It shouldn't be an issue after the first week or two of camp. Polanco has worked with several different shortstops during his career, including in Detroit when Guillen has been injured or rested. Besides that, Polanco and Renteria were teammates in St. Louis for several years.

I cannot bear it anymore! I'm sick. I need to know what the mock lineup is. Is Miguel Cabrera going to hit third or fourth? Will Gary Sheffield hit fifth? Please help me before I go crazy. Thank you.
-- Felix G., Adrian, Mich.

Cabrera is expected to hit either third or fifth, with Sheffield taking the other spot, but that probably won't be set until well into Spring Training. Until then, you might want to consider a hobby or something to pass the time.

It seems to me the Tigers should address the issue of where to draw the line between players playing hurt and putting them on the disabled list to get healthy. Last year, Jeremy Bonderman and Sheffield had long periods of poor production while trying to play hurt. This is detrimental to the team and cost them a number of wins. How can teams recognize a player is hurt earlier and know when it's time to stick him on the DL because he's not getting better? I respect that players want to tough it out and play though injuries, but at some point it's not worth it.
-- Dan C., Grass Lake, Mich.

Once the Tigers realized the extent of Bonderman's injury last year and how long it had bothered him, manager Jim Leyland made a point of saying he wanted his players to be up-front and tell the coaching or athletic training staff when they're hurt. Other than Leyland and the trainers watching players and pestering them, there's really no way to get it out of them. A team can't really put a player through tests or put him on the DL unless he admits he's hurt.

So let me get this straight, Detroit is going to pay Nate Robertson $21.25 million over three years. Scott Kazmir, the ace for Tampa Bay, just agreed to a one-year deal for $3.785 million. Now, am I crazy, or is it crazy that Detroit is going to pay their fourth, maybe even fifth, starting pitcher almost $6 million-$7 million more than Tampa Bay's ace? Robertson is coming off a sub-par season, and I think that money was a little too much for him. We should be focusing on locking up Cabrera long-term and even Justin Verlander before we shell out that much money for the end of the rotation.
-- Anthony B., Niagara Falls, N.Y.

Have a question about the Tigers? E-mail your query to MLB.com Tigers beat reporter Jason Beck for possible inclusion in a future Inbox column. Letters may be edited for brevity, length and/or content. First Name, Last Initial: Hometown: Email Address: Question:

The Tigers have Cabrera on their radar, and they don't have to worry about Verlander's contract for another year or two. As for your comparison, you're comparing two different situations, beyond the fact that you're comparing the Rays with the Tigers. Kazmir's contract was a one-year deal for a guy who was eligible for arbitration for the first time. Robertson was eligible for the second time, and he agreed to a longer contract that takes him past what would've been his free-agent year. He'll make a little more than Kazmir this coming season, then his salary will jump for his third arbitration year and his free-agent year. Essentially, the Tigers bought out his first year of free agency for $10.25 million -- which, given the salaries for free-agent pitchers this year, should be comparable if he progresses and continues to pitch close to 200 innings a year.

Jason, I love reading your mailbags. It puzzles me, however, that trivial questions like players' uniform numbers or Spring Training reporting dates take up space in the column, when this information clearly is listed within the Tigers Web site. If they can't find that information, they're likely not going to be able to find their way back to the mailbag! Keep up the good work.
-- Michael C., Flint, Mich.

Interesting point. Every once in a while, I'll get a question that already was answered in that week's mailbag a couple days earlier. How many of these answers have gone for nothing? In defense of the uniform numbers question, though, they weren't on the roster page until after the questions came in.

How many different positions can Brandon Inge really play without it being a setback for the team?
-- Larry S., Westland, Mich.

The Tigers would prefer Inge only play one position at a time. Otherwise, you have fewer than nine players on the field. Seriously, though, I don't think anyone -- including Inge -- could answer how many positions he can effectively play until he has a chance to work out around the infield. He says he's willing to play anywhere, and he might be able to play anywhere, and Leyland might be willing to give him a chance at a lot of positions, but time will tell. He's not going to pitch, though.