The downtown saloons opened early Friday morning. Baseball isn't the only Opening Day tradition in Detroit.

"It's almost like deer season in Pennsylvania," Jim Leyland declared.

"I just wish the weather could be a little better for the fans. But when they get a little anti-freeze in them, they won't know if it's 30 degrees or 80.

"And I'll tell you what," Leyland added. "If I wasn't the manager, I'd be right there with them."

A blanket and pillows were stacked in the corner of Leyland's office. He had spent the night at the ballpark, on the couch, after the team arrived home from Kansas City Thursday night.

Leyland's dirty laundry from the recent eight-day road trip was piled high on a chair in the rear of his office.

"Do you have a washer and dryer at your house?" Leyland asked the lone female reporter in the room before the game.

"I do," she replied, wary of what might be coming next.

"Do you think you could take my underwear and T-shirts home and wash them for me," the manager asked with an playful grin.

"As long as it doesn't involve any ironing," the reporter replied, grinning back.

By 8 a.m., the tailgate parties had commenced. The parking lots had hiked their prices according. Six blocks from the ballpark, the going rate was 20 bucks.

By decree of the Michigan State Senate, it was Ernie Harwell Day in Detroit. Ernie, who continues to battle terminal cancer, was home, no doubt listening to the game on radio or watching TV.

Inside the Tigers' clubhouse, the new players were locating their lockers. "They kept me and Scott together," noted centerfielder Austin Jackson who will dress next to fellow rookie Scott Sizemore.

Dontrelle Willis demanded to know why Magglio Ordonez's 14-year-old son was in the clubhouse instead of in school. The kid just grinned.

Magglio Jr. wasn't the only one who skipped school or work to be at the ballpark Friday afternoon.