The Tigers and Lakeland have been a partnership since 1934, the longest-running relationship between a big-league club and its spring training site of any team in baseball. The man who oversees the vast Tigertown complex — Marchant Stadium, five practice fields, minor-league dormitory, etc. — is Ron Myers, the team's director of Lakeland operations. Myers talked about Lakeland's preparations for a seven-week Tigers spring camp, which begins on Feb. 19, as well as demand for Grapefruit League tickets at Marchant Stadium."
Cecil Fielder lands in Ted Williams' Hitters Hall of Fame
February 5
Detroit Free Press
 
"Cecil Fielder has accomplished something four Tigers Hall of Famers have not. He was inducted into the Ted Williams Hitters Hall of Fame on Friday night at Tropicana Field along with slugger Tino Martinez, with whom he won a World Series with the New York Yankees in 1996. Tigers Ty Cobb, Hank Greenberg and Harry Heilmann were in the original 20-man group Williams selected in 1995. Al Kaline was chosen by the Splendid Splinter in 1999. But Charlie Gehringer, former Williams teammate George Kell, Mickey Cochrane and Sam Crawford -- all Tigers Cooperstown inductees -- are not among the 64 in the shrine started by perhaps the greatest hitter ever and carried on by those who have run his museum"
With Tigers as common ground, Prince-Cecil Fielder reunion still looks unlikely
February 5
Detroit Free Press
 
"One of baseball's most enduring themes is its father-son pull at the heartstrings. Check out "The Natural" and "Field of Dreams." Look at the Griffeys, Boones, Bells, Gwynns and Alous. The one thing that made all fans smile about Barry Bonds was his unabashed love for his father, Bobby. But there is one very notable exception to that feel-good story line. And that would be Detroit's own Cecil and Prince Fielder. Tigers owner Mike Ilitch signed both to mammoth contracts for their homer-hitting, run-producing prowess. And there should be no better sports story than a father and son passing the big bat from one to the other like a baseball baton. But that's where the reality of a shattered"
Family feud continues: Cecil Fielder rips son, has no plans to attend Tiger games
February 5
Detroit News
 
"Cecil and Prince Fielder are putting that whole "time heals all wounds" mantra to the test. Last week, Cecil, the former Tigers slugger, had nothing but glowing things to say about his son, Prince, after he signed a nine-year, $214 million contract with the Tigers. On Friday night, however, the tune had changed. Speaking to reporters in St. Petersburg, Fla. -- where he was inducted into the Ted Williams Hitters Hall of Fame -- Cecil said he's disappointed in the man his son has become. And he has no plans to attend Tigers games. "As a father, of course you're proud of what your son's been able to accomplish on the field," Cecil Fielder told the Tampa Bay Times. "But as a father also you"
Mike Ilitch putting money where Tigers heart is
February 5
Detroit News
 columnist Lynn Henning
"This weekend is the eighth anniversary of the Tigers' official rebirth as a baseball franchise. Early in the afternoon of Feb. 4, 2004, Pudge Rodriguez and Mike Ilitch each stepped into the Tigers Club at Comerica Park following an improbable romance that made baseball's best-known catcher property of the worst team in big league baseball. An almost-bizarre free-agent signing sprouted only four months after the Tigers had missed by one game tying the 1962 Mets for the ignominious distinction of having lost 120 games in a season. A year later, Magglio Ordonez joined the Tigers. Attendance surged. The team began to compete. And in 2006, the Tigers bagged the greatest three-year turnaround in"
Cecil Fielder: Relationship with Prince still rocky; 'I say he has to grow up'
February 4
Detroit Free Press
 
"Comments Cecil Fielder made after his son, Prince, signed his nine-year, $214-million contract with the Detroit Tigers gave the impression of an improvement in what had been a strained relationship. "But I do not know if it's improving," Fielder said tonight, before being inducted into the Ted Williams Hitters Hall of Fame with former New York Yankees teammate Tino Martinez. "I worry how he's grown as a man." The father expressed "disappointment" with his son over the estranged relationship he said his son had with "the whole family." The father said his son did not communicate with anybody on either side of his extended family. Cecil Fielder, who said his son had him "thrown out" of a"
Report: Tigers nearly traded Curtis Granderson to Red Sox in 2009
February 3
Detroit Free Press
 
