Countdown to Opening Day: 12 days, 2 hours, 33 minutes

Billfer at The Detroit Tigers Weblog highlights today's great Free Press piece on Craig Monroe's efforts to learn how to play centerfield. Monroe is the leading candidate to replace the recently departed Alex Sanchez, likley keeping the job warm for a year or so before top Tigers' prospect Curtis Granderson is ready to take over.

Monroe is a great hitter. On my Xbox last year, he hit a homer basically every time he faced a left-handed pitcher. The knock on him is his speed and defense, a particular concern in the spacious Comerica Park outfield. But today's article shows he is ready, willing, and able to work hard and get better. Monroe has been seeking out great centerfielders - Torii Hunter and Jim Edmonds are specifically named - and getting tips on how to play the position.

Talking to Edmonds before Sunday's Spring Training game, Monroe learned how the not-super-speedy Edmonds plays such a great centerfield. The money quotes from Monroe:

"One of the big things was, 'Talk to your pitchers. Get an idea of how they're going to pitch certain hitters and know how they're going to pitch everybody, and kind of move with them.'

"That's going to be the big thing. Knowing my pitchers, knowing how they're going to pitch a hitter, and make sure I'm in the right position."

Edmonds told Monroe that if a pitch was away from a right-handed hitter, then he must hit it to right-center to drive it. By knowing that his pitcher wanted to pitch the right-handed hitter away, Monroe can move toward right-center on the pitch.

Then, Edmonds told him, "Go pat your pitcher on the back and say, 'I made that play because you hit your spot. If you keep hitting your spots, you can trust me that I'll make that play.'"

I love reading about how top-flight athletes think through their performance and how they can learn more to improve their skills. This specific example also makes me optimistic that Monroe can get better in center. Learning how to read a pitcher and where to position yourself sounds like a skill you can actually learn and like a skill that will actually improve your defense.

This is merely more proof that the Tigers are ready to win their division and the World Series. Hart Plaza, here we come.