• Growing up in Maracay, Cabrera developed a reputation as being an energetic and rambunctious child who had trouble keeping quiet. Anybody could be the next victim of his quick wit and sarcasm—friends, parents, and schoolteachers alike. Smart? Sometimes. Smart aleck? All the time.

  "I like to have fun and I joke around a lot," Cabrera said. "I'm always, always playing around and giving people jokes. This is fun for me. You cannot be serious all the time. Oh, I remember getting on my teachers."

  On the fields of Maracay as a youth, Cabrera was a legend, partly because of the way he could hit and field as a shortstop, and partly because he was so much bigger than everybody else. Back then, height, not age, was the determining factor for which youth league a boy would play in. It would often lead to problems for Cabrera.

  "I remember him hunching down against the marker on the wall, trying to make himself look like he was short so he could play with kids his age," said Marlins pitching prospect Yorman Bazarda, who is also from Maracay and has known Cabrera since they played together as children. "Miguelito had the best arm and was the best shortstop in the league. He was like a grown up playing on a child's team, but you knew he was not old because all he would do was laugh and make fun of people." (Jesse Sanchez-MLB.com-3/20/05)

• Miguel grew up in an ultra-modest setting. There was a small (make that tiny) house in which he lived with his younger sister, Ruth, a karate artist and musician, and his parents, Miguel Sr., a car-painter, and Gregoria, his mother.

  One uncle owned a karate school that helped groom Ruth when she wasn't playing piano.

  There also were intellects throughout the Cabrera bloodlines. They helped make Miguel an honor student from grade school into high school. His academic passion was math. His favorite classes: chemistry and physics.

  "Problem-solving," Cabrera said of why math and science captivated him.

• Cabrera was quite a volleyball player as a youth. He could spike a volleyball through a floor. He was even offered a pro contract to play professionally in Switzerland.

• Miguel also played basketball. "They put me in to make fouls," he said with a smile. "Shot-blocker, too."

• Miguel grew up with a baseball field just beyond his backyard in the La Pedrera neighborhood in Maracay, Venezuela. And you can see he was on that field a lot when you see the instincts for the game he displays.

  Maracay is a city of around half a million people nestled in a valley 100 miles west of Caracas. Maracay also produced Dave Concepcion, the great shortstop on Cincinnati's Big Red Machine teams.

  There is a story that Cabrera lived so close to a stadium in Venezuela that he could jump from his window into the ballpark. He would watch the older players and learn from them.

• His mother, Gregoria, was the starting shortstop for the Venezuelan national softball team for 10 years. She is the one who taught Miguel baseball. "Just the most essential, basic things," she said. "He's been a natural since birth."

  ''I'm proud of Miguelito first for the way he is,'' she said in 2005 during an interview by the Miami Herald's Kevin Baxter. She is surrounded by more than a dozen photos of her son in the living room of the three-bedroom, high-security apartment he bought his family with his $1.8 million Marlins signing bonus. "The way he respects other people.''

  She then tells a story about a mother whose son repeatedly disobeyed her at home.

  ''He couldn't have been more than 3. He was the cousin of another player,'' she says. "And the mother sent him over to me because he wasn't eating. She asked me if Miguel ate his food when he was small. I said yes, the boy needed to eat, he needed to study if he wanted to be like Miguel. As his mother, I feel incredibly proud.''

• Miguel's father played baseball. In fact, he still plays first base and pitches in a veterans league in Venezuela. Miguel Sr. taught coached his son for five years. The elder Cabrera is a machine technician who paints cars by trade.

  Miguel's uncle, David Torres, made it as far as Double-A in the Cardinals' organization in the United States.

  "Growing up, my uncle was always around and was always teaching me about the game," Cabrera said. "He taught me pretty much everything. The local stadium (in Maracay, Venezuela) is named after him."

• Cabrera was raised in a small home with one bathroom, a kitchen and two rooms in a community of five homes where extended family lived. Miguel bunked with his younger sister, Ruth, but preferred to spend most of his time with a rowdy brood of friends who threw punches on the diamond and called Cabrera cabeza tren (train head) for his large noggin. He disliked the name, but knew "if you get mad, they call you that every day. You can't show it."

• In 1999, the money Cabrera received when he signed his first pro contract changed his life. The family purchased a used car and said they'd save the rest of the money.

• In 2001, Cabrera benefited from playing with roommate Adrian Gonzalez at low Class A Kane County. Gonzalez helped him achieve a comfort level with a foreign language and strange land.

• Before 2002 spring training, Miguel had a fine season in the Venezuelan Winter League  He hit .300-5-18 in 180 at-bats during the regular season, then hit .293-3-15 in round-robin playoff action. Cabrera also made the all-star game, where he shared MVP honors.

• During the All-Star break in 2003, Miguel married his high school sweetheart, Rosangel, in a civil ceremony. Then, after the 2003 season, they had a church wedding in Venezuela. They consider themselves homebodies.

  "We went to school together in Venezuela and have been close ever since," Cabrera said. Asked where she got her name, he said, "Her mother was named Rose, and her father Angel, so they combined names and came up with Rosangel." They named their daughter Rosangel as well. She was born in September 2005.

• He has adapted well to the professional baseball lifestyle. And he is a vocal leader who gets along with his teammates. He stays positive and is a good clubhouse presence.

• During the offseason before 2003 spring training, Cabrera added weight to his lower-body, which was not a good thing. "His lower half is a big concern," a scout said. "He was struggling to bend at the knees to field ground balls and booting them. If he’s not careful, he will be a first baseman."

• Miguel's maturity is credited, at least in part, to his marriage to wife Rosa.

• MLB debut on June 20, 2003: In Miguel's very first game in the Major Leagues, he hit a two-run, walk-off home run for the Marlins in the bottom of the 11th inning to beat the Devil Rays. It was his first hit in the Majors.

• At 20 years and 63 days old, Cabrera became the second-youngest player ever to start for the Marlins. In 1996, pitcher Felix Heredia broke into the league at 20 years and 52 days old.

• Before 2004 spring training, Miguel did a daylong photo shoot for an ESPN the Magazine cover story for the March 15, 2004 issue. His wife was not thrilled at the results: Miguel standing in a wooden boat with a bikini-clad model at each leg. Inside, he is shown frolicking in the Venezuelan surf with four models.

  Cabrera was worried the images will give readers an inaccurate portrayal of his life. He is married, and he and Rosangel consider themselves homebodies. "People will think I'm a partier. (Rosangel) said I had no business taking photos with those women," Cabrera said.

  Part of the problem is that Miguel doesn't look too tortured surrounded by the beautiful women. One photo shows the four models clutching at his partially removed Marlins jersey as he expelled a stream of saltwater from his mouth.  (Juan C. Rodriguez-Sun-Sentinel-3/8/04)

• Cabrera switched to his favorite uniform number, 24, for the 2004 season. Tony Perez had used #24 before, and wasn't ready to give it to Miguel in 2003. "He said I had to earn it," Cabrera said.

• Miguel's left arm is two inches longer than his right arm. "Full extension," Cabrera said of the help this might give him to hit the outside pitch.  (ESPN the Magazine-March 15, 2004)

• Cabrera has known former Reds' great Davey Concepcion since Miguel was 12 years old. Concepcion coached his team. And Davey still has advice for the young outfielder.

  "He always talks to me about consistency and working hard," Cabrera said, of the nine-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove winner. "That's what will keep me playing every day in the big leagues. And to always be positive, regardless of what happens, good days and bad days. You have to be the same person."

• Miguel has rock-star status in baseball-mad Venezuela, where his impish smile adorns billboards pushing everything from Pepsi to his home state of Aragua. But his unparalleled success left him imprisoned in the simple, lightly furnished eighth-floor apartment his shares with wife Rosangel and their catcher's mitt-sized dog, Cosita, during the offseason before 2005 spring training. Because of the press of adoring fans, they don't go out to eat. But they do go to an occasional movie. Mostly, Miguel likes to sleep when he is not at the park.

• Miguel's favorite food is probably arepas—Venezuelan hot bread that can be eaten alone like toast or stuffed with almost anything edible. Cabrera prefers his arepas with butter and cheese, and he could eat them all day if he had to. "Delicious," he said. "I like them plain."

  The only thing more important than baseball (and arepas) to Cabrera is his faith and his family. Cabrera's father Jose Miguel played semi-pro baseball in Venezuela while Cabrera's mother Gregoria was a member of the country's national softball team. Cabrera also has a sister, who although might be having a hard time being away from her friends in Venezuela right now, has been comforted so far by a shopping spree in Miami with her brother footing the bill.

  "For me, family is the most fundamental thing in the world," Cabrera said. "I am here because I have had the support of my family and my wife all the time. I am a young man and I feel like a young man. I have grown up a lot, but you always need your family and it does not matter how young or old you are."

  Rosangel is Cabrera's best friend and she keeps him grounded. She also keeps him laughing.

  "They have a great relationship and I know that helps him a lot," said Rangers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, a former Marlins farmhand who was in Cabrera's wedding and serves as the couple's marriage sponsor in the Catholic church. "At first, when he would have a bad day, he would come home and she would say something encouraging and he would get mad because he said she wasn't saying the truth about how bad he played. Now, when he strikes out or makes an error, she tells him to retire, to quit and get a new career. It's really funny and I know he likes that humor."  (Jesse Sanchez-MLB.com-3/20/05)

• Miguel and Rosangel never talked about marriage for the first few years they dated. Rosangel at times wondered where the relationship was heading. She had been dating Miguel for a couple of months before he signed his first pro contract.

  The next three years while Cabrera was in the minors, Rosangel would go six or eight months without seeing him. He would call every day, but sometimes Rosangel would tell him to phone once a week instead, hoping that would make the time go by faster.

  Cabrera's proposal surprised everyone. When he looks back, marrying the girl he fell in love with in high school could prove the best decision of his life. Cabrera was a homebody before he left for the States. Once he got here, he didn't want to be Derek Jeter. He didn't want to be on any most-eligible-bachelor lists.

  "The life of a ballplayer is very unstable," said Miguel, Sr., who at 21 married Miguel's mother, Gregoria. "Today they're here; tomorrow they're in another state. You have young players in good shape. All of a sudden they come into money, and the women are going to come from everywhere. I think being married he has a responsibility to get home early. He can't be out there partying like a lot of young players. When he made the decision to get married I respected it." (Juan C. Rodriguez-Florida Sun Sentinel-4/02/05)

• On September 26, 2005, Cabrera was not in the Marlins' lineup because he violated an undisclosed team rule. Team management decided to sit him down for one game. Miguel supposedly arrived late for a game at Atlanta. 

  Asked if the message sent to Cabrera sunk in, manager Jack McKeon said, "I think so. He's a great kid. He's young. You treat them like their your own kids, and sometimes they don't do everything you like. You have to have a little chat with him. He's going to be fine." Miguel admitted that he overslept, which caused him to arrive late for the game.

• March 2006: Cabrera was 4-for-19 (.211) in the World Baseball Classic, playing for Team Venezuela.

• The Marlins were not happy with Cabrera when he didn't show up for the team's $200-a-plate awards dinner in February 2006, where he was to receive the team's Most Valuable Player award. Rather than applaud as he made his way on stage, attendees directed their appreciation toward a video montage on two giant screens. And he then missed the caravan and FanFest at Dolphin Stadium, saying he had family things to do.

  But Miguel was disappointed that the Marlins didn't accept his reason for not attending. He told them he had a family matter, which was concerning a health issue with his father that he had committed to a month before the team notified Cabrera of the FanFest.

• Miguel is a great dominos player. He runs the table.

• During the winter before 2008 spring training, Cabrera worked with Sean O'Brien, founder of an athletic development company called Perfect Competition. Miguel lost about 20 pounds and gained strength. Before O'Brien tailored a program for him, Cabrera underwent a biomedical assessment and was evaluated by a massage therapist, physical therapist, chiropractor and nutritionist.

  "Miguel is obviously a great athlete, but he needed to explore all of the new ways to train the body. He's leaner. He's combining weight loss with an increase in muscle mass," O'Brien said.

  Workouts are about three or four hours a day and include aerobic exercises and weight training for virtually every area of the body. (Mike DiGiovanna-LA Times-12/04/07)

• Tigers manager Jim Leyland became a real fan of Cabrera in 2008.

  "I think Miguel Cabrera is one of the most instinctive and smartest players we have," Leyland said.

  DRINKING PROBLEMS

• October 3, 2009: Birmingham, Michigan police chief, Richard Patterson, said Rosangel Cabrera called 911 at 6:00 a.m. Saturday, requesting police assistance. A blood-alcohol test found that Miguel Cabrera was at 0.26, more than three times the legal limit for driving, the police said. “We determined that they both contributed to the domestic assault,” Patterson said. “It was minor in nature.”

  No charges will be filed, and both Cabreras refused medical attention. Cabrera was picked up at the police station around 7:30 a.m. Saturday by Tigers G.M. Dave Dombrowski.

  Over a month before the incident, team officials told Miguel to stay out of the Townsend Hotel after he allegedly challenged patrons to a fight at the hotel's Rugby Grille bar and intimated he had a gun. Cabrera returned to the Townsend, only to go home drunk and get into a fight with his wife, police said.

  Miguel apologized to teammates, fans, and management for causing a distraction.

• November 2009 through January 2010: Cabrera spent three months in a treatment program for alcoholism. He said it has turned his life around.

