The Tigers added one of the top free agents in this offseason when they landed Prince Fielder, adding some power to an already-effective lineup. Here are our MLB predictions for Detroit’s starting lineup.

Projected Lineup

Alex Avila (Catcher) – The young catcher exploded on the scene last year, hitting .295 with 19 home runs and 82 RBI. He earned a spot on the All-Star team, plus led all catchers with a .895 OPS. At just 24-years old, Avila is a reason for Detroit fans to get excited.

Prince Fielder (First Base) – With the addition of Fielder, the Tigers are suddenly an even more formidable team and have one of the more feared lineups in all of baseball. The All-Star first baseman hit .299 with 38 home runs and 120 RBI with the Milwaukee Brewers last year, and he now has at least 30 homers in the last five seasons. The son of former Tigers star Cecil Fielder is also one of the more durable players in the league. He has played in at least 157 games in each of the past six seasons.

Ryan Raburn (Second Base) – Raburn is a versatile player who figures to take over second base full time. He hit just .213 in the first half of last season, but progressed in the second half, when he hit .341. In 121 games last year, he had 14 home runs and 49 RBI, which is promising for a second baseman. If Rayburn can cut down on his strikeouts, he could be poised for a break-out season.

Jhonny Peralta (Shortstop) – After a strong season last year, Peralta solidified his position in the lineup and has now earned himself the starting job at shortstop. He has improved his game and has learned to strike out less, which resulted in him finishing with a career-high .299 batting average. He also put up solid power numbers of 21 home runs and 86 RBI.

Miguel Cabrera (Third Base) – Cabrera will try to make the move to third this season to make room for Fielder at first, but don’t be surprised if Miguel sees some time as the DH if his glove isn’t up to par at the hot corner. Cabrera’s real asset is at the plate, where he is truly one of the elite players in the league. Last season he hit .344 with 30 home runs and 105 RBI and, at just 28, is showing no signs of slowing down. He’s one of the most consistent sluggers in the league, hitting at least .324 with at least 30 home runs and 100 RBI in each of the last three years.

Andy Dirks (Left Field) -It seems that Dirks will have every opportunity to hold down the open spot in left field, but after hitting just .251 with 7 home runs and 28 RBI in 78 games last year, it’s hard to expect a lot from him offensively. He did just turn 26 in January, so there is still an outside shot for him to have a breakout season.

Austin Jackson (Center Field) – After hitting.293 in 2010, Jackson suffered a major drop in offense last year in his second season as the starting center fielder. He hit just .249 in 2011, but he made up for it by providing consistent Gold Glove-caliber defense. He is also extremely fast on the bases, which has resulted in 21 triples and 49 stolen bases the past two seasons.

Brennan Boesch (Right Field) – A thumb injury ended Boesch’s season early in 2011. He was really coming along nicely, hitting .283 with 16 home runs and 54 RBI in 115 games. He is expected to be healthy and ready to go for 2012, and the Tigers are hoping he can continue from where he left off before the injury.

Delmon Young (Designated Hitter) – After the Tigers acquired Young from the Minnesota Twins via a midseason trade, the former No. 1 overall pick really came into his own and played extremely well for Detroit. Young hit .274 with 8 home runs and 32 RBI in just 40 games with the Tigers. At the age of 26, he is still relatively young, and even though he has never reached his potential, he still has a lot of time to do so in the future.

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