The Tigers started off their major leagues spring training season with a 15-2 thumping of the Baltimore Orioles, the team that knocked them out of playoffs in a humiliating three game sweep last fall.

No big deal and totally insignificant I know. What counts more is its harbinger effect -- that another brutal winter will soon end and the seven months of warm weather is about to begin. Hearing scores from spring training on awful winter day like yesterday's slush storm is heartening, like spotting the first robin in the back yard. Just talking about baseball make me feel a bit warmer.

So what are your thoughts on this year's team, its prospects and your predictions. I'll step to the plate first and predict 88 wins which will give them just enough to secure a wild card slot in the playoffs. Play ball!