  He has done a complete clean-up. No more booze. No cave-ins with his personal responsibilities. Miguel attacked his alcohol problems with the focus and energy he exhibits in hitting a baseball. He understood the consequences, the waste, the affront—to others, as well as himself. His last drink was in October 2009, and he says he doesn't miss it at all. When he is at dinner or with friends, he drinks water, or perhaps apple or orange juice.

  Cabrera now comes into the clubhouse relaxed, conversational, with business on his mind. He insists his difficulties were not a clinical case of alcoholism. He does not go to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. (Lynn Henning-Detroit News-June 2010)

• February 16, 2011: Cabrera was arrested on charges of driving under the influence after a traffic stop around 11:00 p.m. in Fort Pierce, Florida. According to an arrest report published by the Treasure Coast Newspapers, a St. Lucie County police deputy pulled over Cabrera around 11:00 p.m. upon spotting smoke coming out of the engine of the car he was driving.

  Cabrera reportedly smelled of alcohol, and his speech was slurred. The sheriff's office reported that he took a drink from a bottle of scotch he had in the car. Additional deputies were called to the scene when he become uncooperative.

  So Cabrera underwent a rehab program. And as part of it, former Major League OF Raul Gonzalez served as Miguel's companion throughout the 2011 season.

• May 25, 2010: Miguel flew home to Florida to be with his wife, Rosangel for the birth of their second child, a baby girl, Isabella Cabrera.

• August 25, 2011: Cabrera was with his wife, Rosangel, when she gave birth to their third child, Christopher Alexander.

• In 2011, Cabrera was the unanimous choice to receive the Luis Aparicio Award. Venezuelan and Spanish-speaking baseball writers vote each year on the award, presented to the most prominent Venezuelan baseball player in the regular season. Cabrera also won the award in 2005.

• In 2012, Miguel won the AL MVP. He was listed first on 22 of the 28 BBWAA ballots, with Mike Trout receiving the other first place votes.

• In 2013, Cabrera repeated as AL MVP, winning by a comfortable margin with 23 of the 30 first place votes from members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Miguel became the first player to win two consecutive AL MVPs since Frank Thomas for the White Sox in 1993 and 1994. Albert Pujols won the NL MVP in 2008 and 2009.

• His latest hobby is archery. Miguel used to play golf. He didn't enjoy it because he's a terrible golfer. Miggy is a great archer. Miggy loves archery.

• Cabrera is blessed with physical gifts—a hawk's vision, a bear's legs, a pianist's hands, the torso of a lumberjack—and he is a hard worker.

  Tigers G.M. Dave Dombrowski says Miguel is "an encyclopedia of pitchers." He studies their hitting charts, intensely observes their pitches from the dugout and, legend has it, remembers every pitch by every starting pitcher he's ever faced. But there is a limit: He doesn't like game tape. I leads to overthinking, and he thinks too much as it is.

• Cabrera is a goofy guy who plays baseball with unbridled joy, puts only family before team, respects his teammates, and adores children. But he hates the spotlight.

• "Love movies," Miguel says. "It starts when I met my girlfriend in Venezuela." That girl, now his wife, Rosangel, was 13 at the time. The teenagers spent most dates at the theater, and six years after they met, Cabrera, by that point a Marlin, returned to Venezuela to claim the only woman he'd ever loved.

  "Because we were so young," Cabrera says, "her family doesn't like it. But we said, 'This is what we want."

  They wed in a church, "and when we return to U.S. we go to any movie. And we buy some movies." (Some means over 1,000 DVDs. He loves comedies, she prefers scary movies.) "I get bad dreams," Miguel says. "Like Se7en—Oh my God, that's scary."

• The Cabreras had three children in a six year span: Rosangel, whom everyone calls Brisel, was first; followed by Isabella and Christopher.

  "When Brisel was born, I was 22," Miguel laughs. "I was excited to play with her."

  He says the whole family loves Disney World, and "I go every chance, a dream come true." He can't count the number of times he's been to the park, but his teammates says it's a lot. He buys his own Mickey T-shirts and waits in line with everyone else. "At Disney, you can do anything," he says, still in awe. "So much fun."

• June 17, 2013: Cabrera and Prince Fielder, the Tigers duo, landed on the cover of Sports Illustrated. It was labeled as the "Bash Bros: Baseball's 21st-Century Version of Mantle and Maris."

• June 26, 2013: Opposing managers and players have talked in awe all season about watching Miguel Cabrera hit the ball. 

  After a recent two-run home run, Cabrera became only the sixth player since 1920 with at least 1,200 RBIs and 300 homers in his first 11 seasons, according to ESPN Stats and Information. He joins the rare list that includes Hank Aaron, Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio, Jeff Bagwell and Albert Pujols.

  "He's hitting in one of worst hitter's ballparks I've ever seen," Indians manager Terry Francona said in 2013. "To be a power hitter here and put up the numbers he's hitting—jog out to right-center, it's a haul. And he doesn't get any light hits. So what he's doing is unbelievable."  

  "I probably throw the best changeup I've ever thrown in my life to a guy that's just on a whole other playing field," Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester said earlier this week after giving up a home run to Cabrera. "I wish he'd quit and go to a different league—make a league especially for him."

• Cabrera is both a Catholic and a practitioner of Santería. He became a babalao in the 2006 offseason.

  Santeria (Way of the Saints) is an Afro-Caribbean religion based on Yoruba beliefs and traditions, with some Roman Catholic elements added. The religion is also known as La Regla Lucumi and the Rule of Osha.

  Santeria is a syncretic religion that grew out of the slave trade in Cuba.

• With his own foundation dedicated to helping spread baseball by renovating fields, plus multiple fund-raising efforts for worthy causes during the season, Cabrera has become arguably the Tigers' biggest community presence. His work earned him a second consecutive honor as the club's nominee for Major League Baseball's prestigious Roberto Clemente Award for 2013.

  Cabrera established his foundation in 2011 to help renovate youth baseball fields. Cabrera's foundation just helped renovate a field in his native Maracay, Venezuela, but also has targeted places to help in Detroit as well as Miami, his offseason home.  Among the goals for, both with his foundation and the Detroit Tigers Foundation, is to repair a baseball diamond at Clark Park in southwest Detroit.

  "We're trying to save fields, to have a chance for kids to go out there and have fun, try to give them the opportunity to go out there and stay off the street," Cabrera said at a fundraiser in 2013. "I'm trying to give them a chance to play baseball for fun. When you're a kid, you play to have fun."

  Cabrera also has become the annual host of Keeping Kids in the Game, an August fundraiser to help support children's health and youth baseball programs facilitated by the Children's Hospital of Michigan Foundation, the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital and the Detroit Tigers Foundation.

  "When you have time, you need to give something back," Cabrera said. "It's not only about playing baseball. It's about interacting with the fans and trying to do something for the kids." (Beck - mlb.com - 9/16/13)

• 2013 Player Choice Awards:  For the second consecutive year, Cabrera was chosen by his peers as the Player of the Year and American League Outstanding Player. Once again, Miguel compiled one of the most impressive seasons in Major League Baseball history by leading the American League in batting average and finishing second to Chris Davis of the Orioles in home runs and RBIs. Miguel batted .348 with 44 home runs and 137 RBIs, and his success at the plate helped propel the Detroit Tigers to the American League Central Division title.

• Cabrera was named the starting first baseman for the 2014 and 2015 All-Star Game.

• June 2015: Christopher Alexander Cabrera was helping make someone's dream come true, even if the 3-year-old isn't quite old enough to understand it yet. It's a hot, humid day in the Motor City, and Miguel is taking a break from batting practice to play catch with his son and with Michael Rostker, a 12-year-old who has cancer and is visiting through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Michael throws to Miguel, who catches the ball and hands it to Christopher Alexander for the return delivery.After a few minutes, Cabrera begins lobbing throws back to Michael as if they were popups.

  Christopher Alexander tries to imitate his father but accidentally launches the ball at Michael's family, who are standing nearby. Miguel laughs, pauses for a picture, then takes Christopher Alexander's hand as the two disappear down the dugout steps and into the Tigers' clubhouse. To Michael, the experience "means the world." To Christopher Alexander, it's just another day as the son of one of baseball's biggest stars. And to Cabrera, watching his son grow old enough to share meaningful time with him at the ballpark has been a special part of this season. "It's an awesome time being a dad," Cabrera said. "The things you want to remember all your life — I think that's what it's all about." (Zuniga - mlb.com - 6/19/15).

• December 2016: Cabrera committed to play for Venezuela in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

• In the winter of 2016-2017, Miguel added boxing to his training routine this offseason on the advice of Venezuelan boxer Jorge Linares.

• Feb 18, 2017: Miggy arrived in spring camp with a heavy heart.  As Cabrera begins his 10th season with the Tigers, he has two motivations to fight for victories this year.

  This spring, he wants to help Venezuela win a World Baseball Classic title for his troubled homeland. "We need to give something to our country," Cabrera said, "because our country's in bad shape right now. There's a lot of problems in Venezuela. It's like two sides. Politics is hard. I think sports can help any country get together. I think sports can bring a lot of happiness to people."

  When the MLB season opens, he wants to win in memory of Mike Ilitch, the late Tigers owner who pushed to bring Cabrera to Detroit and then signed him to two long-term deals.

  "We come into Spring Training a little sad," Cabrera said. "But at the same time, we come in like we need to keep going and need this for him. He always dreamed about a World Series champion. We never gave him the chance. We have extra motivation, so we need to be here and do extra and try to be our best this season."

  Arguably no one shows as much pure joy on a baseball field as Cabrera. That enthusiasm showed as he worked around the back fields at Tigertown during the first full-squad workout of camp. As Cabrera talked following the workout, though, his tone was somber. His home country's turmoil and his team's mourning weigh on him.

  Cabrera's arrival to Detroit is one of the defining moments of Ilitch's legacy. It wasn't simply about winning. Cabrera was the chance to add a young superstar and future Hall of Famer, like Ilitch had done with the NHL's Red Wings. He authorized then-GM Dave Dombrowski to make a run when the Marlins put Cabrera on the market.

  "He gave me this opportunity to be in Detroit," Cabrera said. "He signed me for a lot of years, and every time I'd see him, I'd always say, 'Thank you for giving me this opportunity to be in Detroit.' Detroit is part of my family and part of my life, my home. "He was always great to me. Every time he went to the stadium, he'd come down to my locker and we'd talk."

  He works hard to give back to Venezuela through his foundation, but political turmoil makes it hard to visit.

  "It's hard to leave your country," he said. "It's hard to go back and stay over there. I mean, when I went back to Venezuela, I went for one week. I used to live there. Now I live here in the United States. When you leave your country, it's hard to leave your family over there. My whole family is in Venezuela. I don't want to think about it, because it's hard. People living in Venezuela, they're in hard times right now. I worry about them." (J Beck - MLB.com - Feb 18, 2017)

  THE DIESEL BROTHERS

• Miguel played his final home game of 2017 Spring Training under the Florida sun. He cleaned up, donned some of his branded clothes for street gear, and got back into the batter's box at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium to play some ball with a couple of guys who consider themselves fans.

  His efforts were under the camera.  A segment was taped for an episode of Discovery Channel's "Diesel Brothers." The show teamed up with MLB Network for a baseball-themed episode in which Cabrera orders a custom diesel truck to drive around Detroit.  

  It's a new venture for Cabrera, a car enthusiast.  "I like old cars because my grandfather used to be a mechanic in Venezuela," Cabrera said. "I like to build cars and trucks."

  Asked what he's seeking for a truck, Cabrera said, "Something big, powerful, loud. It's going to be something for charity, too."  Cabrera hopes to use the custom truck as part of his foundation work in Detroit and Miami. But he also needs to be able to drive it around town, which makes it an interesting project.

  "The way he was describing it, he wants his truck to look like him — big, strong, bold," said Heavy D, who headlines the Diesel Brothers along with Diesel Dave. "It's not going to be that difficult of a build as long as we don't take it too over the top, because he's got to drive this thing every day. It's going to be an end-user truck. It's got to be legal where he is."

  They can do that. While some of their projects can take two to three months, this one should take two to four weeks, by Heavy D's estimation, to complete at their shop in Salt Lake City.  Before that, though, they had some fun at the ballpark with Cabrera, Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez and former Tigers first baseman Carlos Pena. The latter two are currently MLB Network analysts.

  "I love it," said Diesel Dave, who said he was a catcher and third baseman in high school. "We got to swing at pitches that Pedro was throwing at us. We got to run the bases with Carlos, catch, field grounders. It's a dream come true."  (Beck - mlb.com - 3/29/17)

• Cabrera has spent nearly a decade making the spacious Comerica Park look small. The Diesel Brothers built him a truck that made it look even smaller.

  The look on Cabrera's face when he saw his custom off-road rig was priceless when they wheeled it onto the infield last month. The public will finally get to see it when the new All-Star episode of Diesel Brothers airs on Discovery Channel. (The first episode aired June 18, 2017. The conclusion aired June 20.) It was a new adventure for Cabrera, a noted car enthusiast.)

  "I like old cars because my grandfather used to be a mechanic in Venezuela," he said in Spring Training, where the first scenes were filmed. "I like to build cars and trucks."

  It was also a new venture in the sports world for the Diesel Brothers, who knew about Cabrera but had never met him. It didn't take them long to realize what he had in mind.

