Familiar Faces on the Tigers

Expected to be strong contenders in 2015, the Detroit Tigers are full of familiar faces -- two of whom were sporting the number-three at Thursday's game in Kissimmee. 2nd baseman Ian Kinsler (above) is one; longtime Tiger shortstop and special assistant to the general manager Alan Trammell (below) is another. Since he isn't a fulltime member of the coaching staff, it was nice to see Trammell back in a Detroit uniform.
Have you ever wonder why Trammel -- whose career numbers rank him just behind Cal Ripken and Derek Jeter among American League shortstops of the past 40 years -- isn't in the Baseball Hall of Fame? That's a subject we'll have to explore more fully down the road.
 
Trammell also models the special patch the Detroit player and coaches wear on their right shoulders this spring: it honors the golden anniversary of the club's Lakeland, Florida training camp, which first opened in 1966.
 
In case you're curious, Marchant was the longtime parks and recreation director for the city of Lakeland -- and the prime mover in getting the Tigers to make it their Florida home.

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