"Last season, Curtis Granderson peppered baseballs into the right-field seats of Yankee Stadium with ease. But if not for the Boston Red Sox balking at the Tigers asking price in 2009, Granderson very well could have been peppering balls off the left-field Green Monster at Fenway Park. The Wall Street Journal's Daniel Barbarisi reports that before the three-team deal that sent Granderson to the New York Yankees that offseason, the Red Sox were very much interested in Granderson's services."
Tigers GM: Prince Fielder deal mirrored Miguel Cabrera trade
February 2
Detroit Free Press
 
"Signing Prince Fielder continues to remind Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski of trading for Miguel Cabrera. In December 2007, the Tigers traded five players -- including star prospects Cameron Maybin and Andrew Miller -- to the Florida Marlins for Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis. And the deal, Dombrowski said, materialized with owner Mike Ilitch much like Fielder's signing. "I had brought to his attention that he was a good player out there, a key guy that could be available," Dombrowski told CJCL-AM (590) in Toronto on Tuesday. "But not really with the intent that I thought we'd even trade for him. Because at that point the dollars were very large to extend him ... we had thought.""
Tigers nearly set for spring camp
February 2
Detroit News
 
"About their pitching, about their bench — frankly, about everything. The questions that remain about the Tigers, following a glamorous $214 million interlude last week, suddenly seem more pertinent. Because it's no longer January. The best part of transitioning from one winter month to another — even when it's warmer in Michigan than usual — is that when the calendar turns to February, two words other than "Super Bowl" come to mind."
Sources: Playoff expansion has issues
February 1
ESPN.com
 
"Baseball commissioner Bud Selig continues to talk confidently about expanding the baseball playoff field in 2012. But sources tell ESPN.com efforts to make that happen remain bogged down, all because of one thorny little complication: the details. Wednesday was supposed to be the day the commissioner's office finished a proposed schedule for the 2012 postseason and shipped it to the players' association for consideration. But sources told ESPN.com that deadline wasn't going to be met -- not because talks have broken down, but because fitting two extra wild-card pieces into the postseason puzzle has proven to be more involved than the commissioner has been willing to acknowledge. The new"
Tigers could plug as many as 10 players into DH spot
February 1
Detroit News
 
"Despite the signing of slugger Prince Fielder, there's a spot in the Tigers lineup that remains open. Designated hitter, of course. It won't be open in 2013 when Victor Martinez returns from the two surgeries he's facing to repair his damaged left knee. But for this season, it is. As matters stand, it'll be DH by committee — a big committee — for the Tigers. That wouldn't be the case if the Tigers had moved Miguel Cabrera from first base to DH instead of third after last week's signing of Fielder."
Denny McLain should learn from Brandon Inge instead of ridiculing him
February 1
Detroit News
 columnist Tom Gage
"Cheap shot or joke? I say cheap shot. If you read Terry Foster's column on Monday, you know former Tigers pitcher Denny McLain got some laughs over the weekend when he showed a photograph of the Tigers' Brandon Inge to a Madonna University fundraiser crowd of several hundred and said, "This was Brandon Inge's last photo before he began whining about his playing time." Then McLain tossed the photo to the ground and said when it landed, "it's the first time he's hit something in two years." Terry wrote the crowd chuckled both times."
Six teams eye Cespedes
February 1
CSN Philly
 
"Yoenis Cespedes will finally be able to sign with an MLB team and there is considerable interest in the Cuban slugger. At least six are bidding on Cespedes, tweeted Jim Bowden of ESPN (Yahoo! Sports has the story). The former Cuban citizen (current citizen of the Dominican Republic), has plans to visit the United States to meet with clubs. Only five of the six "seriously negotiating" with Cespedes are known: The Miami Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles and Detroit Tigers."
Yoenis Cespedes signing before spring training
January 31
Yahoo! Sports
 
"Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes is now free to sign with any team he would like and his agent, Adam Katz, told Fox Sports Monday that his client is expected to do just that before spring training camps open in a few weeks. "We are aware of the (spring-training) dates," Katz told Fox. "We expect him to be in camp with one of the clubs." Of course, Katz may have a lot of sifting to do before then. The word has been that pretty much everybody who has seen Cespedes pick up a bat has some interest in signing the 26-year-old. Katz termed the market for Cespedes as "meaningful and aggressive" to Fox."
Tigers' moves put Brandon Inge on bench, where he belongs
January 31
Detroit Free Press
 columnist Jamie Samuelson
"Can you explain/understand the sympathy expressed by Tigers fans for Brandon Inge, who's once again the odd-man out? I'm just surprised nobody cares what Don Kelly thinks about the Prince Fielder signing. Shouldn't he have a say, too? Shouldn't we all worry what the move means to Kelly? After all, he was penciled in as a platoon third baseman alongside Inge for the 2012 season. So if Fielder is entrenched at first base and Miguel Cabrera slides over to third, doesn't that mean Kelly is also a man without a job?"
Prince Fielder signing stokes buzz for Tigers tickets
January 31
Detroit News
 