  "The original hardest part was trying to figure out what to do," said Heavy D, who along with Diesel Dave headlines the Diesel Brothers, "because we've done a lot of cool stuff, and typically these builds can quickly go from street-legal, to full-on show trucks that nobody should be driving. So it was keeping it under the bar without going completely crazy. We ended up blending two different GM vehicles into one, and it's not an easy thing to do, especially with the two vehicles that we chose. There's a lot of custom body work done, but if you look at it, you'd probably think it came straight from the factory that way."

  The ideas came out of a conversation they had in the spring. While Heavy D, Diesel Dave and Diesel Brothers crewmember Redbeard had a chance to take the field at Joker Marchant Stadium, and Heavy D pitched off the mound, they also talked trucks.

  "He's got a busy schedule. We've got a busy schedule. We had to build something based off of a 10-minute conversation," Heavy D said. "The nice thing is, he's an easy guy to read, talking to him. He kept on using the word bestia." That's beast in Spanish.

  "That conversation turned into a huge landslide of ideas that we had," Heavy D continued. "We went back and forth. The truck was going to be orange, and then it was going to be blue, and then it was going to have colored suspension parts. And then it just hit us one day."

  From there, the gang went to work at their shop in Utah. The result was a massive 2016 Chevy Silverado 2500 HD, outfitted with a Cadillac Escalade front clip and custom detailing. The truck borders on monster size; massive but still street-legal. The custom suspension was fitting for the Michigan roads. They didn't get to drive it to Detroit, but they drove it around town.

  "We put a huge lift on it, probably bigger than most trucks we ever lift, and it rides smoother than a stock truck," Heavy D said. "We found a couple potholes."

  Cabrera put the truck on display during his annual Keeping Kids in the Game charity event at Comerica Park on July 27. There, he'll auction the truck, with proceeds supporting the Miguel Cabrera Foundation, the Children's Hospital of Michigan Foundation, the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, and the Detroit Tigers Foundation, an affiliate of Ilitch Charities. (Jason Beck - MLB.com - June 18, 2017)

• July 10, 2017: Cabrera is one of several Venezuelan baseball stars who's worried about family members impacted by the turmoil in the South American nation.

  Cabrera posted videos to his Instagram account  — which have since been removed — in which he spoke up against corruption while pleading for the safety of his family, according to ESPN news services.

  In the clips, he said he's "sick of paying protection money against the threat" and that "they are going to kidnap my mother." 

• Sept 2-8, 2017: Cabrera had his suspensions reduced by one game after reaching a settlement with Major League Baseball on his appeal from the bench-clearing fracas with the Yankees. Cabrera will serve a six-game suspension. Cabrera was originally suspended seven games for inciting the incident 

  Cabrera's suspension resulted from the first of three benches-clearing incidents Aug. 24 against the Yankees. Cabrera began arguing with catcher Austin Romine after Yankees reliever Tommy Kahnle threw behind him and was ejected. Cabrera shoved Romine, the two exchanged punches and the benches cleared.

• Spring 2018: A day before Detroit Tigers' spring training officially got under way in Lakeland, FL, Cabrera was 55 miles away, pleading his case in an Orlando courtroom as his ex-mistress requests additional child support for their two children.

  On Feb. 12, Cabrera is expected to be in attendance for a temporary-relief hearing, during which a judge is expected to rule if Belkis Mariela Rodriguez should receive more than the monthly payments she's already been receiving while the lawsuit, filed in August, continues to drag on, with no end in sight.

  The sides have been in mediation since October, to no avail, and with the season fast approaching, it's quite possible a final resolution in the matter could be months out.

  Rodriguez, the mother of two young children Cabrera isn't contesting are his, has been receiving payments in excess of $12,000 per month for several months. Early last year, Cabrera also helped Rodriguez purchase a nearly $1-million Spanish colonial home in a swanky Orlando neighborhood, overlooking a golf course.

  Rodriguez, however, is claiming she's entitled to more, arguing through her attorney that Cabrera should be paying her a similar amount to what he spends on the three children he has with his wife, Rosangel. (Tony Paul -The Detroit News- Feb. 2, 2018)

• April 4, 2018: Belkis Rodriguez—the former mistress of Cabrera—was awarded $12,000 per month in child support.

• Miguel likes to kid around, including when he talks to reporters. But a lot of times, he has a point to his playful jabs.  So when he was asked about aggravating the back issues that plagued him in 2017, his answer had a playful tone, but also an edge to it.

  "I went through that last year," he said, "so I don't want to do the same thing. Nobody appreciates when you play hurt, so I'm going to take my time and play when I'm good. I played a lot of years hurt here in Detroit."

  Cabrera played through what turned out to be a groin tear on his way to a third consecutive batting title in 2013. A year later, he played through a broken foot on his way to a 52-double season. In both cases, he played hurt to try to help the Tigers in the postseason, and he was still an elite hitter.

  He's older and wiser in 2018, and the Tigers are playing for the future. He's also paying the physical toll for playing hurt. That includes 2017, when Cabrera played through back issues and posted the worst offensive season of his illustrious career.

  So as the former Triple Crown winner tries to rehab his strained right hamstring and keep his back from flaring up, he's going to make sure he's back to full strength before he returns to action.

  "When you are doing bad, they crush you," Cabrera said. "They say you are bad, you should go home, you don't deserve anything, that you are old. I'm done playing hurt. When you are going good, they say, 'Oh, oh, you're good.' Now I take my time."  (Beck - mlb.com - 5/16/18)

• May 2018: The increasingly contentious paternity case filed against Cabrera will finally go to trial five days after the end of the World Series. A trial has been set for Nov. 5 in front of Judge Alan S. Apte in Orlando, Fla., according to court records filed this week. 

• Dec 14, 2018: Oh my god, this tattoo of Miguel Cabrera's face is insane. We've seen baseball fans get some pretty bonkers tattoos over the years. There was that Rangers fan who got a tattoo of Rougned Odor punching Jose Bautista, the Mets fan who lost a bet and got Bartolo Colon inked on his arm, and Cut4's own Michael Clair has Sandy Koufax as a skeleton tattooed on his upper arm. And now, we have a new submission to the Crazy Baseball Fan Tattoo Hall of Fame. 

  Venezuelan baseball fan Jesus Vargas got this thing tatted on his forearm and thankfully Miguel Cabrera himself added it to his Instagram story, sharing it with the world. The commitment to detail is downright incredible.( Jake Mintz - Dec 14, 2018)

• Jan 24, 2019: The last time Miguel Cabrera talked at Comerica Park was just before the left biceps surgery that ended his 2018 season. He was around from time to time last summer, but he kept a low profile, away from the games. As Cabrera talked with reporters at the ballpark to open the Tigers' annual Winter Caravan, chatting with teammates and checking in with management, he felt like he had just rejoined the team.

  "At first, it feels kind of weird," Cabrera said. "But right now, it feels like you're back in baseball. [My goals are to] get back out there for Spring Training and try to get ready for the season, try to have a good season."

  Everything Cabrera has done so far this offseason suggests he'll be ready for the season. He has been swinging a bat for the past month, he has picked up his normal offseason workout regimen, and he said he's on track to report to Spring Training with no restrictions. Whether Cabrera can have a good season by his standards is the big question. That won't be clear until after the Tigers break camp and head north in late March. 

  Asked if he can be a dangerous hitter again, Cabrera smiled. "I want to be dangerous," he said. "You have to be confident at home plate. Not like you have to be cocky, something like that, but you have to be confident and feel like you can still do it. I'm going to play my best."

  Cabrera won four batting titles in a five-year stretch, including a Triple Crown in 2012. He fell out of batting-title contention in 2016, but still hit .316 that year with 38 home runs, 108 RBIs and a .956 OPS, keeping him among baseball's most feared hitters. Since then, a series of injuries — back, groin, biceps, hamstring — have limited his effectiveness when they haven't sidelined him. After batting just .249 with a .728 OPS in 2017, Cabrera hit .299 with three homers, 22 RBIs and an .843 OPS last year before his left biceps tendon ruptured. Most of that production came in the season's opening month, before a right hamstring strain landed him on the disabled list.

  Even with those struggles, Cabrera heads into 2019 with the best career batting average among active players with at least 3,000 plate appearances, a fraction of a point ahead of good friend and fellow Venezuelan Jose Altuve. Cabrera's .946 career OPS ranks third among that contingent, behind Mike Trout and Joey Votto.

  Cabrera doesn't claim to know whether he can get back to that old form. But he wants to be healthy enough to find out. "I want to be back," he said. "Right now, I feel healthy."

  General manager Al Avila told reporters he believes Cabrera will remain with the Tigers for the rest of his career.

  Cabrera's contract runs through 2023, the year of his 40th birthday, with vesting options for 2024 and 2025. He should hit milestones with his 3,000th hit (he's currently 324 hits away) and 500 home runs (currently 35 off). Those marks aren't on Cabrera's mind right now. He wants to help this team dig out from back-to-back 98-loss seasons, which is why the proud defender is open to playing some DH, if that's what manager Ron Gardenhire asks him to do.

  "If the team's better if they put me at DH, I'm going to do it," he said. "If they think it's better to put me at first base, I'm going to do it. I'm open to everything." (J Beck - MLB.com - Jan 24, 2019)

• You aren't truly a star until you've been given a nickname, whether you're The Man, the Kid or Big Sexy.

  But the nickname is not just an American phenomenon: Fans of the Chinese Professional Baseball League, or CPBL, have their very own nickname system. And just as many English language nicknames are based on puns, these nicknames are also largely based on the player names' phonetic similarity to Mandarin words.

  Rob Liu, who runs CPBLStats.com -- one of the greatest English-language information sources on the league -- spoke to MLB.com from his home in Taiwan to introduce us to these glorious nicknames, and to give a little more info for some of them.

  Though these nicknames may not be as popular with non-baseball fans, Liu says, "If you are really into baseball, [fans] will know these sorts of names."

  Here are some of the best. We've included the Mandarin spelling of each nickname and its pronunciation to help illuminate their lore.

  Corey Kluber: Uncle Skeleton 骷髏伯 (Ku-Lou-Bo)

  Bartolo Colon: Eight-headed Dragon 八頭龍 (Ba-Tou-Long)

  Francisco Lindor: Chairman Lin 林董 (Lin-Dom)

  "In the business world in Taiwan, if you're a chairman, they always use your last name and add 'Dom.' So, if you're Lin, you're Lin-Dom."

  Miguel Cabrera: Ricecake 米糕 (Mi Gao)

  Dallas Keuchel: Mouth Open 開口 (Kai Kou)

  Albert Pujols: The Bionic Man 生化人 (Sheng Hua Ren)

  "This is more for Pujols' performance and the way he plays than how it sounds." Note: It's also a play on his American nickname, The Machine.

  Justin Morneau: Ferocious Bull 猛牛 (Meng Niou)

  "Morneau is a ferocious bull and Morneau hit well for the organization. So, you put two and two together."

  Chi-Chi Gonzalez and Didi Gregorius: Chip and Dale 救難小福星 Chi-Chi and Di-Di

  "Whenever those two have a matchup, the people of Taiwan call them Chip and Dale: Rescue Rangers. Because in Taiwan, we call Chip and Dale, Chi Chi and Didi." (Michael Clair -MLB.com-Feb. 28, 2019)

• Miguel Cabrera's candy company, officially launched in 2016 and rolled out in grand fashion at Comerica Park in 2017, has melted down into dueling lawsuits.

  Cabrera and his umbrella company, Miggy Foods, sued first last July, claiming his two business partners financially mismanaged the company, spending lavishly on themselves and luxurious office space, even as the business wasn't making a nickel of profit.

  The partners, Venezuelan businessman Daniel Satine and Venezuelan marketing professional Yajaira Gonzalez, responded and countersued this month, claiming Cabrera, the company's majority shareholder, became despondent and all but abandoned the company as his personal life was in turmoil.

  Each side is suing for in excess of $750,000 in damages.

  It appears Miggy Foods is no longer in operation. While its website still is live, it hasn't updated in more than a year and nobody answered the phone number listed; the social-media accounts also are idle, with its last Instagram post coming in July 2017. (Tony Paul - The Detroit News - April 22, 2019)

• Oct 2019: This is what Miguel Cabrera faces as he heads into the 2020 season.

  “Sometimes you pay the price when you play for a lot of years,” Cabrera said this summer. "Sometimes you pay the price when you play when you’re hurt.”

  Cabrera knows how the aging process works. He watched his former Tigers teammate and fellow Venezuelan Magglio Ordonez go through it a decade ago after winning a batting title in 2007. Ordonez was limited to 84 games in his age-36 season in 2010, but batted .303 with 12 home runs, 59 RBIs and an .852 OPS. A year later, Ordonez was a quiet catalyst behind the stretch run that vaulted the Tigers to the first of their four consecutive AL Central titles, until a broken ankle in the ALCS ended his career.

  As Cabrera nears his 37th birthday, he has become a DH who hopes to be able to play first base every so often. His march to 3,000 hits and 500 home runs has slowed. At the same time, he was the best hitter in the Tigers’ lineup for the stretch run, especially after they traded Nicholas Catellanos to the Cubs. 

  At some point this month, Cabrera is likely to get word from doctors on what, if anything, he can do to mitigate the impact his balky right knee has on his game. His knee can’t be fixed, and he knows it, but he wants to know what he can do to avoid a repeat of the painful season he endured in 2019.

