Last year, crippling injuries _ to Kenny Rogers, to Joel Zumaya, and to Gary Sheffield _ cost the Tigers their chance to repeat as American League champs.
        While that series of freak injuries _ Rogers’ blood clot, Zumaya’s ruptured finger, and Sheffield’s displaced shoulder _ were nobody’s fault, the Tigers are determined to do everything possible to prevent a repeat.
        That is where strength and conditioning coach Javair Gillett comes in.
        He is one of the least known members of the Tigers’ support staff _ but, in Jim Leyland’s estimation, one of the most important.
        “He’s huge for this organization,” the Tigers’ manager declares.
        “I’ve never really paid much attention to those guys (strength and fitness coaches) in the past,” Leyland admits.
        But he does now.
        It is Gillett who sets up the players’ off-season exercise programs and prescribes the drills they perform at the start of practice each day.
        Running, stretching, and weight-lifting all fall within Gillett’s domain.
        “It’s hard for those guys to get all of the players’ respect _ But he has it,” Leyland says.
        The Tigers hope it will pay dividends.