"Prince Fielder hits baseballs into the seats. He also puts seats in the seats. As quickly as reports floated last week that a spectacular left-handed slugger was coming to Detroit, phone lines at Comerica Park heated like an oven broiler. Ticket staffers worked as late as 9 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, and all day Saturday and Sunday, as fans bent on at least asking about season tickets raided the Comerica Park switchboard. "Interest has been high," Duane McLean, senior vice president for business operations for the Tigers, said Monday. "The call volumes were heavy. We were averaging about 4,000 calls into our ticket department those days when we would typically have a couple of hundred at this"
Victor Martinez has first surgery on knee
January 31
Detroit News
 
"One surgery down, one to go. Or to put it another way: Tigers designated hitter Victor Martinez suffered much more than a torn left ACL two weeks ago when he slipped during a conditioning drill. He suffered so much damage, in fact, the repairs have to be done in two stages. To get a head start in recovering from the other injuries his left knee sustained, Martinez's ACL won't be repaired for another 6-8 weeks. So if you're a calendar watcher, his recovery won't start in full until mid-to-late March, which in turn leaves no doubt Martinez has been lost for the 2012 season."
Tigers' Victor Martinez undergoes knee surgery
January 30
Detroit News
 
"Victor Martinez's left knee was so damaged, so torn up in his conditioning mishap earlier this month, it is requiring multiple surgeries to repair it. Martinez, the Tigers designated hitter/catcher, underwent microfracture surgery, as well as repairs to both the medial and lateral meniscus in his left knee on Friday, the Tigers announced. But the procedure to repair his torn left ACL might not take place for another eight weeks. In other words, the long road back for the Tigers' designated hitter hasn't gotten any shorter."
Nick Castellanos remains in Tigers' plans
January 30
Detroit News
 
"Tigers fans are always looking ahead, even when a non-issue becomes — for some — an issue Nick Castellanos, for example. Now that Tigers bosses have dusted off their hands and pronounced Miguel Cabrera the new full-time third baseman, people have asked what the team plans to do with its top position prospect, Castellanos, who is a confirmed third baseman, and who will probably be delivered to Comerica Park by Opening Day 2014. "We're not looking to trade him," Dave Dombrowski, the Tigers president and general manager, said of Castellanos at last week's Prince Fielder unveiling at Comerica Park. "He'll fit in great, eventually, with this lineup.""
Denny McLain's message to Brandon Inge: Get over it
January 30
Detroit News
 
"Denny McLain held up an autographed photo of Brandon Inge and showed it to his audience. "This was Brandon Inge's last photo before he began whining about his playing time," McLain announced. The former Tigers pitcher drew laughter from 300 guests who attended the Madonna University baseball team's fundraiser Saturday. Inge lost his shot to start last week when the Tigers signed Prince Fielder to a nine-year, $214 million contract; he will play first base and Miguel Cabrera will move to third."
Nolan Ryan: With Prince Fielder, Tigers a 'force to be dealt with'
January 29
Detroit Free Press
 
"We expect power hitters to be big men. According to Baseball-Reference.com, of the 25 players who have hit at least 500 home runs, only four stood less than 6 feet in height: Willie Mays (5-feet-10), Mickey Mantle (5-11), Mel Ott (5-9) and former Tiger Gary Sheffield (5-11). Prince Fielder, who already has 230 homers, is 5-11. "The thing I find interesting is that your impression is that he's taller than he is," Nolan Ryan said on the phone from Texas. "So his strike zone is smaller. Anytime you have to pitch to a smaller strike zone, the challenges increase." Fielder is the only player who has had at least 30 homers and 100 walks in each of the past three seasons. "One of the biggest"
New Tiger Prince Fielder doesn't let emotions get best of him anymore
January 29
Detroit Free Press
 
