The Tigers should look to tighten up a couple of weaknesses on the roster in free agency. Here is a trio I think they should look to sign:

1. Kelly Johnson - 2B has been really rough to fill for the Tigers the last couple of years. Lefty swinging Kelly Johnson has a lot of power and he likes to get dirty, so he would fit right in with the blue collar style of the Tigers.

2. Jason Marquis - The Tigers will look for another renovation project for the back end of the rotation and Marquis fits the bill. He also works late in games, helping save the bullpen.

3. Juan Cruz - The Tigers could use a guy to work early in games out of the pen. Cruz is the right kind of guy for the job as he still throws pretty hard.

The Tigers are on the hunt for pitching next week. They really need a starter and they are willing to pay the price to get a good one. James Shields, Jeremy Guthrie, Brett Myers, Hiroki Kuroda, Ted Lilly and Wandy Rodriguez are the top tier available on the trade market. The second tier is where the Tigers could find a nugget though with Doug Fister, Aaron Harang, Bruce Chen, Jason Vargas, Erik Bedard or Chris Capuano being available. With the Mariners really desperate for position players that can hit, I think a deal for Fister, Vargas or Bedard make sense with outfielder Casper Wells being the bait. The Tigers also are looking for righty relievers. Frank Francisco, Octavio Dotel, Jon Rauch, Jason Frasor, Koji Uehara, Brad Ziegler, Michael Wuertz, Grant Balfour, Matt Lindstrom and Matt Guerrier make the most sense as they are looking for a solid 7th inning guy. The Tigers have a good hitting team but they need reinforcements pitching wise to hold off the Indians, White Sox and Twins in the A.L. Central.

The Detroit Tigers need to make some smaller type deals to give them a good shot of keeping the Indians and White Sox off their backs. First off, I would deal righty reliever Ryan Perry to the Tampa Bay Rays for Sean Rodriguez. Rodriguez would then start at 2B for the Tigers. The Tigers would then ship 2B/SS Danny Worth to the Royals for switch hitting 3B Wilson Betemit. Betemit would then platoon at 3B with Brandon Inge, who just can’t seem to hit anymore. The Tigers need relief help and two deals would solve all of there problems. I would deal 2B Will Rhymes and rookie SS Dixon Machado to the Marlins for righty reliever Brian Sanches. I would then ship outfielder Casper Wells and rookie 3B Wade Gaynor to the Blue Jays for righty relievers Frank Francisco and Jason Frasor. These moves would give the offense a small spark and the bullpen would be much deeper and difficult for opposing hitters to deal with.

With Carlos Guillen still dinged up, the Tigers can’t afford to wait for him any longer. They don’t really need a star at 2B, just someone to hit around .270 while playing good defense. Mark Ellis, Adam Kennedy, Jeff Keppinger, Orlando Hudson, Clint Barmes and Jack Wilson all would qualify as upgrades to the Tigers. Hudson would probably cost the most, but his glove alone would really help out the Tigers. Ellis and Barmes would be next in line production wise. Kennedy, Keppinger and Wilson would likely carry small pricetags and that might be where the Tigers find the best value.

The Detroit Tigers have seven free agents heading into this winter but they likely only have a interest in maybe bringing three of them back for 2011. Here is what I would do about the free agents:

Brandon Inge: 33-year old righty swinging Brandon Inge is a player the Tigers would like to lock up before he becomes a free agent. Inge played in 144 games for the Tigers last season and he was 127 of 514 (.247 avg, .718 OPS) with 47 runs scored, 13 homers, 70 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He is also a really good defensive 3B. VERDICT: If Inge signs a reasonable deal then I would re-sign him. If he wants to break the bank it will be somewhere else.

Jhonny Peralta: 28-year old Jhonny Peralta played in 148 games for the Tigers & Indians last season and he was 137 of 551 (.249 avg, .703 OPS) with 60 runs scored, 15 homers and 81 RBIs. Peralta has a club option for $7 million bucks or the Tigers can buy him out for $250,000 bucks. VERDICT: The Tigers try to work out a contract for a couple of years but at a much lower salary than $7 million bucks per year. Maybe they offer him $7 million bucks but for two years.

Magglio Ordonez: 36-year old righty swinging RF Magglio Ordonez played in 84 games for the Tigers last season and he was 98 of 323 (.303 avg, .852 OPS) with 56 runs scored, 12 homers and 59 RBIs. VERDICT: The Tigers have already declined his option for next season but there is interest on both sides at working out a deal at a much lower salary.

Johnny Damon: 36-year old lefty swinging OF/DH Johnny Damon was a disappointment for the Tigers last season. Damon played in 145 games for the Tigers last season and he was 146 of 539 (.271 avg, .756 OPS) with 81 runs scored, 8 homers, 51 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. VERDICT: The Tigers have no interest in bringing Damon back for 2011.

Gerald Laird: 30-year old righty swinging catcher Gerald Laird had a poor year for the Tigers. He played in 89 games for the Tigers last season and he was 56 of 270 (.207 avg, .567 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 5 homers, 25 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. VERDICT: The Tigers have no interest in bringing Laird back in 2011.

Jeremy Bonderman: 27-year old righty starting pitcher Jeremy Bonderman pitched in 30 games (29 starts) for the Tigers last season and he was 8-10 with a 5.53 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. VERDICT: The Tigers will look to improve upon Bonderman in the starting rotation in 2011.

Bobby Seay: 32-year old lefty reliever missed all of last season due to injury. VERDICT: I would offer Seay a minor league deal.