  “Playing with this the last four or five months gave me a better idea about what I need to do for next year,” Cabrera said. “If I can come in strong and in better shape, I think I will be able to do a little bit more.

  “But I will see what the doctors say about what might work, what can I work, what kind of workout can I do to get in better shape and be 100 percent next year.”

• What Went Right in 2019?

  Cabrera’s 136 games played and 549 plate appearances were his highest marks in both categories since 2016. It wasn’t easy, and he certainly wasn’t at full strength for many of those games, but the day-in, day-out routine allowed him to regain his role as a key authority on the team. It also allowed him to rework his swing to take pressure off his aching right knee and put it on his healthier left, an impressive midseason adjustment for someone who has relied on the same swing for nearly his entire career.

  Despite the numbers, Cabrera was the veteran run producer the Tigers needed him to be. His .369 average (41-for-111) with runners in scoring position was third-highest in Major League Baseball among hitters with at least 100 at-bats in such situations. He batted .298 (48-for-161) with an .839 OPS from July 29 to season’s end. 

• What Went Wrong in 2019?

  A whole lot. Not only did the bulk Cabrera carried in hopes of regaining his home-run power not help as intended, it hurt, putting pressure on his back, knee and ankle. The knee was an issue for nearly the entire season, limiting him to DH duties and sidelining him for stretches to manage it.

  Strategically, the Tigers had been planning for the eventuality of Cabrera being an everyday DH for some time. But the abruptness of the move forced manager Ron Gardenhire to adjust, leaving a void at first base that Detroit struggled to fill with a productive bat.

  Cabrera’s .398 slugging percentage was the lowest of his 17-year Major League career.  

• Best Moment in 2019

  A couple days after Cabrera received the diagnosis about chronic changes in his right knee, he returned to the lineup on June 4 and hit a go-ahead grand slam off Blake Snell. It was Cabrera’s first grand slam in six years and first home run of any kind at Comerica Park since April 2018, which brought a roar from the crowd and the Tigers dugout.

  “I mean, we're just literally sitting here watching a little bit of history,” rookie outfielder Christin Stewart said at the time. 

• No matter what doctors tell Cabrera he can do about his knee, he enters next season at a crossroads with four more guaranteed seasons on his contract.

  “There's not a lot they can do. Surgery's not an option. It is what it is with his leg,” Gardenhire said. “He's going to have to play through this thing. I think his workout regimen is going to be to try to lose weight, get a little more weight off of that thing. That will probably help him out. He's going to work hard, try to lose weight, see if that will help.”

  If Cabrera sheds weight, he will likely sacrifice power for agility and bat speed. He could be a .300 hitter again, but 25 home runs seems like a stretch. It’s a trade-off he’s willing to make in order to stay on the field and be productive at the plate. (J Beck - MLB.com - Oct 10, 2019)

• Nov 12, 2019: The Tigers will spend the offseason searching for a run producer to plug into their lineup, likely in the outfield or at first base, general manager Al Avila confirmed from baseball's General Managers Meetings. But their best chance at an offensive uptick is a healthy return for Miguel Cabrera. At this point, Avila made clear, those chances for health are in Cabrera's hands, and their attachment to workout equipment.

  "He's committed to a rigorous offseason program," Avila told reporters, including MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez, from the GM Meetings. "If he commits to it 100 percent like the way it looks like it's going right now, he should be fine."

  The message from doctors after season's end, as expected, was that there's no surgery to fix the chronic changes in Cabrera's right knee. His best hope at staying healthy and being productive is to strengthen the leg and shed some weight.

  "For him, it's all about maintaining his strength and conditioning program, and obviously his diet," Avila said. "These are things that are important for him to stay healthy. The injuries that he has suffered and the surgeries that he's been under are not going away. They're there to stay. There's no surgery to fix what he's already got, so the only way is to really maintain yourself.

  "It's no different than a pitcher going through a shoulder program. If a pitcher maintains his shoulder program religiously throughout the season, chances are he's going to stay healthy. If a guy gets lazy and all of a sudden he abandons that program and he does it off and on and he's not, let's say, committed to it, then chances are he might not make it through the season. Now, that doesn't mean you're still not going to get injured. Injuries will happen no matter how hard you work. But at the end of the day, it behooves you to do everything you can to stay healthy."

  Though Cabrera's 136 games played this year were his most in a season since 2016, he was hampered for many of them, and limited to designated hitter after receiving his diagnosis in June. He batted .282 (139-for-493) with 21 doubles, 12 home runs, 59 RBIs and a .744 OPS. His .398 slugging percentage was the lowest of his 17-year Major League career.

  After a ruptured biceps tendon and other injuries limited him to just 38 games in 2018, Cabrera reported to Spring Training at his usual weight in hopes of regaining power in his swing. The ensuing knee issues forced him to revamp his swing, putting weight on his healthier left leg. Cabrera eventually adjusted, batting .298 with an .839 OPS in his final 44 games, but he was limited in mobility. He rarely played day games after night games as the Tigers tried to manage the issue.

• Cabrera acknowledged near 2019 season's end that he'll need to lose weight this offseason to ease the wear and tear. He also said he'd like to return to first base at least occasionally next season, something Avila was noncommittal on.

  "In a perfect world, I would say for his sake, for our sake, being the full-time DH is probably the best thing to stay healthy," Avila said. "Right now, sitting here in the wintertime, I can't [say] that he won't play first base again. We'll just have to see how good he feels, how hard he has worked to put himself in that situation."

  Cabrera has four more seasons guaranteed on the eight-year contract extension he signed in 2015. With 2,815 career hits and 477 home runs, he's within reach of the exclusive 3,000-hit and 500-homer clubs, most likely in 2021. But he has to stay healthy and productive to get there.

  Even if Cabrera approaches his old form, the Tigers need help for an offense that ranked at or near the bottom of the American League in several major categories. Not surprisingly, finding a hitter to help is one of Avila's offseason priorities.

  "We definitely would like to bring in somebody that can help our lineup," he said. "We do need to help some of these young guys out. What position [that hitter would fill], whether it be in the outfield or first base, we don't know yet. Right now, we're setting the groundwork here to see what we can come up with acquiring."

  The Tigers will also look for a veteran catcher to work alongside Grayson Greiner and prospect Jake Rogers, according to Avila. Detroit signed former Draft pick Kade Scivicque to a Minor League deal to provide depth in the farm system.

  "We definitely need catching help at the Major League level and depth overall," Avila said. "So catching's an area, like hitting, of importance this winter, for sure." (J Beck - MLB.com - Nov 12, 2019)

• Feb 17, 2020: Miguel sat on a dugout bench on the back fields at Tigertown, talking with a group of young players from Minor League mini-camp. New Tiger C.J. Cron, having just taken a nasty mix of fastballs and sliders from Matthew Boyd in live batting practice, looked back and motioned.

  “No chance,” Cron asked with a smile.

  Cabrera smiled back and shook his head. In another year, he’d be in the box and joking with the pitcher, his voice easily heard on the neighboring diamonds. This is the older, potentially wiser Cabrera. He’s trying to get his swing in order, having revamped it near midseason last year to take pressure off his ailing right knee. He has worked this offseason to try to get his body in order, take weight off the knees and get back in form.

  “I don't want to change my swing anymore,” he said earlier Monday. “I want to be natural. The last three years I've been changing my swing a lot to feel comfortable at home plate, to not feel like something's bothering me. I want to go out there and feel natural. I don't want to think about anything, just react.”

  With his 37th birthday looming in April, Cabrera is saving his swings for the unbeaten Father Time, trying to fight his way back in the count. After an ill-fated search for his lost power led to bulk and injuries last year, he shifted his focus this offseason. At the encouragement of the Tigers and the recommendation of a nutritionist, he said he has tweaked his diet to try to cut back on carbohydrates.

  “I try to eat more vegetables, try to eat more healthy stuff,” Cabrera said.

  Cabrera did not give a number for his weight, but said he’s lighter than last year.

  “I'm the same weight I'd been in 2015, 2016, so I don't know,” he said. “But last year I think I was heavy. I think I cut a lot of weight from last year to this year.”

  For what it’s worth, Cabrera was listed at 240 pounds in the annual Tigers media guides from 2015 through 2017. That number changed to 249 in 2018 and 2019. Those published numbers obviously aren’t updated each year.

  “When I hugged him, I actually reached around him,” manager Ron Gardenhire, trying to strike a light note on the matter.

  More important than a number is a look at feel, how Cabrera moves and whether the weight leads to more issues with his knees and his back. To some extent, the damage is done. He is in his back half of his thirties, after all. But he can fight off further damage and find a comfort level that allows him to play his game and stay in the lineup.

  “You’ve always gotta have a goal. My goal was to get in shape and try to get ready for the season, try to come back 100 percent,” Cabrera said.

  Clearly, he also wants his swing back. As he took swings in regular batting practice Monday, his weight shifted from his right knee to his left. He dealt with it last year, batting .282 with a .767 OPS after he started making adjustments in early June, but he’d like to get back to his more familiar swing and push off his back leg. If he can swing that way, he’ll live with the production he gets out of it.

  “Last year, I was not happy with my numbers and the way we played and all the losses we had,” Cabrera said. “That's another reason: Try to compete and try to come here and win more games.” (J Beck - MLB.com - Feb 17, 2020)

• 2019 off-season: Cabrera doesn't like to be bothered in the offseason, and he got his point across by giving hitting coach Dave Vavra a fake number.

  "All winter long, I would call him and text him and I'd get no reply," Vavra told Evan Woodbery of MLive.com. "Then in spring, I said, 'How come you didn't answer my calls?' He said, 'Because I gave you someone else's number.' I said, 'OK, I hear you.'"

• Entering the 2020 season, Cabrera is the leader in WAR for the Tigers. DH (51.3 WAR): Cabrera has obviously slowed down in recent years, but when he’s healthy, he still hits. And he’ll be here for a while. (Will Leitch - Mar. 22, 2020)

• Tigers biggest trash talker: Nobody on the Tigers talks as much as Cabrera, even after a chronic right knee injury denied him the chance to play first base and socialize with hitters for the majority of last season. It’s part of his personality, and it continued in 2019 from the Tigers' dugout between his at-bats as a DH.

  He was ejected from an August game in Houston for chatting with fellow Venezuelan José Altuve, with whom he has had some notable funny interactions. Cabrera was tossed from a July game against the Red Sox for arguing balls and strikes from the dugout and his chatter also helped lead to several ejections for manager Ron Gardenhire.

  “Joe West called me over and we were talking about how Cabrera was loud in the dugout and he was waving his arms,” Gardenhire said after Cabrera was ejected in July. “But Cabby does that every day, and that’s what I was telling him. And then [Cabrera] was waving his arms at the home-plate umpire, and the umpire threw him out.” (MLB.com - Apr. 29, 2020)

• May 21, 2020: Miguel and his wife, Rosangel, have donated $250,000 to Detroit-area children for COVID-19 relief.

•  Triple Crown winner. American League MVP. Likely first-ballot Hall of Famer. And now, during quarantine, Miguel is set to become a hip-hop star. Yes, really.  Miggy teamed up with Sibilino to release the track, "Miggy Al Bate" (Miggy at Bat in English) on Sibilino's new record, "Sin Ø."  Cabrera starts his verse at the 19-second mark. 

  The song features Miggy spitting bars that translate to, "I’m Miggy the salsa lover who’s always battling / Demonstrating that the players are superior / Representing the old school, besides playing we spit fire," and "You know that when it comes to me, there’s never a tie / Don’t come for trouble because my flow will destroy your flow / Step up to the plate and I’ll hit it out of the park / This is the Major Leagues so you know you can’t mess with me / From Venezuela, the crib for baseball players, crib for rappers, also for salsa lovers."

  Obviously the song sounds better in Spanish when the lyrics rhyme, but the best part of this: Cabrera is good. This sounds like something he could actually do -- making him better at roughly 8,000 things more than you or me.

  So, while he's just the latest superstar to drop a hip-hop track, he's head and shoulders over some of the others who came before. This isn't Ken Griffey Jr. on "The Way I Swing." As fun as that song is, no one was dying to let Junior record a whole record. Miggy is also better than every single person on the 1986 Mets, who recorded "Get Metsmerized."  (Clair - mlb.com- 6/13/2020)

• Interview with Miggy released on Sept 26, 2020:

  Miguel Cabrera, one of the last playing connections to the Tigers' four consecutive division titles and 2012 World Series berth, said he believes the Tigers are on the right track to contend again before his tenure in Detroit ends.

  “That's our goal, to be a contending team, to be a team that can be in the playoffs. I think we're in a good place to do that,” Cabrera said. “We have to have a lot of patience, because we have a lot of young talent. They're learning how to play in the big leagues, but I believe they can get better ... and hopefully next year we can be a better team, and hopefully next year we can compete to be in the playoffs.

  “From what I see every day, what I see how they play in the field, I think we're really close to go to the next step, trying to go out there and win games.”

  Cabrera, who has not done a video conference with reporters this season, answered questions submitted by reporters in a pre-recorded video interview. The 37-year-old addressed a number of topics, including his late-season tear, his approaching career milestones, his health and his continued adjustment to DH and desire to play first base again on occasion.

  “I would say thank God, because he gave me an opportunity to do what I love, to play baseball,” Cabrera said. “I never played to [have] accomplishments, like I want to make 3,000 hits, I want to have 500 runs. My goal was always to be in the field and play 100 percent. I miss a lot playing first base. I hope they can give me more time next year to play first.

