Matt Manning had been here only once before, and if it felt surreal then — as an 18-year-old high school prospect the Tigers hadn’t yet drafted with the ninth overall pick in 2016 — it surely did Friday morning.
This was the first official day of Major League Baseball’s second attempt at spring training ahead of a 2020 season that's still no guarantee. And there were a litany of new rules and protocols everyone was required to follow at Comerica Park as pitchers and catchers — and a few others, including one Miguel Cabrera — reported for duty.