It was a better year in the Detroit Tigers' minor leagues, which beats most appraisals from the past decade.
Better draft position, more picks at the top, and -- most critically -- trades from the past 13 months that helped re-seed the farm's infield crop, all combined to renew the Tigers' kid corps. From the Gulf Coast League to Triple A Toledo, the Tigers moved from their old bottom-five status to a farm that ex-big-league general manager Jim Bowden now ranks No. 10 among 30 teams.
A few of the happy, and on occasion unhappy, stories that surfaced during a remarkable year in the Tigers' bushes.