  “I'm learning how to be a DH right now. It's a little hard for me to go and hit and go and sit and think about what I'm going to do in the next at-bat. In the past, I'd forget about hitting and go out and play defense. It was like a different game to me.”

• Other highlights from the interview:

  On the impact of the COVID-19 shutdown after a strong Spring Training:

  “It was really difficult to train in the quarantine. It was different training in the house, trying to get in shape to get ready for a short season. I think this offseason, I'm not going to have time off because we got a lot of time off this year already. I think I'm going to take one week off to travel to Miami and prepare for next season.”

• How difficult has this year been for you, from the shutdown to protocols? Is this game still fun for you?

  “We try to make it fun. We try to enjoy this game because it's really different right now with no fans. It's really difficult because we go from home [to] stadium, stadium [to] home, hotel [to] home, and we're not able to do anything. But at the same time, we have to be thankful, say thank you, because we're able to do this right now in the middle of this pandemic. I know I say every day, thank God because he gave me an opportunity to play baseball right now. Hopefully we can do the same next year, but with fans in the stands. Hopefully next year can be totally different.”

• Has your knee bothered you this season?

  “Always. It's something I'm going to have for the rest of my career, but it's something I can't use as an excuse: Oh my knee, my back, or something like that. I try to block that, forget about my injury to my knee, go out there and play my best baseball, or my best hitting, because I only hit right now.”

• What has been behind the late-season tear?

  “I think I feel more confident at home plate. Like I say, I'm learning how to be a DH, learning how I can stay in the game. When I play this position, I try to feel more comfortable. I’m thinking about what I can do to be focused and relaxed at home plate.”

• On manager Ron Gardenhire’s sudden retirement

  “We were sad when we found out he was retiring. I didn't expect he was going to retire. I thought he was going to be our manager for years to come. But it was his decision. It was a family decision, a health decision. I always want the best for Gardy because he gave us a lot of confidence to play baseball. He's a great man.”

• On his nomination for MLB’s Roberto Clemente Award

  “Awesome. It's something I want to do every year, help people, because it's something born in me. It's something nobody has to tell me, ‘You have to do this.’ I want to do it, even if I wasn’t nominated for Roberto Clemente, I always want to do this every year, help people and try to be connected with people.”

• How much longer do you think you’ll play?

  “I've got three more years on my contract. I'm trying to play that. I don't know what's going to happen after my contract is over, but I focus right now on what I have [left] to play on my contract, this and three more years, and we'll see what happens.” (J Beck - MLB.com - Sept 28, 2020)

• 2020 Season: After two seasons of negative fWAR in 2017 and 2019, he at least moved into plus territory with a 0.3 fWAR in 2020. Steamer projects a slash line of .273/ .350/ .449 for an OPS of .799, 110 wRC+ and 0.9 fWAR. That’s not exactly $30 million worth of production, but it’s a solid contribution worthy of a spot in the middle of a decent batting order.

  Cabrera’s WAR is dinged because he has been strictly a designated hitter, but the fact remains that he makes no defensive contribution. He has stated that he’d like to play at least some first base, which could happen, depending on what moves the team makes before opening day, when Cabrera will be five seasons removed from the last time that he posted over 1.0 WAR for the year. (Patrick OKennedy@Tigerdog_1 - Dec 22, 2020)

• July 8, 2022:  As Miguel Cabrera talked to reporters ahead of the Tigers' contest against the White Sox, the future Hall of Famer was all smiles after being selected to his 12th All-Star Game and first since 2016. 

  “It’s a great honor to be a part of the All-Star Game,” Cabrera said. “Every All-Star Game is different, and you watch for all the great players that are gonna be there. It’s gonna be fun.” Cabrera will join Cardinals future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols, as both were selected by Commissioner Rob Manfred to participate in this year’s All-Star Game in Los Angeles as legacy selections. (J Pollizze - MLB.com - July 8, 2022)

• He is far from the hitter he once was. His power is greatly diminished. Yet here he is, still playing with chronic pain in his right knee, hitting .308 in the 20th season of his MLB career.

  Cabrera hit his 500th home run last season and notched his 3,000th hit earlier this year, two standout moments that have brought about a renewed appreciation for his generational skills.

  “I love being on the on-deck circle, (watching) how they’re pitching him, what he’s trying to do,” Tigers catcher Eric Haase said. “You can kind of start thinking with him in the box a little bit. When he gets pitches in counts that he’s looking for, he just doesn’t miss them. Even at this age right now, for him to be spraying missiles all over the place is just incredible.”

  They see a living legend still hitting the baseball as well as anyone on the planet. At age 39, Cabrera is making batting average en vogue again. His .308 average ranks eighth in the American League. As for the idea Cabrera is placing the ball right where he wants it? Note he’s hitting .386 with runners in scoring position.

  “I’m glad I got a first-class seat to watch it,” Haase said.

  He has made 11 previous All-Star games, the latest in 2016. His children were too young to really appreciate the experience. 

  Earlier this week, Cabrera told reporters he didn’t want an All-Star bid to be a gift. Cabrera has settled into a more graceful place lately, accepting he’s at the tail end of his career but still uncomfortable with anything that might seem like a handout.

  “Miggy’s one of the most prolific hitters in the history of the game,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “I think most people could watch him and learn something.” (Stavenhagen-TheAthletic.com-July8th,2022)

• Sept 27, 2022: Miguel Cabrera has one of the most impressive hitting resumes of his generation. He’s one of just three hitters all-time with 3,000-plus hits, 500-plus home runs and a career batting average over .300. But amidst all the big hits and runs, he has tried to make just as big of an impact in his communities, from Detroit to Miami to his native Venezuela. 

  With this month’s selection as the Tigers’ nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award, Cabrera has been up for the honor for at least a decade, a feat that shouldn’t be overlooked among his career feats. From his perspective, however, he’d rather not get a ton of attention for it. 

  “I don't do this for an award. It's because I want to do it,” Cabrera said recently. “I don't want the people to say, ‘Oh, it's nice for him to do that.’ I want to do it because it's something that's born inside of me. “It's something that all my family do. It's not only me. I have a lot of people behind me that do a lot of hard work. I think they deserve it more than me.”

  Cabrera and his wife Rosangel established the Miguel Cabrera Foundation shortly after he arrived in Detroit and signed a long-term extension with the Tigers. He was a budding star at age 25 and looking to make an impact.

  Initially, the foundation focused on renovating and enhancing youth ballparks to provide kids with opportunities to learn and play the game like Cabrera did years ago. The program helped restore ballfields like Clark Park in Detroit a decade ago. Cabrera brought Miggy Ball 24 to the Corner Ballpark on the old Tiger Stadium site to help kids showcase and work on their skills.

  Soon after, the Cabreras saw a chance to branch out their efforts. Magglio Ordóñez -- Cabrera’s friend and teammate from his first few years in Detroit -- had started a scholarship fund for deserving students in Southwest Detroit, and there was an opportunity to pick up where he left off. The Cabrera Family Scholarship awards two renewable scholarships to first-generation students in Detroit and South Florida. 

  “It's a good thing. It's a great thing,” Cabrera said.

  Then came an issue in Venezuela, where kids who were studying abroad on scholarship suddenly had their funding removed and needed support. The Cabrera stepped forward and filled the gap.

  “That's when we said, 'We need to do these scholarships for these people,'” he said.

  In addition, the Cabreras stepped forward to help kids and families in Detroit during the COVID-19 pandemic, helping provide personal protection gear for kids as well as helping parents needing a hand with affordable childcare and technology at a time when kids were at home.Time will tell if Cabrera is finally recognized with the national Roberto Clemente Award, given out annually to the player who best represents the game of baseball through character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions on and off the field. Fans can vote on the award here until the regular season ends on Wednesday, Oct. 5.  But Cabrera needs only look at the students who have been able to attend college through the scholarship, or play baseball on revived fields, to see the reward. That’s part of his legacy like the base hits, homers and batting titles. (J Beck - MLB .com - Sept 27, 2022)

• Oct. 2022: Cabrera committed to play for Team Venezuela in the 2023 WBC.

• 2022 Season: Miguel Cabrera famously got his 3000th hit this year. But even that couldn’t save him from an appearance on this list. The future hall of famer started the year off hot but eventually cooled off finishing the year with a .254/.305/.317 slash line and the league’s lowest fWAR at -1.5. His 79 wRC+ was the worst of his career, he had the worst walk rate of his career, and his worst strikeout rate for an entire season. Fans knew that prime Miggy was gone but nobody expected it to be this bad for the former Triple Crown winner.  (DANIEL PARDI on DECEMBER 15, 2022)

• April 23, 2023: Cabrera is enjoying his final season in the MLB. The Detroit Tigers star was given a unique tribute on Sunday before his team's clash against the Baltimore Orioles in Maryland.

  Cabrera received a brick from Camden Yards with a message that is hard to forget: “Thank you for an inspiring race.” (By Arnold)

• On every road trip so far this season, the opposing team has done something to honor the illustrious career of Miguel Cabrera. There was a tribute video in Tampa, the cowboy hat in Houston, the cheesehead and charity check in Milwaukee. Cabrera hasn’t loved all the attention but has played into the honors and gifts. He wore the cowboy hat on the plane ride home. 

  The farewell tour for Cabrera’s final season is a fitting tribute for one of only seven players to attain 3,000 hits and 500 home runs, for one of the best right-handed hitters ever to play.

  But when Cabrera and the Tigers agreed to go through this for one more year — after a few awkward conversations late last season — both parties also signed up for exactly what we are now seeing unfold.

  The Tigers are playing well at 19-22 overall and 17-13 since April 13. Cabrera, though, is batting just .182 with zero home runs. In 188 at-bats since last season’s All-Star break, Cabrera is hitting only .176.

  For reference, Willie Mays hit .230 with six home runs in his final 187 at-bats with the Mets, maybe the most famously feeble ending for an electrifying player.

  Entering the season, we knew Cabrera would no longer play every day and would no longer occupy the cleanup spot in the Tigers’ order. He is dealing with chronic pain in his right knee and other effects of time coming into his age-40 season.

  “I feel for him,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “At the same time, he’s getting older and not quite the same hitter he was in his prime; I’m asking him to play less and create more timing issues for him by playing once a series.”

  By all accounts, Cabrera is aware of all this and has handled things well behind closed doors. Difficult as it can be to watch, imagine how this must feel for Cabrera. He is a once-prodigious hitter no longer able to perform at the highest level. He has talked of wanting to taste winning one more time, of doing whatever the team needs, whatever the manager asks.

  “I look forward to enjoying this season and trying to help the young guys and trying to help our team win more games,” Cabrera said in spring training. “That’s my focus this year. I don’t want any distractions. I don’t want any videos or any stuff. I want to do my job. That’s it.”

  Cabrera can still have his moments. He hit a walk-off single on April 15 and has retained an uncanny ability to get a hit up the middle when his team needs it. He still provides sentimental value. There was the entertainment of his Wednesday, May 17th foot race to first base with the 43-year-old Hill, and there are the giveaway nights and other ceremonious activities planned throughout the summer at Comerica Park. He just played his 2,000th game as a Tiger. (Stavenhagen - May 18, 2023 - The Athletic)

• Sept 22, 2023: The days are dwindling for Miguel Cabrera as a baseball player. He can feel it now. As his 21st, and final, Major League season nears an end, retirement feels real. It’s not just a farewell tour and gifts. It’s a conclusion.

  “Yeah, it’s getting emotional,” he admitted last Sunday morning in his corner of the visiting clubhouse at Angel Stadium. “Can’t stop thinking about it.”

  Once the Tigers return to Comerica Park next week for the final homestand, it’s going to truly hit home. For all the amazing moments we’ve seen from Cabrera over the years -- the serious, driven competitor, the fun-loving kid at heart, the supportive teammate, the quiet leader -- we’re about to see an emotional side of Cabrera we’ve rarely witnessed.

  “I’m sure it’ll be pretty emotional for him and for us,” teammate Tarik Skubal said. “I think it’ll be emotional for me, too. We’ll see how he handles it. I was a part of Jordan Zimmermann’s last game [as a Tiger, in 2020]. He opened the game and I came in and pitched next. He was emotional when he came out, and I was down in the tunnel, and so was I. And I had known him for six weeks. “I’m not looking forward to it. I’m not looking forward to that last game he suits up for us. It doesn’t seem real yet.”

• Eduardo Rodriguez knows how this goes. He was with the Red Sox for David Ortiz’s final season in 2016.

  “It feels like Miggy’s taking it much better,” Rodriguez said. “Miggy’s enjoying it. He’s going out there every day, he’s playing every game they put him out there, and he’s just enjoying it. That’s what I really take from it. It’s kind of like he’s not really going to retire. That’s the way that I feel about it. He’s taking it like another season. I think that’s the way that he’s controlling that part of it. He’s not thinking, ‘OK, this is my last game here.’ “I don’t feel that sadness [yet] that we’re going to feel next week. Everybody’s going to feel it, including him.”

  Rodriguez isn’t ready for that yet. 

  “No. Nobody is,” he said, “including you guys. Nobody’s ready for that. That’s how I felt with Papi: Nobody was ready until that last game. I remember after we finished the season in Boston. We all went in the clubhouse and he came out on the field for the home fans. We saw it on TV because we were already inside. He started crying and that’s when you really felt it, like he’s gone. That’s how I feel it’s going to be with Miggy.”

