Reason for optimism: Active participants in the free-agent market, the Tigers added a big name at the plate and another on the mound.
Reason for pessimism: Last year's shortfall wasn't the result of being one player short.
If you root for the Detroit Tigers, you have to appreciate owner Mike Ilitch's approach to this season. Despite the fact that the Tigers finished in last place in the American League Central in 2015, marking a third straight year of season-ending declines, he didn't order a tear-down. Instead, the Tigers made a big splash in the free-agent market with the signings of Justin Upton and Jordan Zimmermann. For Tigers fans, that's the benefit of having an 86-year-old owner who has never won a World Series.
