The Detroit Tigers have 11 retired numbers and honored names on a wall in Comerica Park. One of the people is the Tigers’ former broadcaster for 42 years, Ernie Harwell, and the other person is Jackie Robinson whose number is retired throughout the entire MLB (Major League Baseball). That leaves nine former Detroit players, three of which are Ty Cobb, Hank Greenberg, and Al Kaline.

Ty Cobb played with the Tigers from 1905- 1926. Many people think of him as the all-time greatest baseball player; better than Babe Ruth. While with the Tigers, Cobb played on three World Series teams and won 12 batting average title; more than anyone else in all of baseball. One of his greatest achievements would have to be his lifetime batting average of .367, which is the highest lifetime average of any MLB player. He is also second all-time for the most hits, only behind Pete Rose. In 1936, Cobb became the very first person to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Hank Greenberg played with the Tigers from 1933- 1946, but from 1941- 1945, he was doing military service. Greenberg, commonly known as “Hammerin’ Hank”, won two Most Valuable Player Awards and led the American League in home runs in four different seasons. Greenberg finished his career with 331 home runs, a .313 batting average, and 1,276 run-batted-in (RBIs). In 1956, “Hammerin’ Hank” was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, becoming the first Jewish person to be in the Hall of Fame.

Al Kaline played in Detroit from 1953- 1974. Kaline was known for his great hitting and strong arm in the outfield, where he once threw out two runners during the same inning. During his career with the Tigers, he was in 15 all-star games and won ten Gold Glove Awards. Kaline finished his career with a .297 batting average, 3,007 hits, and 399 home runs. In 1980, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.