  Turns out it has already been getting emotional for Cabrera. He just hasn’t shown it.Part of it undoubtedly is the uncertainty of what’s next. For two decades, Cabrera has had most of his days mapped out on an itinerary, whether based on a baseball schedule or offseason workouts. After the last day, that schedule is wide open.

  Cabrera has talked with manager A.J. Hinch and others with the club about a role in retirement, something along the lines of a special assistant. He might not spend his summers traversing the farm system like Hall of Famer Alan Trammell -- nobody does it like Tram -- but he wants to be around to contribute. He wants to pass down his knowledge and love of the game.

  “I want to stay with this team and help, do something,” he said. “I don’t want to be coaching. I want to move around. …

  “Let’s see what happens. But I want to be around these guys. These guys, they’re special. They’re growing right now. They’re maturing. I think next year they’re going to be better.” (J Beck - MLB.com - Sept 22, 2023)

• Sept 29, 2023: - As Miguel Cabrera wraps up his career, he already has his next chapter lined up. The Tigers named the former Triple Crown winner and two-time MVP as a special assistant to president of baseball operations Scott Harris, a role he’ll begin after the season finale.

  “Miguel Cabrera embodies what it means to be a Tiger, and I thank him for giving us 16 wonderful seasons representing the Olde English ‘D’ and our city,” Tigers chairman and CEO Chris Ilitch said in a statement. “Miguel's historic accomplishments on the field truly make him one of the greatest Tigers in franchise history. He has also been a great teammate and is beloved by fans and throughout baseball. His big heart has made an ever-lasting impact on our community. My father was incredibly fond of Miggy and made sure he was a Tiger for the remainder of his playing career, and we’re thrilled to extend our relationship into the next chapter of his life. "While it may be the end of an era, it's a new beginning as Miguel will continue to pass along his baseball wisdom, culture-shaping values and mentorship to the next generation of Tigers players, who can aspire to the level of greatness that Miguel has achieved."

  The announcement is the culmination of an idea Cabrera and the Tigers had discussed for weeks. Cabrera made no secret about wanting to stay involved in the game after his playing career, and wanting to help out the club for which he spent the last 16 years as well as the next generation of players.“I want to stay with this team and help, do something,” Cabrera said a couple weeks ago. “I don’t want to be coaching. I want to move around. …“Let’s see what happens. But I want to be around these guys. These guys, they’re special. They’re growing right now. They’re maturing. I think next year they’re going to be better.”

• Manager A.J. Hinch has already discussed having Cabrera around the big club at times next season.

  “He's already giving out orders and barking out requests and making sure that we're all going to be held accountable. So, he's in typical Miggy fashion,” Hinch said. “He was very happy to rejoin the Tigers, so to speak, even though he hasn't left. His role with our young players, with our coaches, with our entire organization is gonna be immense. And you know, I think for him to have goals moving forward for the team that he's most identifiable with is pretty cool. He's going to be celebrated in the years to come, and rightfully so, but I think he wants to get into the trenches on how to make us better and better every year.” (J Beck - MLB.com - Sept 29, 2023)

• In this final season of Miguel Cabrera’s career, there was no shortage of pageantry. He received a cowboy hat in Houston, a biker vest in Milwaukee, a rocking chair in Washington, D.C. They gave him artwork in New York and Pittsburgh, a warehouse brick in Baltimore, a scoreboard panel in Boston and a surfboard in Anaheim. The Oakland A’s even gave him a cheap bottle of wine. In Cabrera’s final weekend at Comerica Park, there was a drone show and a stadium card stunt. They gave away not one but two posters, plus a button-down shirt. Everything from the on-deck circle to signs at the gates was branded with ¡Gracias Miggy! There were multiple ceremonies and what felt like a dozen new tribute videos every day. Fans heard from Calvin Johnson and Jalen Rose, George Brett and Pudge Rodriguez. They gave him Jordan cleats crafted from commemorative baseballs, wrote a $24,000 check to his foundation and gifted him a seat from Comerica Park, signed by Cabrera’s teammates and coaches.And for the first time since 2021, he had a first baseman’s mitt — borrowed from teammate Spencer Torkelson, because Cabrera discarded his glove at the end of spring training — on his left hand. Cabrera ran onto the field and reached his position. He turned back, and there was no one coming behind him. There he was for a moment, a man alone in front of an enormous crowd.

  “He genuinely turned around and was like, ‘Where is everybody?'” Hinch said.

  The cheers and the chants began once more. “MIG-GY,” the Detroit fans roared, “MIG-GY.” Cabrera playing first base was meant to be symbolic, but he stayed at the position to begin the top of the eighth inning. And wouldn’t you know: The Cleveland Guardians’ first batter, Steven Kwan, hit a grounder to first base, a fait accompli of a finish.

  Cabrera, playing first for the first time in two years, scooped Kwan’s ball with his black mitt, crossed first base, grinned and beat his chest. And then came Hinch’s grand surprise. The game stopped. Hinch stepped onto the field. With him were Cabrera’s three children: Isabella, Christopher and Brisel. 

  They met their father near the pitcher’s mound as the crowd continued its final serenade. All of Cabrera’s teammates came out of the dugout. The hugs abounded. Shivers descended down spines. Memories flashed through everyone’s mind. Cabrera was pulled from the game one last time, a Hall of Fame career finally at its end.

  “I haven’t ever had chills for that long,” said Torkelson, who had Cabrera sign his glove and plans to retire it in a glass case.

  On the radio, longtime Tigers broadcaster Dan Dickerson said it best: “That did feel like the baseball gods were looking down.” (Stavenhagen - Oct 1, 2023 - The Athletic)

            TRANSACTIONS

• July 3, 1999: At midnight, the Marlins signed Cabrera the moment he became eligible at age 16. The deal, which began in the year 2000, was worth $1.9 million.

  Miguel had received substantially higher offers from other clubs—$2.2 million from the Dodgers and even more by the Yankees—but he chose to sign with the Marlins for several reasons, including an admiration for fellow countryman and Marlins SS Alex Gonzalez. 

  "We decided to sign with the Marlins because the scouts were really good to us," Cabrera's father, Miguel, Sr. said. "We felt like they were our family."

• February 17, 2007: Cabrera won his salary arbitration case over the Marlins, gaining the $7.4 million salary he sought. The figure was $700,000 more than the Marlins had offered.

• December 4, 2007: The Tigers sent OF Cameron Maybin, P Andrew Miller, C Mike Rabelo and minor league pitchers Eulogio De La Cruz, Dallas Trahern and Burke Badenhop to the Marlins; acquiring Cabrera and P Dontrelle Willis.

• January 18, 2008: Miguel and the Tigers avoided salary arbitration when they agreed to a one-year contract for $11 million.

  But on March 22, 2008, Cabrera and the Tigers agreed on an eight-year, $152 million contract extension. The pact became the fourth-largest contract in baseball history, trailing only the Yankees' A-Rod ($275 million), Derek Jeter, also of the Yanks ($189 million), and Red Sox OF Manny Ramirez ($160 million) in the total salary package listing.

• March 27, 2014: Cabrera and the Tigers agreed on an eight-year contract that pays him $248 million. Miguel can also earn up to $4 million annually in bonuses. That includes $2 million for MVP and $1 million for a Triple Crown. 

  Cabrera already was due $44 million over those two years, salaries incorporated into his record $292 million, 10-year contract. The agreement includes $30-million options for 2024 and 2025.

• Nov 3, 2023: Miguel elected free agency.

• Cabrera hits for good power and an excellent batting average. He generates good bat speed from a compact swing and can hit it a long way when he makes good contact with the ball. His strong forearms and wide shoulders aid that process. And he uses his quick, strong wrists to drive the ball all over the park. He stresses hitting to all fields, and he preaches that to his teammates.

• He has a very good eye at the plate—real good strike-zone recognition. Because of that, he should accept more walks. He swings at too many breaking balls out of the strike zone.

  Speaking of his approach at the plate, all the way back in 2003, Tennessee manager Mark DeJohn told Baseball America. "It's the approach to hitting you try to teach, but it comes natural to him. He uses the opposite field to drive in runs. It's the approach Albert Pujols uses. I'm not sure he has that kind of power, but he has that approach and he's very disciplined for a young hitter."

• When Miguel makes contact with the ball it has that special sound.

• "He is such a patient hitter," says Marlins bench coach Doug Davis. "He's got such a quiet approach. He doesn't have big, abrupt movements, and he doesn't get himself in bad situations. He always gives himself a chance. He's patient enough to give himself a pitch to hit."

• "The thing you like about Cabrera is when he strikes out, he comes back and just puts his helmet away," then-Marlins manager Jack McKeon said during the 2003 National League Championship Series. "He doesn't tear up the bat rack or see if he can crush his helmet. He just says, 'Hey, I'll get them next time.'"

• When Torii Hunter joined the Tigers in 2013, he was amazed at Miguel's ability to adjust, being able to see him play every day.

  "I'm in awe," Hunter said. "He makes adjustments every pitch. He sees the two-seamer move six inches, or a cutter move six inches, or a slider that doesn't break as well. He is processing all these things every pitch. He'll take a pitch, I can see him shake his head ... he's like, O.K., this ball is moving two inches, four inches. And then he swings two inches inside the ball so it can hit his barrel. This guy is like a genius, man."

  Tigers hitting coach Lloyd McClendon says good hitters can identify a pitch an instant after it is released. Cabrera seems to know it while the pitcher still holds the ball. After Cabrera hit a home run off a changeup this season, McClendon asked him if he was looking for that pitch. "He said, 'No, I just saw it. Everything slowed down, and I knew it was going to be a changeup.' And he looked at me and said, 'Is that a gift?'"

  McClendon laughed. "I said, 'Yeah, that's a gift.'"

  Early in his career Cabrera took the gift for granted. Not anymore. When he has a bad at bat he goes to McClendon for feedback, even though he knows that feedback will probably start with one question: "What the f — were you doing?"

  It is part of the verbal game the two play. When Cabrera has a hitless game, he kids McClendon: "You were horses — today." (Michael Rosenberg-Sports Illustrated-6/17/13)

• In Game 7 of the 2003 NLCS, Cabrera, a 20-year-old rookie batting cleanup in Wrigley Field, hit a three-run homer off of Kerry Wood in the first inning. The Marlins went on to win that game and went to the World Series.

• In 2004, at age 21, Miguel had his first 100-RBI season. And he became the eighth player in history to surpass 30 home runs, drive in more than 100 runs, and score 100 runs before the age of 22. The only active players to do so besides Cabrera are Albert Pujols (2001) and Alex Rodriguez (1996).

  To put what Cabrera is doing in perspective, consider A-Rod and Pujols topped 100 RBIs when they turned 21, Mickey Mantle had his first 100 RBI season in 1954, at age 23, and Ken Griffey Jr. did it in 1991 at 22. It's not often you see guys do what he has in their first year-and-a-half: All-Star team and playing for the World Series champion.

• In 2005, Cabrera became the  youngest player in baseball history to have consecutive seasons of belting 30 homers, driving in 100 runs while scoring 100 runs. Miguel, Albert Pujols, and Foxx are the only players in league history to achieve the feat before turning 23.

• "I think the thing that helps him is he is fearless at the plate, as is Albert," Marlins hitting coach Bill Robinson said. "He hits the ball to all fields, like Albert does. I think that's a prerequisite to hitting .300, hitting home runs and driving in runs. He's a little raw in his thinking and maybe in his swing. Sometimes he forgets where the club head has to be on certain pitches.

  "To score 100 runs when you don't steal bases, that means he's getting a lot of base hits, a lot of doubles, setting it up for the guys behind him. His instincts are getting a little better on the bases." (April 2006)

• "He looks like to me he's always going to hit .300," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "He's got a great setup. Great swing. He's strong. He looks like he's a guy who is going to hit .300 forever, and hit 35 home runs and drive in 100. That's saying a lot. That's what he looks like to me. He looks that good." (May 2006)

• Many times when Cabrera comes to the plate he is using a Zinger brand bat. 

• In 2006, Miguel finished second to Freddy Sanchez of the Pirates in the NL batting race. Sanchez finished with a .344 average, five points higher than Cabrera.

• On September 4, 2007, Miguel became the third youngest player in Major League history to reach the 500 RBI mark. Promoted at age 20 from Double-A in June of 2003, Cabrera logged his 500th RBI at 24 years, 139 days. The two players to hit the milestone faster are both in the Hall of Fame: Mel Ott (23 years, 74 days) and Ted Williams (24 years, 4 days).

• In 2008, Cabrera was the American League home run champion, with 37.

• In mid-August 2012, Miguel became the third Tiger in history to eclipse the 100 RBI mark five years in a row. He joined Harry Heilmann, who knocked in 100-plus from 1923-29, and Charlie Gehringer, who did it from 1932-36.

  The 29-year-old has driven in more than 100 runs in nine straight seasons overall, also accomplishing the feat in each of his final four seasons with the Marlins.

  And he became the first Tigers player ever to hit at least 30 long balls in five straight years.

• In 2012, Cabrera became the first Triple Crown winner in 45 years, since Boston's Carl Yastrzemski in 1967.

• In 2013, long-time Detroit Free Press sportswriter John Lowe suggested that Cabrera was building a "Hornsby-like legacy as the game's best righthanded hitter."