"Detroit, this is your new Prince. He's a hard-swinging, hard-playing slugger hardwired to hardly miss games. He knows about hard feelings, too. He still holds them for his father. He's quick to laughter but also has flashes of unhinged anger. He's emotional but approachable. He's heavy, but surprisingly athletic. He's a great teammate. A leader. A family man and a doting father. This is Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder. According to people who knew him well and interacted with him daily in Milwaukee, Fielder is all of the above and more. Tony Gwynn Jr. met him in 2003 in Beloit, Wis. Minutes after they met, Fielder asked Gwynn to be his roommate. Both follow in their famous fathers'"
Miguel Cabrera good enough to make risky move work
January 29
Detroit News
 columnist Bob Wojnowski
"The great debate has commenced, and will continue every single moment of every single day through spring training, then every single Tigers game thereafter. Can he or can't he? Will he or won't he? Should he or shouldn't he? My quick answer (since you asked): Miguel Cabrera can play adequate third base to make room for Prince Fielder, but Plans B, C, and D should be in place. Cabrera won't be a great fielder, duh, but no team would turn down the chance to land a great Fielder. The best thing that came out of the Tigers' stunning signing this week is confirmation they're serious about playing big-boy baseball, literally, figuratively, financially and calorically. Owner Mike Ilitch plans to"
Tigers' Prince Fielder is Mr. Reliable
January 28
Detroit Free Press
 
"On top of everything else, Prince Fielder is durable. Fielder leads all major leaguers in games played in the past three seasons with 485. In those three seasons, he has missed one game. Not only has he played in 485 games the past three years -- he has started 485. In all six full seasons of his career, Fielder has started at least 150 games. Three years ago, he started to become the most durable player in baseball. In 2009, he started all 162 games for Milwaukee at first base. In 2010, he started 160 games at first and served as the DH in one interleague game. And he sat out one game due to flu-like symptoms -- his only missed game in the past three years. In 2011, Fielder again started"
New Tiger Prince Fielder on fast track to join select company of sluggers
January 28
Detroit Free Press
 columnist John Lowe
"Even now, decades after each took his final mighty left-handed cut, their names cause a shudder. If you were their fan or their teammate, it's a shudder of excitement, of admiration. If you were a pitcher who had to get them out, it might be a shudder of dread. Their names are Willie Stargell and Willie McCovey. They're two of the top left-handed sluggers of all time. Their names came up this week when longtime major league pitcher Jim Kaat was asked whom Prince Fielder reminds him of. "He is a rare combination of talent," said Kaat, now an analyst for MLB Network. "For left-handed-hitting first basemen with that combination of power and average, you have to go back to McCovey and Stargell"
Jim Leyland, Miguel Cabrera fully embracing switch to third base
January 28
Detroit News
 
"So, which one is it? Has Miguel Cabrera merely agreed to play third base now that the Tigers have signed Prince Fielder to play first? Or does he genuinely want to play third base? When all the happy talk of a news conference subsides, there's a big difference. If Cabrera has merely agreed, he's taking one for the team. Whenever something goes wrong, in that case, he could resent the switch. Or begin to resent it. But if Cabrera really wantsto move back to his former position, he'll fight through any obstacles. On Friday, after a rough drive to his home outside Pittsburgh, manager Jim Leyland left no doubt about Cabrera's willingness to switch. "I think he wants to show the world he can"
Selig expects two one-game playoffs for this fall
January 28
Chicago Tribune
 
"Baseball appears ready for an extra round of wild-card playoffs by this fall, according to commissioner Bud Selig. "I really believe we'll have the (extra) wild card for this year," Selig said Friday at SoxFest. "Clubs really want it. I don't think I've ever seen an issue that the clubs want more than to have the extra wild card." The extra round would be one-game elimination in both the National and American Leagues to the teams who would have missed the playoffs as they are set up now. Some have argued for a best-of-three, but that appears impossible with the scheduled all but set for 2012."
Dodgers made late push to sign Prince Fielder
January 27
Los Angeles Times
 
"Prince Fielder's landing in Detroit was a big surprise, but it turns out the Tigers were not the most unexpected entrant in the sweepstakes. The Dodgers were secretly in at the end too, losing out only when the Tigers upped the ante after learning last week that Victor Martinez had severely injured a knee and probably will sit out the upcoming season. Needing a middle-of-the-lineup bat to protect Miguel Cabrera, the Tigers ponied up a nine-year, $214-million contract and on Thursday introduced Fielder as their newest member."
New Tiger Prince Fielder talks childhood memories, but not dad Cecil
January 27
Detroit Free Press
 
