The Tigers have signed 28-year old righty swinging infielder Brent Dlugach to a minor league deal. Dlugach played in 63 games in AAA-ball last year for the Red Sox and he was 48 for 216 (.222 avg, .626 OPS) with 30 runs scored, 6 homers, 25 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. His only taste of the majors came back in 2009 with the Tigers. He played in 5 games for the Tigers last year and he was 0 for 3 (.000 avg, .000 OPS) with 1 run scored and 2 whiffs. He will be a longshot to win a bench job for the Tigers this spring.

The Tigers will likely try to fill the #5 spot in the starting rotation from within, but they are very strong from #1-#4 in the rotation. Here is a look at how the rotation is going to fill out in 2012:

#1: Justin Verlander: 28-year old righty Justin Verlander was the best pitcher in all of baseball last year. He won both the American League Cy Young Award and the American League MVP Award in 2011. Verlander pitched in 34 games (all starts) for the Tigers last year and he was 24-5 with a 2.40 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP. Verlander led the major leagues in wins (24), WHIP (0.92), innings pitched (251) and whiffs (250) last year. He also led the American League in ERA with a 2.40 mark in 2011. Verlander has now pitched in 199 games (all starts) in his first seven years with the Tigers and he is 107-57 with a 3.54 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. I look for Verlander to have another monster year in 2012.

#2: Doug Fister: 27-year old righty Doug Fister came to the Tigers in a deal with the Mariners last year and he pitched really well. Fister pitched in 32 games (31 starts) for the Mariners & Tigers last year and he was 11-13 with a 2.83 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. He has now pitched in 71 games (69 starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 20-31 with a 3.49 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. It will be interesting to see if Fister can pitch like he did last season as it seemed to come out of the blue.

#3: Max Scherzer: 27-year old righty Max Scherzer is a very solid #3 starter for the Tigers. He pitched in 33 games (all starts) for the Tigers last year and he was 15-9 with a 4.43 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Scherzer has now pitched in 64 games (all starts) in his first two years with the Tigers and he is 27-20 with a 3.96 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. Scherzer has outstanding stuff and this could be the year that his results catch up. Scherzer has now pitched in 110 games (101 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 36-35 with a 3.92 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP.

#4: Rick Porcello: 23-year old righty Rick Porcello was rushed to the majors 3 years ago and he has done a decent job so far. He pitched in 31 games (all starts) for the Tigers last year and he was 14-9 with a 4.75 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. Porcello has now pitched in 89 games (all starts) in his first three years with the Tigers and he is 38-30 with a 4.54 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. I look for Porcello to improve his performance in 2012.

#5: Jacob Turner: 20-year old righty Jacob Turner will try to beat only lefties Andy Oliver and Duane Below for the #5 job in the Tigers’ rotation this spring. Turner pitched in 20 games (all starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 4-5 with a 3.44 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. But, he didn’t fare too well in his first shot in the majors. He pitched in 3 games (all starts) for the Tigers last year and he was 0-1 with a 8.53 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP. Turner will be the favorite in the competition for the #5 spot in the Tigers’ rotation this spring as he is one of their brightest prospects.

Andy Oliver: 24-year old lefty Andy Oliver pitched in 26 games (all starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 8-12 with a 4.71 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. He also worked in 2 games (both starts) for the Tigers last year and he was 0-1 with a 6.52 ERA and a 1.97 WHIP. Oliver has now pitched in 7 games (both starts) in his first two years with the Tigers and he was 0-5 with a 7.11 ERA and a 1.83 WHIP. Despite his lack of success in the majors, the Tigers know that Oliver has a big time upside.

Duane Below: 26-year old lefty Duane Below pitched in 18 games (all starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 9-4 with a 3.13 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. He also pitched in 14 games (2 starts) for the Tigers last year in which he was 0-2 with a 4.34 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Below will likely make the Tigers’ bullpen if he doesn’t win the #5 job in the starting rotation.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE STARTING ROTATION IN 2012: B+

The Tigers have signed 27-year old lefty swinging 1B Prince Fielder to a 9-year, $214 million dollar deal. Fielder played in 162 games for the Brewers last year and he was 170 for 569 (.299 avg, .981 OPS) with 95 runs scored, 38 homers, 120 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 998 games in his first 7 years in the majors and he is 996 for 3,527 (.282 avg, .929 OPS) with 571 runs scored, 230 homers, 656 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Fielder has won 2 Silver Slugger Awards and he has been to the All-Star Team 3 times in his career so far. In the last six years, Fielder is averaging 94.8 runs scored, 38.0 homers and 107.7 RBIs per season. Fielder will be the starting 1B with Miguel Cabrera shifting to 3B or LF or RF for 2012. This was an epic signing for the Tigers as Fielder returns to the city where his father (Cecil Fielder) excelled. Imagine what kind of numbers Miguel Cabrera is going to put up with Fielder hitting behind him!

The Tigers have lost 33-year old switch-hitting DH/C/1B Victor Martinez for the entire 2012 season due to a torn ACL. He was injured during winter conditioning. Martinez played in 145 games for the Tigers last year and he was 178 of 540 (.330 avg, .850 OPS) with 76 runs scored, 12 homers, 103 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 1,149 games in his first 10 years in the majors and he is 1,298 of 4,279 (.303 avg, .840 OPS) with 585 runs scored, 143 homers, 741 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. One had to think that this was a big loss for the Tigers, until they signed Prince Fielder today.

The Tigers have signed 31-year old righty swinging 1B Brad Eldred to a minor league deal. Eldred played in 112 games in AAA-ball last year for the Giants and he was 103 of 371 (.278 avg, .887 OPS) with 61 runs scored, 23 homers, 57 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. He last played in the majors back in 2010 with the Rockies. He has played in 85 games in his first three years in the majors and he is 53 for 260 (.204 avg, .678 OPS) with 30 runs scored, 15 homers, 33 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Eldred could get to the Tigers at some point in 2012, but he will likely start the season in the minors.