The Tigers and the agent for their former closer, Joakim Soria, had discussions that "went well" at this week's general managers meetings in Boca Raton, Florida, according to a source with knowledge of the talks.
The source said an offer could be made as early as by next week.
Soria, considered one of the top-five relievers on the free-agent market, is seeking a multi-year deal and likely a raise from his $7 million salary in 2015, a season he split between the Tigers and Pittsburgh Pirates.
And he'll likely get it, too, given the interest he is drawing from several teams, including another of his former teams, the Texas Rangers, as well as the Los Angeles Angels, New York Mets and Boston Red Sox, whose new president, Dave Dombrowski, brought Soria to the Tigers in 2014.