"When he was introduced as the Tigers' new slugging first baseman Thursday, Prince Fielder had trouble recalling every detail about the seven years of his childhood spent in Detroit. He couldn't remember which of the Grosse Pointes he lived in from 1990 to '96, when his dad, Cecil, was the Tigers' slugging first baseman. It was Grosse Pointe Farms. And the school he attended? Someone helped jog his memory. Giving Tree Montessori on Detroit's east side."
Prince Fielder to Tigers: How a shot-in-the-dark offer became epic deal
January 27
Detroit Free Press
 columnist Anthony Fenech
"It started with Max Scherzer, a joke and a punch line. Agent Scott Boras phoned Tigers vice president John Westhoff last week to talk about working out a contract extension for the Tigers right-hander. During that conversation, Westhoff had a question: Would Prince Fielder be interested in a one-year deal? "He would," Boras said. "For nine years.""
Jim Leyland: Tigers' Brandon Inge 'not the happiest camper'
January 27
Detroit Free Press
 
"On Jan. 19, as the Tigers kicked off their winter caravan at Comerica Park, Brandon Inge talked happily about his intentions to earn a full-time job at third base this season. "I've played baseball my whole life. I've started my whole life," he told the Free Press. "I'm a baseball player. I don't want to platoon." That was before the Tigers said Thursday that Miguel Cabrera would switch from first base to third base after the signing of free-agent first baseman Prince Fielder. "He's not the happiest camper," manager Jim Leyland said of Inge, a lifetime Tiger. "He certainly understands, and we try to deal with these issues as we're supposed to because it's part of our responsibility.""
Calvin Johnson, Justin Verlander make list of most powerful athletes
January 27
Detroit Free Press
 
"So who's the king of Detroit sports? Bloomberg Businessweek, the Horrow Sports Ventures and CSE, a marketing agency, have combined to compile and interesting list. They've come up with the 100 most powerful athletes in sports. Now, what does powerful mean? The panel took into account not just the prowess on the field of play, but an athlete's ability appeal, influence and popularity. So, with that in mind, the highest-ranking local athlete is Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson at No. 10. He's just ahead of golfers Luke Donald (11) and some guy named Tiger Woods (12). A further down the list is Tigers first, er, third baseman Miguel Cabrera at 38th. Lions QB Matthew Stafford is at No. 43."
It took plenty of pepperoni for Detroit to land its new Prince
January 26
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 columnist Bud Shaw
"Consider it a jumbo with extra dough... Take a good look at Prince Fielder, now under contract with the Detroit Tigers for the next nine years. Nine years is 3,285 dinners, counting post-game buffets. Try to remember this is what he looked like before joining a team owned by a pizza magnate. It's possible, I guess, that his Milwaukee years will be known as his salad days. The Pentagon tank budget aside, no one has ever invested so much money ($214 million) in a body this size. The Tigers are heavy favorites to win the AL Central with Fielder and Miguel Cabrera hitting in the middle of the lineup. And he is only 27. But when Victor Martinez comes back in 2013, they'll have three designated"
Doubters abound on Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera's move to third base
January 26
Detroit Free Press
 
"Miguel Cabrera said he was moving back to third base to make room on the Tigers' infield for free-agent signee Prince Fielder at first base. In order to play third effectively, Cabrera must lose weight, former major league infielder Harold Reynolds said Wednesday. "He's got a lot of work to do if you ask me, starting with his weight," said Reynolds, an analyst with MLB Network. "The size he's at right now at first base, he's going to have to lose a lot of weight to be a little more nimble."
Baseball prodigy Prince Fielder showed his talent early in Detroit
January 26
Detroit News
 
"In the early 1990s, impromptu wrestling matches were commonplace inside the Tiger Stadium clubhouse, and they had nothing to do with testy player exchanges from another loss by the home team. Tony Phillips, considered the team's super-utility man, would square off against a husky tyke named Prince Fielder for some in-house entertainment. "I'm Hulk Hogan, and I'm going to body slam you!" Phillips recalled yelling to Fielder, son of Phillips' teammate, Cecil Fielder. "Those were the days. Prince was just that good ol' chubby kid who loved to play and smile.""