  Nearly 90 years have passed since Hornsby was in his prime, but one thing that connects the two premier right-handed batters is their ability to drive the ball the opposite way, with authority. Both Cabrera and Hornsby, who was known to stand deep in the batter's box and far from the plate, could hit the ball as hard the opposite way as they did when they pulled it.

  "There's nobody in the history of the game that I've ever seen that has the opposite-field power that Miguel Cabrera has," former Tiger manager Jim Leyland said. "It's not even close."

  Leyland says the Tigers slugger "is one of those guys with a sixth sense about what pitchers are trying to do to him.

  "It's almost like he's in the pitcher's mind. It's almost like he knows ahead of time," Leyland added. "And I'm not talking about pitchers tipping pitches. It's the mental part.

  "Somebody told me a long time ago—and I truly believe this—when a pitcher gets on the mound and the hitter gets in the box, one of them, psychologically is already starting to give in a little bit," Leyland explained. "I think there's a lot of truth to that. And Miguel just doesn't give in."

• Cabrera turned 30 years of age on April 18, 2013. According to research from STATS, just eight Major League players in the modern era (since 1920) posted more hits than Cabrera before their 30th birthday. Cabrera's 1,822 hits ranked just three behind Alex Rodriguez and 15 behind Tigers Hall of Famer Al Kaline. Everybody from Kaline on up is in the Hall of Fame.

  Cabrera's 323 home runs by age 30 placed him just outside the top 10. Juan Gonzalez ranked 10th with 340. Albert Pujols, by comparison, hit 366 home runs before he turned 30, and that still ranked outside the top five.

  Where Cabrera ranks strongest is in doubles. Only Joe Medwick (416) hit more doubles by age 30 among modern players than Cabrera, who had 388—one ahead of Pujols.

  Cabrera's 1,140 RBIs ranked sixth, 12 behind Ken Griffey Jr. for the top five but 19 ahead of Hank Aaron.

• In 2013, Cabrera joined Albert Pujols, Jimmie Foxx, Alex Rodriguez, Al Simmons and Lou Gehrig as the only Major Leaguers in history with 10 consecutive 100-RBI seasons. Foxx (1929-1941), Gehrig (1926-1938) and Rodriguez (1998-2010) share the record with 13. If Cabrera posts 100 RBIs in 2014 as a Tiger, he'll tie Hall of Famer Harry Heilmann for the club record with seven in a row.

  Cabrera is also the third player in Major League history to post 100 RBIs in 10 of his first 11 seasons, joining Pujols and Rodriguez.

  On August 18, 2013: Cabrera hit another career milestone, tying Joe DiMaggio for 77th on the all-time list with his 361st career home run.

• 2013: Add another batting title for Miguel. Not since Roger Hornsby's reign in the 1920s had a righthanded hitter won three consecutive batting titles. Not since Ty Cobb from 1917 to 1919 had a Tiger won three in a row. 

• September 23, 2014: Cabrera became the first Tigers player with a 50-double season since fellow Venezuela Magglio Ordonez hit 54 in 2007.

  Add in Cabrera's 23 home runs and 104 RBIs, and he's just the third player in club history with 50 doubles, 20 homers, and 100 RBIs in the same season. Hank Greenberg did it in 1934 and 1940. Ordonez did so in 2007.

  Cabrera's home runs—or the relative scarcity of them this season—have always gotten more attention than his doubles. However, his 463 career doubles are second-most in Major League history for a player through his age-31 season, according to MLB Public Relations.

• September 26, 2014: Cabrera's 25th home run of the season established Cabrera as the fourth player in Major League history to post 11 consecutive seasons with at least 25 home runs and 100 RBIs.

  Alex Rodriguez leads the group with 13 straight years, starting in 1998 and ending in 2010. Hall of Famers Jimmie Foxx (1929-40) and Lou Gehrig (1927-38) each had 12-year streaks.

  Cabrera's two runs scored also pushed him across the century mark, securing his fifth straight season with 100 runs scored and 100 RBIs. It's the longest active streak in the Majors and ties Cabrera with Hall of Famer Charlie Gehringer (1932-36) for the longest streak in franchise history.  (Jake Kring-Schreifels - MLB.com - 9/28/2014)

• May 17, 2015: Miguel Cabrera hit his 400th career home. Cabrera's milestone shot gave him the most homers by a Venezuelan-born player, passing Andres Galarraga. Cabrera has now hit more homers than any other native of South America.

• May 21, 2015: Cabrera became the 76th player in Major League history, and the second Venezuelan-born Major Leaguer, to 1,400 career RBIs.  At 32 years and 33 days, he's also the fifth-youngest player to reach the mark.

• August 16, 2015: Cabrera set the Major League record for RBIs by a Venezuelan-born player.  Like the Venezuelan-born home run record he broke in May, Cabrera passed the great Andres Galarraga, a hero in his home country and one of the great run producers of his time.  

• Cabrera  ended the 2015 season with a batting average of .338, which was good enough to lead not only the AL but also all of MLB. That makes for his fourth batting title in the last five seasons. He was limited by injuries during this, his age-32 campaign, but he managed to qualify with 511 plate appearances. He ended his season with a line of .338/.440/.534 (170 OPS+) and 18 homers in 119 games.

• As of the beginning of the 2016 season, Cabrera leads all active players with a career batting average of .321.

• June 12, 2016: Playing in his 2,000th career game, Cabrera smacked a double to center field for the 2,4000th hit of his career. At 33 years, 55 days old, he became the fifth-youngest player in Major League history to reach the milestone.

• July 22, 2016:  Cabrera became the eighth player in Major League history to reach 1,500 RBIs and 400 home runs by the end of his 14th Major League season.

• August 4, 2016: Cabrera became the fourth active player with 12 or more 25 home run seasons. He joined David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, and Alex Rodriguez. 

• August 24, 2016: Miguel's otherworldly hitting has become such a given that it doesn't even seem to faze anyone in the clubhouse when he has a four-hit game.

  "I've been watching that on [television] for a long time," said teammate Justin Upton after the Tigers' 9-4 victory over the Twins. "It's no surprise — like I said, it's fun to watch."

  Cabrera notched the 44th four-hit game of his career, with a solo homer, two doubles and a single.  Putting things in perspective, Cabrera, in his age-33 season, is now second in four-hit games among active players, behind only Ichiro Suzuki's 53. With his 44th such game, he moved into a tie for 29th among all hitters since 1913 with former Tiger Ivan Rodriguez.  

  "It doesn't surprise me that he's had 44 [four-hit games]," said manager Brad Ausmus with a chuckle. "[He and I] have probably combined for 50."  Miguel enjoyed the 20th game of his career with three or more extra-base hits, moving him into a tie with Robinson Cano for second among active players behind only Mark Teixeira (21).  

  For most baseball players, such a performance would be a career day; for Miguel Cabrera it's just another day at the office.  (Park - MLB.com)

• September 18, 2016: Cabrera became the 100th player in Major League history to reach the milestone of 2,500 hits, and just the eighth to do so by his age-33 season, joining Hank Aaron, Ty Cobb, Jimmie Foxx, Rogers Hornsby, Mel Ott, Alex Rodriguez and Robin Yount. According to Elias Sports Bureau, he's the youngest to reach 2,500 hits since Aaron did it in 1967.

• Miguel has his name all over the record books as he continues to build his Hall of Fame resume. In the second inning of a 15-5 win over the White Sox, the Tigers' first baseman collected another milestone by drilling a two-out, two-run double for his 1,000th career extra-base hit.  

  After hitting a double in the first over the head of center fielder Leury Garcia, Cabrera pulled a knuckle-curve off Derek Holland in the second, short-hopping it off the left-field wall. It was Cabrera's first multi-extra-base hit game this season. (Horrobin - mlb.com - 6/2/17)

• April 18, 2018: A home run  gave Cabrera 1,623 RBI in his career, tying him with Chipper Jones.

• June 14, 2019:  Miguel's 469th career home run pushed him past Hall of Famer Chipper Jones and into 34th place on MLB’s all-time list. Next up is Carlos Delgado, with 473.

• Sept. 2, 2019: Cabrera moved into a tie with Stan Musial and Willie Stargell for 31st all time with 475 home runs.

• 2019 Season: Cabrera was the veteran run producer the Tigers needed him to be. His .369 average (41-for-111) with runners in scoring position was third-highest in Major League Baseball among hitters with at least 100 at-bats in such situations. He batted .298 (48-for-161) with an .839 OPS from July 29 to season’s end.

  However, Cabrera’s .398 slugging percentage was the lowest of his 17-year Major League career. His .744 OPS marked just his second season under .750, both in the last three years. His drop in extra-base power, combined with his limited mobility often left him stranded on base.

• Aug. 30, 2020: Cabrera became the eighth player in Tigers history to record 2,000 hits with the club after reaching the mark with an RBI single against the Twins.

• September 23, 2020: Cabrera’s 1,454th run scored pushed him past Bobby Abreu for the lead among Venezuelan-born Major Leaguers. He already leads his countrymen in home runs and RBI, and he’s just 17 base hits away from tying Omar Vizquel’s mark in that category.

• Feb 27, 2021: Miggy eyes 3,000-hit, 500-HR milestones: The sound from the back fields at Tigertown this week was unmistakable, even beyond the outfield fences. There was no mistaking where the yelling was coming from.

  Miguel Cabrera was back on the field, egging guys on in practice, helping guys through the humdrum of a Spring Training workout.

  “I love to play baseball. I love to have fun in the field,” Cabrera said on Friday in a phone interview. “I love going out there. I can show these guys you can have fun, but at the same time you can work hard. The more relaxed we can be in the field, I think the better we can think and react to plays we have in the field. I try to enjoy this and try to have fun. I try to do what I love, play baseball.”

  Of all Cabrera’s career feats, his ability to have fun through the grind of Spring Training every year remains a marvel. As he nears his 38th birthday and his 19th Major League season, he still flashes the enthusiasm of someone half his age.

  That’s fitting, since some of the biggest names in camp with Cabrera are right around that mark. Riley Greene was 2 years old, and Spencer Torkelson was 3, when Cabrera made his Major League debut with a walk-off homer for the Marlins on June 20, 2003.  Even for players who have been around a while longer, it’s hard to remember baseball before Miggy. Those kids who grew up watching him as a force, trying to emulate his swing, are now his teammates.

  “I'm still young,” Cabrera said with a laugh. “It's kind of weird when they tell you that [they grew up watching you], but at the same time, you realize how long I've been hitting, for a lot of years. It's when you start to realize that you've been here in this game for a long time.”

  They’re now playing alongside him as he nears milestones. For him, his run at history is their history.Cabrera needs 13 home runs for 500, and 134 hits for 3,000. He hopes he can reach both this season.“It's one of my goals this year,” he said. (J Beck - MLB.com - Feb 26, 2021)

• 2020 Season: 

  First 25 games: .176/.269/.319

  Last 32 games: .310/.378/.496

  Cabrera struggled at the outset, but he turned it around in late August to provide hope he still has something left as he moves into his late-30s. Cabrera reeled off a 13-game hit streak at one point and his underlying Statcast numbers showed a hitter still able to do damage, with an average exit velocity in the 97th percentile on MLB and a hard-hit percentage in the 91st percentile. Cabrera is incentivized to have a big year in 2021—he is 13 home runs away from 500 and 134 hits shy of 3,000. (Kyle Glaser - Baseball America - April, 2021)

• Miguel passed Babe Ruth on the all-time hits list.  Cabrera’s second-inning single was the 2,873rd hit of his career, pulling Miggy even with the Bambino on the all-time list.  He added another single in the fourth inning to bring his total to 2,874, and now he stands alone at 45th.

  It’s a cool milestone on Cabrera’s quest for 3,000 hits and 500 home runs. Just six players in MLB history have accomplished both, though never in the same year.  Cabrera will have to pick up his pace to get there, but this was a start. “It’s incredible,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said after the game. “I mean, we do have to all take a minute and reflect a little bit.  I know the dugout was very excited when he got that hit.  I don’t care what generation you were born in, how old you are, how big a baseball fan you even are, you know Babe Ruth.  I mean, Babe Ruth is synonymous with baseball on so many levels.  So Miggy should be very proud with the names like him that he’s not only catching but surpassing.”  (Beck & Klemish - mlb.com)

• Miguel's 2,878th hit of his MLB career, moved him past Omar Vizquel for 43rd on the all-time Major League list and give him the most by a Venezuelan-born Major Leaguer.

  In a season when every hit seems to be approaching or reaching a milestone, Cabrera admitted this one had been weighing on him for a while.  “I feel like I’m relieved right now,” he said after the game, “because too many people had been talking to me in the 2020 offseason and today [that] I’m going to pass this record.  That kept in my head.  So right now I’m a little relieved I don’t have to worry about that.” Cabrera already leads all Venezuelan-born Major Leaguers with 489 career home runs, 1,735 RBI, 1,461 runs scored and 582 doubles. 

  The hits record required him to surpass some incredible contact hitters, including Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio, as well as legendary Venezuelan slugger Andrés Galarraga, a player Cabrera idolized growing up.  (Beck - mlb.com - 5/12/2021)

• May 12, 2021: No Venezuelan-born player has more hits than Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera.

  Cabrera entered Wednesday's game against the Royals one hit behind Omar Vizquel for the distinction and wasted little time surpassing the former shortstop. He moved into 43rd on the all-time list and first for Venezuelan-born players with an RBI single in the fifth.

  His 2,878th career hit was his second RBI single of the game.

