Four things we learned about the Detroit Tigers in May

3. The veteran presences of Jeimer Candelario and Robbie Grossman

Granted, there have been a few defensive lapses by Candelario but who can forget the play in the Spencer Turnbull no-hitter.

But he has been clutch when Detroit needs him to be. With runners in scoring position and two outs, he has put up a slash line of .300/.364/.300 (3-for-10) which does not blow off the hinges but for May, he has been productive .313/ .394/.490 with an OPS of .884. This was a home run that Detroit needed a few weeks back.

Robbie Grossman found his power stroke in May by going back to the swing mechanics that worked out well for him in Oakland. He has hit four home runs with a slash line of .265/.366/.480 with an OPS of .846 and continues to walk at a 15.3% clip.

He is a veteran that the Tigers actually spent money on. The value continues to show in an outfield that has been wildly inconsistent.  Nomar Mazara has struggled to put together a series of quality at-bats and JaCoby Jones and Victor Reyes have both been sent down to Toledo. Even when Grossman was not hitting with power, he was still getting on base.

An honorable mention goes to Miguel Cabrera, who keeps chipping away towards 500 home runs and 3,000 hits, and with his month of May, he is now the all-time hits leader among Venezuelan players, an honor he is very proud of.