1. interest in or concern for the actual or real, as distinguished from the abstract, speculative, etc.

2. the tendency to view or represent things as they really are.

Now that we’ve read the best case and worst case musings of our other regular contributors, let me hit you with a dose of reality.

1. The Tigers are not going to stroll to the central title. The Central is going to be tougher than last year. Remember that the Indians only finished 1 game behind the Tigers last year, and the Royals won 86 games. Those teams are maturing and learning how to win. I don’t think that the Tigers will finish third, like Mr. Henning does, but it’s going to be a dog fight for sure.

2. There will be second guessing on DTW. Brad Ausmus is going to make mistakes. Lots of them. Since there is really only one spot nailed down in the bullpen, there will be a lot of room for what-ifs. Also, platooning will be a hot topic in LF and at C, starting in week one. This gets exacerbated if ANY position player gets injured.

3. There will be heartache for the DTW faithful. There are going to be 60-70 nights over the next six months when we go to bed (or wake up) with the sour taste of a L. (If there are more than that, then the season, and the recurring sour taste, will end early).

4. There will be celebrations. I know that we all take pride in the success of the Tigers. It’s a right of fandom. A great play or a nice win are always cause for a high five, or maybe a drink. I think that we’ve become spoiled over the past few years as Tigers fans and have become accustomed to winning, so our expectations have been raised. But even so, this team should deliver.

5. We’ll have fun. It’s America’s pasttime for a reason. My kids are still too young to get it, but I’m looking forward to sharing all of this with them in a few years. There is no doubt that it will rekindle a part of my appreciation that I didn’t even know I had lost. Looking forward to watching 2014 with everyone.

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On another note, I don’t get the Cabrera contract extension at all. You could have paid him the exact same money next year (or seemingly less), and had the benefit of monitoring his core over another full season. Keith Law predictably trashed the deal, but if you want to read something worthwhile, check out Dave Cameron on Frangraphs. The conclusions aren’t too far apart, however.

We really don’t have much of an insight into Mr. Illitch. Certainly not the access that I’m used to with Mark Cuban and Jerry Jones. But I assume that this is his doing. Or that Dombrowski wants to retire in a few years.

After what looked like a prudent move in passing on Scherzer’s offer, the Tigers have confused a lot of people with this one. Though spending has never been a problem here, so let’s worry about the Cabrera contract when it’s time to worry. Yes, this could eat us up in 2020. But with Verlander and Cabrera now wrapped up into baseball infinity, if we’ve got two WS rings come 2020, it may be pretty easy to digest.