DETROIT -- This much we know about the 60-game schedule: The Tigers will not lose 114 games again this year, nor will they lose 98 or more games for a fourth consecutive season. It is mathematically impossible. On the flip side, if they win 47 games again, they’ll be overjoyed.

The Tigers are embracing the many possibilities in between. They’re also embracing the belief that they’ve had it with the losing.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen this year. But the thing we know is we’ve learned a lot from these last years, and we’re tired of getting our teeth kicked in,” said Opening Day starter Matthew Boyd. “It’s happened a lot. It’s not fun. And we’ve got a lot of guys that people have given up on that are here now, and they’re making a name for themselves.

“We have guys that people have pushed to the side. We’ve got a bunch of guys that are just a bunch of junkyard dogs, and we’re excited to go. We don’t know what’s going to happen, but we’re hungry.”

What needs to go right?
For Detroit to experience significant improvement, Miguel Cabrera will need to be healthy and productive. He doesn’t have to find a time machine to go back to his Triple Crown form of 2012. He doesn’t even need to hit for big power; C.J. Cron and Jonathan Schoop can pick up the slack on that. But Cabrera needs to be a run producer again. His slimmed-down form creates hope on the health end, and his bat heated up near the end of Summer Camp after a slow start. On the pitching side, the Tigers need Michael Fulmer to slot back into the rotation and Buck Farmer to emerge as an effective eighth-inning reliever.

Big question
Do the Tigers have enough offense to compete with the rest of their division? They should have enough pitching to stay in games. The middle of their lineup looks better with Cabrera, Cron, Schoop and Cameron Maybin in some order. But can Niko Goodrum, Christin Stewart and Jeimer Candelario help lengthen the lineup? Can JaCoby Jones become a productive hitter? Can Austin Romine hit in his first opportunity at regular at-bats?

Prospect to watch
Casey Mize is coming to the Tigers rotation, especially now that Jordan Zimmermann is out for potentially the season. The only question is when Mize will arrive. It won’t be Opening Day, but it might not be long after that, maybe by the end of the first homestand. His business-like approach to Summer Camp and his work on all of his pitches likely moved up his timetable. When he arrives, his splitter will become one of the most talked-about pitches in the American League. It’s unique, and he throws it very well.

On the schedule
The tough news for the Tigers is that they are scheduled for 20 games in 20 days to open the season, and 37 games in 38 days before Aug. 31. The good news is most of those matchups are at home, including a nine-game stretch at Comerica Park after they open the season with a three-game series in Cincinnati. They will see a lot of National League Central clubs early, including six games against the Reds and four against the Cardinals, but the universal designated hitter for this season makes that much easier.

Team MVP will be …
Take away the wear and tear of a 162-game schedule and the cold weather that Detroit usually faces to open the season, and Cabrera has two big obstacles out of his way. He might not hit for the power many expect, but his healthy knees allow him to get back to his old swing, which should at least provide the gap power to bring baserunners around. But he can use the adrenaline of competitive baseball. The longer the Tigers stay up in the standings, the better Cabrera could be, a relationship that could feed off each other long enough for Miggy to have a pretty good season.

Team Cy Young will be …
This might come down to whether Boyd stays for the whole season or if the Tigers trade him by the Aug. 31 deadline. With an improved curveball and changeup to go with the fastball-slider combination he leaned on last year, he has the chance to take another big step forward in his career. If he’s traded, however, the uncertainty with the rest of Detroit’s rotation could create an opportunity for Spencer Turnbull to translate his frenetic pitches into success, or for Mize to emerge quickly as a front-line starter.

Bold prediction
The Tigers have a chance to be within a couple games of .500 at the halfway point. It’s a crazy notion for a team that lost 114 games last season, but Gardenhire’s Tigers teams have a history of starting well. Even last year’s club started 8-4 and was within two games of .500 after 38 games before an 0-10 homestand ushered in the slide. Detroit has easy travel for the first half, aside from a St. Louis-Pittsburgh road trip, and it doesn’t face Minnesota until the last weekend of August. The second half could be brutal for the Tigers, especially if they deal veterans at the deadline, but they could start out better than expected.