Detroit Tigers

These Tigers prowl in the jungle of Major League Baseball. The Detroit Tigers franchise was a charter member of the American League in 1901 and has won 10 league pennants and four World Series championships (the last in 1984). For all its past success, however, the team struggled to finish with a winning record for more than a decade until the 2006 season, when the club won its first AL pennant since 1984. (Detroit lost the World Series, though, to the St. Louis Cardinals.) The baseball franchise is part of Ilitch Holdings, owned by Mike and Marian Ilitch. The Ilitches, who bought the Tigers in 1992, also own the Detroit Red Wings hockey team, part of MotorCity Casino, and Little Caesar Enterprises.

Major League Baseball

It may be the national pastime, but Major League Baseball (MLB) is a big business. MLB runs the game of professional baseball and oversees 30 franchises in 28 cities. Each team operates as a separate business, but each is regulated and governed by MLB. The league sets official rules, regulates team ownership, and collects licensing fees for merchandise. It also sells national broadcasting rights and distributes fees to the teams. (Regional broadcast rights are held by each franchise.) MLB was formed when the rival National and American Leagues joined together in 1903.