• June 18, 2021:  With a double in the sixth inning for No. 586 in his career, Miguel took sole possession of 20th place on the all-time list. Cabrera now trails Todd Helton (592) for 19th place.

• June 28, 2021:  Miguel hit his 493rd career home run, tying him with Lou Gehrig and Fred McGriff for 28th on the Major League list. 

• Aug. 22, 2021: Cabrera became the 28th player ever to hit 500 career MLB home runs.

• Sept. 6, 2021: Cabrera’s two singles and a ground-rule double in his final three at-bats, and he has strung together seven consecutive hits for the first time in his career. His previous best was six, last reached in 2015, the year he won his fourth AL batting title. It’s the longest consecutive hit streak by a Tiger since Omar Infante had seven in 2013.

• September 20, 2021:  Miguel's third-inning sacrifice fly was the 1,800th RBI of his career.  He's the 20th player to reach the milestone since RBI became an official statistic in 1920.

• April 23, 2022: Miguel delivered the 3,000th hit of his decorated career, becoming the 33rd major leaguer to reach the mark and the first player from Venezuela to accomplish the feat.

• April 23, 2022:  Of course Miguel Cabrera's 3,000th career hit went to right field. It’s how he got here.

  As the four-time batting champion, two-time MVP and Triple Crown winner stepped to the plate with a runner on first, he could feel the weight of baseball history on his shoulders, the sights of thousands of cell phones on him, waiting to see him swing.

  “I couldn't even feel my legs in the first at-bat,” Cabrera said.

  Said manager A.J. Hinch: “For a veteran, 39 years old, 20 years in the Majors, done everything in the game, it's fun to watch him be nervous. I think it's awesome. I think the kid in him is realizing what it means.”

  With that single in the first inning of a 13-0 win in the opener of a doubleheader vs. Colorado, Cabrera became the 33rd member of baseball’s 3,000-hit club and just the seventh with 3,000 hits and 500 home runs. (J Beck - MLB.com - April 23, 2022) 

• April 25, 2022: Miguel Cabrera and Ty France shared the honor as co-Players of the Week in the American League.

  Cabrera went 7-for-18 at the plate (.389), but no hit carried more impact than his single to right field in the bottom of the first inning Saturday versus the Rockies. That knock made Cabrera the 33rd member of baseball’s 3,000-hit club, and just the seventh with at least 3,000 hits and 500 home runs.

  This marks the 16th time Cabrera has been named Player of the Week. Since the award's inauguration in the NL (1973) and AL (1974), no player has accrued more weekly honors.

  France, who leads the Majors in hits (24) and total bases (42), went 13-for-26 (.500) with three home runs, 10 RBIs and a 1.436 OPS en route to being named AL Player of the Week. He helped the Mariners go 5-1 during the week and jump into first place in the AL West. France had one of the best games of his career as he set career highs with five hits and five RBIs in a 13-7 victory over the Royals. His 19 RBIs trail only Cleveland’s José Ramirez (20) for the MLB lead. (B Murphy - MLB.com - April 25, 2022)

• May 7, 2022: Miggy is in another special club: 600 2Bs, 500 HRs, 3,000 hits

  It was the 600th career double for Detroit's DH, making Cabrera one of only three players in MLB history to have 3,000+ career hits, 600+ doubles and 500+ home runs. He joins Hank Aaron and Albert Pujols in that elite tier.

  When two runs scored on Cabrera's latest milestone hit, he passed Frank Robinson for No. 21 on the all-time RBI list with 1,813. (B DuBose - MLB.com - May 7, 2022)  

• May 12, 2022: Miguel Cabrera's 601st career double ties him with Barry Bonds for 17th on MLB all-time list.

• June 26, 2022: Cabrera moved past Rod Carew for 27th on the MLB's all-time hits list with No. 3,054.

• June 28, 2022: -- Miguel Cabrera is no Man of Steal. But he did his best to invoke Rickey Henderson. No, he didn't swipe a base in the Tigers' 4-3 loss to the Giants. Cabrera emulated Henderson the best way he knows how: hitting. Cabrera notched career hits Nos. 3,055 and 3,056, passing Henderson to take sole possession of 26th place in all-time hits in AL/NL history. He is now four away from tying Craig Biggio for 25th place (3,060). "We've watched Miguel pass so many big names and icons, Hall of Famers, just names that are unfathomable in our sport," manager A.J. Hinch said, "and it's because Miguel should be right up there with them. Nothing surprises me because we've been doing this for a year and a half now, but it's pretty amazing, the names he's among." (S Chen - MLB.com - June 28, 2022)

• July 11, 2022: Two Miggy Milestones on one swing:   605 doubles tie Paul Molitor for 15th all-time   1,836 RBI tie Ken Griffey Jr. for 15th all-time.

• May 23, 2023: The sight of Miguel Cabrera knocking a base hit around Kauffman Stadium has become all too familiar for Royals fans over the years. The way the Tigers struggled, the hit was a welcome sight for both hitter and team.

  As Cabrera’s sixth-inning line drive landed in center field for a one-out single, he not only furthered a much-needed Tigers rally in a 4-1 loss, but he also made a bit of history. His 3,103rd career hit was his 263rd against the Royals, tying him with Hall of Famer Rod Carew for most in history. (Jason Beck)

• May 30, 2023: With his third hit, Miguel Cabrera (5,272) passed Ken Griffey Jr. (5,271) for 15th on the all-time total bases list. Next on the list is Adrián Beltré (5,309),” ESPN Stats & Info tweeted.

• Aug. 8, 2023: Detroit Tigers‘ Designated Hitter Miguel Cabrera had two hits, passing Tony Gwynn on the all-time hits list with 3,142. This now puts Cabrera tied for 20th with Robin Yount for all-time. (Justin Merrlles)
  
  
• Sept. 23, 2023: Cabrera continued his steady ascent up Major League Baseball's offensive leaderboards, tying the venerable Henry Aaron for 13th all-time with his 624th career double and good friend Adrián Beltré for 14th with his 1,151st career extra-base hit. (Sonja Chen)

• Miguel was a fine shortstop throughout his amateur career. But the Marlins moved him to third base.

• But first base is his best defensive position. And by 2009, he had become one of the best in the game.

• Cabrera has a strong and accurate arm, soft hands and agility with quick feet at third base. He also has a quick release. He has the athleticism at short that you like to see.
• He credits the work with Manny Crespo, the Marlins' roving infield instructor, with smoothing out some of his footwork in the field. He has smooth, quick actions and he's making all kinds of plays: in the hole, behind the bag. His arm is very strong. He can throw from anywhere, making the tough plays on the run from the hot corner or at shortstop.
• With the Marlins, midway through the 2003 season, Miguel moved to left field. His athleticism enabled him to learn quickly.

• Carolina Mudcats (SL-Marlins) teammate (and former Marlins teammate) Chris Aguila spent hours talking with Cabrera about outfield play after farm director Marc DelPiano suggested the former shortstop-turned-third baseman add the outfield position to his repertoire.

  FILLS HOLES

• In 2003, playing left for the Marlins allowed them to fill an offensive void. During the first half, Todd Hollandsworth started in left but didn't hit.

  Then in August, when third baseman Mike Lowell got injured and the Marlins acquired Jeff Conine from the Orioles, Cabrera moved to third and Conine filled in in left—and the Marlins lost very little offense even though their best hitter (Lowell) was out of the lineup.

• In the 2003 National League playoffs, Cabrera, then 20 years old, was put into right field.

  "I've never played right field in my life," Cabrera said. "Even in Little League."

  Oh yeah, he also batted fourth during those playoffs. What a poised rookie.

• Cabrera was used in the outfield from 2003 through 2005, then moved back to the hot corner in 2006.
• With the Tigers, Miguel is their regular first baseman. And he saves his fellow infielders lots of errors by scooping up throws in the dirt. And he comes off the bag to catch errant throws. He can really pick it.

  Cabrera asks his teammates and coaches questions about defense every day—about angles, different plays, when to go for a ball and when to cover the base instead.

• In 2012, he moved from first base back to third base, to make room for free agent Prince Fielder. And he did a more-than-adequate job at the hot corner that season.

  And Cabrera stepped it up a notch during 2013 spring training, working hard at increasing his first-step quickness at third.

• In 2014, Fielder got traded to the Rangers. And Cabrera returned to first base.

• This is the only area of the game where Miguel does not have plus skills. His thick legs keep him from having much speed. But, he is amazingly quick for being a below average runner.

• Cabrera is a very instinctive baserunner, he's just not a real fast one.

  POST-CAREER PLAYING POSITIONS

• Oct 2, 2923:  As Miguel Cabrera wraps up his career, he already has his next chapter lined up. The Tigers named the former Triple Crown winner and two-time MVP as a special assistant to president of baseball operations Scott Harris, a role he’ll begin after Sunday’s season finale.
  
  

  “Miguel Cabrera embodies what it means to be a Tiger, and I thank him for giving us 16 wonderful seasons representing the Olde English ‘D’ and our city,” Tigers chairman and CEO Chris Ilitch said in a statement. “Miguel's historic accomplishments on the field truly make him one of the greatest Tigers in franchise history. He has also been a great teammate and is beloved by fans and throughout baseball. His big heart has made an ever-lasting impact on our community. My father was incredibly fond of Miggy and made sure he was a Tiger for the remainder of his playing career, and we’re thrilled to extend our relationship into the next chapter of his life. "While it may be the end of an era, it's a new beginning as Miguel will continue to pass along his baseball wisdom, culture-shaping values and mentorship to the next generation of Tigers players, who can aspire to the level of greatness that Miguel has achieved." (J Beck - MLB.com - Sept 29, 2023)

• September 2007: A sore groin bothered Miguel the last three weeks of the season. He played but could not run at full speed.

• July 1, 2008: Cabrera left the game with a tight left hip flexor and was day-to-day. The hip flexor bothered Miguel most of the season, but he played through it, with manager Jim Leyland admiring his zeal for the game.

  "They're not fun," Leyland said of the hip flexor injury. "They hurt. It's almost like having arthritis in your hip all the time."

• March 19, 2012: Miguel suffered a small fracture in the bone under his right eye after getting hit by a hard grounder in a spring training game. His head snapped back as the ball, off the bat of the Phillies' Hunter Pence, awkwardly shot up from the ground. He stayed on his feet but seemed dazed as he wiped blood from his face.

  "It swelled up," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "Basically, he looked like a fighter that needed a cut man and wasn't doing any good in the fight."

  Cabrera received eight stitches to close the bloody wound. He was projected to be out for two weeks.

• August 9–September 2013: Cabrera played well while dealing with a abdominal wall strain near his hip flexor for well over a month, and he was also dealing with a sore knee and bruised shin after he fouled two balls off his leg while facing Mariano Rivera at Yankee Stadium back on Aug. 9.

• October 2013: Miggy played through much groin pain during the post-season (in which the Tigers lost to the Red Sox in the ALCS). A tear in his groin limited his effectiveness.

  October 29, 2013: Cabrera underwent surgery in Philadelphia to repair the tear in his groin.

• October 24, 2014: Cabrera underwent successful surgery to remove bone spurs in his right ankle and repair a stress fracture to the navicular bone, an injury the team was not aware of previously. The surgery was performed by Dr. Robert Anderson in Charlotte, North Carolina.

  "It was a surprise, I'd say, for all of us," team president Dave Dombrowski said. "We were not aware [the stress fracture] was there. I'm not sure how long it was there. He did have a couple of screws inserted."

• July 3-Aug. 14, 2015: Miguel was on the D.L. with a Grade 3 calf strain. This was Cabrera's first time on the D.L. in his entire career, at age 33, and in his 13th Major League season. (Editor's note: From 2004-2014, Cabrera had averaged 600+ at-bats per season.)

• April 22-May2, 2017: Miggy was on the DL with a right groin strain.

• September 24, 2017:  Cabrera had two herniated disks in his back and was questionable to play again that season. An MRI conducted revealed the injury, according to manager Brad Ausmus. 

  Oct 2017: Cabrera is using the 2017 offseason to address his back issue. The Tigers slugger is hoping to cure pain from herniated disks with physical therapy.

• May 4-June 1, 2018: Miggy was on the DL with right hamstring strain.

• June 12-Oct 29, 2018: Cabrera had season-ending surgery after rupturing his left biceps tendon.

• March 30, 2019: Only three games into the season, Miguel's right hand was struck by an Aaron Sanchez fastball. X-rays were negative. 

  “It swelled up, so we got him off the field and got him x-rayed,” manager Ron Gardenhire said. “Everything’s fine. Nothing’s broken. We’ll see how he is tomorrow.”

  Cabrera was considered day-to-day. 

• April 11-25, 2021: Miggy was on the IL with left biceps strain.

• June 22, 2021: Cabrera left a game after four innings, having tweaked his right calf sliding into second base a couple of innings prior. His slow acceleration out of the batter’s box on a fourth-inning groundout signaled to manager A.J. Hinch that Cabrera was hampered. He is day-to-day.

• May 28, 2022: Cabrera left Saturday’s loss to Cleveland after his back locked up on him, according to manager A.J. Hinch, who was awaiting further information.

• Sept 3-19, 2022:  DH Miguel Cabrera (left biceps strain) was placed on the IL. While tests showed no major structural damage in Cabrera’s left biceps, which he strained on a swing, the issue is still serious enough to sideline him. Manager A.J. Hinch said the Tigers are hopeful he’ll miss just 10-14 days.