LAKELAND, Fla. -- It's business as usual for Tigers outfielder Delmon Young this spring.
Although he didn't join the Tigers until the middle of August last season, Young fit right in, batting .274 with eight home runs and 32 RBIs in 40 games.
Young especially stood out in the playoffs, tying a team record set by Craig Monroe in 2006 with five home runs in the postseason.
"All these guys are cool and relaxed and everything," Young said. "Everyone likes to go out there and have fun and play baseball so it was a lot of fun being here."
It wasn't as fun when Young ended up having to play in the American League Championship Series against Texas with a pulled muscle in his side.
But Young, 26, who signed a one-year deal to remain with the Tigers, is excited about the team's prospects again, especially with the signing of Prince Fielder.
"It was good," Young said. "Especially we didn't know what was going to happen with Victor (Martinez) going down for the whole year.
"It was a really good thing. You know you can put him in and you can pencil in 30 (home runs) and 100 (RBIs), guaranteed right there. It's going to be a potent lineup."
Fans in Lakeland are already getting a glimpse of what the lineup might look like. Young has been hitting in a group that includes Fielder, Miguel Cabrera and Brennan Boesch.
"It's like last year with the group with Magglio (Ordonez) and Victor, a lot of fun," Young said. "We joke around and have fun and hit."
Although they might kid each other about how many home runs they're hitting, Young said it's not exactly a serious competition.
"It's batting practice," Young said. "Being the best in batting practice doesn't tell you anything."
Avila's spring thoughts
Al Avila, assistant general manager of the Tigers and father of catcher Alex Avila, had a few interesting things to say Monday morning.
On the fifth starter job: "Luckily for us, we do have good candidates for that role. Whether they're ready for it or not, it'll be yet to be seen. Like Dave (Dombrowski, the GM) had mentioned in the past, we do have some guys that internally should be ready, and we'll be looking at that very closely. But on top of that, we will also be looking at other pitchers in other camps throughout spring training to see if there's anything that makes sense for us, too."
On Miguel Cabrera's work at third base: "He looks like he's in great shape. He's moving really smooth. Obviously, he's got good feet, He's very smooth on his feet. He's got great hands, the arm. Right now it's only practice, but he's showing that he's in good shape and his movements are very smooth. We're very happy so far with what we've seen."
On prospect Nick Castellanos: "Nick has made tremendous progress. He was working in the offseason actually with Miguel (Cabrera) and Alex (Avila) as far as conditioning and strengthening. So he's come to camp stronger than when he was out of high school, which is a tremendous thing. He's coming off of a real good season at West Michigan. So far he's making great progress. We're very happy with his progress at this point."
On his son's success last season (All-Star, Silver Slugger): "He's worked very hard. Obviously, there was a lot of speculation whether he was going to be able to do the job as a starter. Jim Leyland had tremendous faith in him. He was the guy that wanted him up when they first brought him up, and he did well for him. For him to achieve and get into the All-Star Game and have that kind of season is very satisfying. Like I always say, the team and myself, we've all been blessed by that. I gotta thank Jim Leyland because he had the faith in him."
Benoit update
Reliever Joaquin Benoit, who was supposed to throw on Sunday but didn't because of a stiff neck, is improving.
"Feeling better," Benoit said. "Not the way I want to, but it's way better. I can turn. We're just going to give it one more day, see how it feels tomorrow."
Benoit said that he's working with the training staff, getting massages and applying heat to his neck.
If Benoit's neck improves enough, he said he would likely pitch Tuesday.
