By George Eichorn of the Detroit Monitor 

    Thirty-one-year-old Brandon Inge is glad this off-season is unlike the one a year ago. The Detroit Tigers third baseman knows he will not be asked to catch — except in the case of emergency — as his club heads to Lakeland, Florida, to open spring training drills. Inge is entrenched at third base now that the Tigers picked up two new catchers in the off-season. We caught up with the eight-year veteran recently at Comerica Park for this Monitor interview.

Q. How much better was it attending TigerFest this year after missing it in 2008 due to the uncertainty of where you would play?

Inge: “It was a little better feeling coming here this year. Last year I was advised not to come (Tiger Fest). This year was a different situation. I always liked TigerFest. It’s good to be back, talk to the fans and see you guys (media). I’m excited about it. I cannot wait for the season this year.”

Q. How do you feel about the left side of the infield now with you at third and Adam Everett at shortstop?

Inge: “Well, Adam is incredible. I’ve known him for a long time — coming up through the minor leagues. He’s just a class act and on top of that, he’s one of the best shortstops I’ve ever seen in my life. It’s going to be great. He can cover a lot of range. It’s going to make a whole new dynamic for this infield. We can shift around a little bit more, cover a lot more balls and — I think — it should make the pitchers a little bit more comfortable.”

Q. How does this Tigers team get over the disaster of 2008 when you were favored to contend for the World Series yet finished last in your division?

Inge: “Last year there was a lot of expectation (and) I lot of hype. It seemed to be that maybe the focus got off a little bit of (just) playing baseball. People are wondering if we’re going to be all right, well, I can guarantee it’s going to be great. And the additions we made may not have been big blockbuster moves like they have in the past where it seems like we get a big name for top dollar but the guys we got are clubhouse guys. They are guys who are going to contribute a lot, for instance Gerald Laird and Matt Treanor, the two guys on the catching staff. (They) are great for running a pitching staff, that’s huge for us, they’re great defensively, and are just all around good ballplayers. And with Adam Everett we did a lot to solidify our defense now. Those are the areas we struggled at last year.”

Q. What about the Tigers offense in 2009?

Inge: “Our offense is going to be there of course — you have (Miguel) Cabrera and (Magglio) Ordonez. Look at our lineup. As long as we stay healthy, we’re going to be fine — and without the expectations we can just go out there and play baseball.”

Q. You upgraded the starting pitching staff it would appear by obtaining Edwin Jackson form American League champion Tampa Bay.

Inge: “Obviously he is one of the guys I don’t want to face (as a hitter). I’m glad he’s on our team. He’s a great pitcher. He’s just one addition. There are so many little ones that people don’t understand that are actually big but because of last year and we made all kinds of blockbuster moves last year, and it didn’t work out so now everyone kinds of just puts them off. From a player’s perspective we’ve done a lot and right where we want to be going into spring training. Like I said, I can’t wait to get down there.”

Q. What you think of the new bullpen stopper, right-hander Brandon Lyon of Arizona?

Inge: “It’s a good one (move). A very good one. He’s a great pitcher and is going to bring a huge addition to our bullpen. He’s pretty dominant. I remember he just throws strikes, he’s going to go out there and get you out … from what I have heard, and I don’t know him personally, he’s a competitor, that’s half of it there. If he goes out and is going to throw a good game then, that’s something we need in the bullpen especially.”

Q. You remain pretty upbeat about this Tigers team heading into training camp, why so?

Inge: “There’s not a place on this team that I would look at (and say) we’d be dead weak at. I’m excited about it. Honestly, I think we have to get back to the 2006 form where it was one game at a time. We concentrated on one win and the next day we went for another one. Before you knew it, we have a great record and we were in the World Series. We have to get back to that form.”

Q. What do you make of the large number of unsigned veteran players including former Tigers catcher Pudge Rodriguez?

Inge: “I cannot believe all the unsigned guys out there. I don’t know what it’s due to, maybe the economy, maybe everything trying to transition a little bit but, yeah, some of the those guys are pretty big names. I don’t think they’re going to get the money they want to sign for. It depends if they’re going to hold off or not.”

Buy George Eichorn’s book, “Detroit Sports Broadcasters On the Air,” for $19.99 at barnesandnoble.com. Reach him at geichorn@yahoo.com or (586) 296-6007.

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