Tigers are ready for Spring Training to come quick with the cold weather at Tigerfest

Tigers manager Jim Leyland is blunt as he assesses the situation he and his boss, general manager Dave Dombrowski, face entering the final years of their contracts.

Dombrowski was rewarded in 2006 with a four-year extension that runs through 2011 after turning around the franchise in his first five seasons in charge.


The Tigers hope newcomers Victor Martinez, Brad Penny and Joaquin Benoit will help holdovers such as Miguel Cabrera, Justin Verlander and Austin Jackson put them in the postseason for the first time since 2006.

Leyland, who helped the Florida Marlins win the 1997 World Series, managed Pittsburgh from 1986-1996, Florida for two seasons and Colorado in 1999 before taking a break.

The Tigers won the American League championship five years ago, in Leyland’s first season in their dugout. Since then, they have had two winning seasons, an 88-loss year and are coming off a .500 finish to an up-and-down season.

Detroit seems to have a chance to win the highly competitive AL Central with a solid mix of pitching, hitting and defense.