A.L. CENTRAL Tigers GM focuses on positives

Still, the team hasn't had a winning team in a decade.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
As the Detroit Tigers spent another week reeling -- if that's a strong enough word for an 0-6 trip to Toronto and New York -- toward an infamous destination of 120 losses and the New York Mets' 1962 record for ineptitude, catcher Brandon Inge was quoted as saying, "Everyone is numb to it. No one wants to hear about it anymore."
Unfortunately, it's everywhere. Even on the Internet, where Stephen T. Tremp, transplanted from Motown to Southern California and distraught over the demise of his beloved team under Owner Michael Ilitch, has created a Web site called GROIN -- not to be confused with the groans the Tigers normally produce.
GROIN stands for Get Rid Of Ilitch Now.
Or as Tremp explains on the site:
"This site is composed by dedicated people who love the Detroit Tigers but are opposed to the neglect being shown by, and the direction of this team under Michael Ilitch."
Struggling team
The Tigers haven't had a winning season in a decade, and that probably can't be narrowed to the owner's neglect or a series of bad trades and signings by a series of general managers or a succession of bad drafts and developments.
The one certainty is that 2003 is what it is, a season seemingly without progress from April to September, although President and General Manager Dave Dombrowski disputed that when reached by phone.
Asked if there had been positives, Dombrowski cited the professionalism established by undaunted manager Alan Trammell and his staff, and the development of several young hitters, in particular, who were asked to carry more of the load than they should have in a lineup without much veteran production.
"There's a guy like Eric Munson, who made the transition [from catcher] to third base and has hit 18 home runs and would have more than 20 if he hadn't [broken a thumb]," Dombrowski said. "You look at a guy like Craig Monroe, who has 19 home runs as a rookie, and a Carlos Pena with 17 in his first full season. They've shown ability, but they're counted on to do more than should be expected at this stage of their careers."
So where do the Tigers go from here?
Dombrowski said there were arms in the system, talent at the lower levels and that he would be freed of some unproductive contracts this winter and next.