- During the winter meetings in December 1977 Ben Oglivie was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for Rich Folkers and Jim Slaton. Coach Frank Howard worked with Ben to improve his unorthodox fielding style. Oglivie also worked with nautilis equipment to improve his strength.
- Oglivie led the team in batting average in 1978.
- 1978 Stats:
- Milwaukee Brewers: .303, 18 HR, 72 RBI in 128 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 23 - Had three hits, scored twice, and homered in Milwaukee's 3-2 win over the New York Yankees.
- May 14 - Hit a 3-run homer to help the Brewers to a 5-4 victory over the Chicago White Sox.
- Aug 11 - Had four hits and three RBI as the Brewers beat the Boston Red Sox 10-5.
- John Hiller had his last good year in 1978. Hiller would pitch for a couple of season after this, but he wasn't as effective. John and starter Jack Billingham were the only pitchers over the age of 30 on the Tiger staff in 1978. Hiller recorded 15 of the staff's 21 saves during the season.
- Hiller didn't pitch from July 8 until August 12 due to a pulled muscle in his right side.
- 1978 Stats: 9-4, 15 saves, 2.34 ERA in 51 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 25 - Pitched 4 1/3 innings of shutout ball to earn the win in Detroit's 8-4 10-inning win against the Chicago White Sox
- Sept 22 - Struck out four batters and allowed no runs in 3 2/3 innings as the Tigers came back to beat the Baltimore Orioles 7-5 in ten innings.
- In the late 1970s the Detroit Tigers were finishing their turnover of the roster. Mickey Stanley was the last Tiger remaining from the 1968 world championship team. Stanley was a backup outfielder and first baseman in 1978. Mickey was released after the 1978 season.
- 1978 Stats: .265, 3 HR, 8 RBI in 53 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- Aug 11 - Had three hits in Detroit's 7-3 win over the Chicago White Sox
- Aug 19 - Had two hits and scored a run to help Detroit beat the Milwaukee Brewers 6-4.
- Milt May started 89 games behind the plate in 1978, but he was hearing footsteps from Lance Parrish. Parrish replaced May as the starting catcher the next season and May was sold to the Chicago White Sox in May 1979.
- 1978 Stats: .250, 10 HR, 57 RBI in 105 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 11 - Had three hits (including a home run) and knocked in three runs to help the Tigers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-2.
- May 24 - Went 3 for 4 as the Tigers beat the Baltimore Orioles 3-2.
- Milt Wilcox had what was thus far his best year in 1978. Milt was third on the Detroit staff in victories and had his first season with double figure wins.
- Wilcox had both good and rough streaks in 1978. He lost all five of his starts in June and then he won six straight starts at the end of July and through the month of August.
- 1978 Stats: 13-12, 3.76 ERA in 29 games (27 starts)
- 1978 Highlights:
- May 7 - Shut out the Oakland A's on four hits as the Tigers won 4-0.
- May 31 - Struck out nine batters and walked only one in a 3-0 shutout win against the Milwaukee Brewers.
- Dave Rozema was originally drafted by the San Francisco Giants in 1974. The Giants didn't offer him a signing bonus, so he turned them down. In 1975 Rozema was drafted by the hometown Detroit Tigers. Dave signed with the Tigers and had two great seasons in the minors.
- When Mark Fidrych was injured during spring training in 1977, a spot was opened up for Rozema. He made the most of his opportunity, going 15-7 with a 3.09 ERA and finishing fourth in AL Rookie of the Year voting. Dave finished behind Eddie Murray, Mitchell Page, and Bump Wills in the balloting.
- Rozema wasn't a hard thrower. He relied on his control and a great changeup. Dave led the league in walks per nine innings in his rookie season and finished his career with a nice 2.1 walks per nine innings mark.
- Although Dave didn't throw very hard, he was still susceptible to injuries. Dave had two three-week stretches in 1977 in which he didn't make a start due to tendinitis. In 1978 Rozema had shoulder woes that made him miss a few starts. Dave went 9-12 with a 3.18 ERA in 28 starts in 1978.
- In 1979 Rozema missed three months with a shoulder injury. He went 4-4 with a 3.51 ERA in 16 starts.
- Dave had several off-field incidents that got him in trouble. In 1980 he had been up late judging a wet T-shirt contest. Rozema overslept and missed a flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico. He caught a later flight and then got roughed up in that night's game. In 1982 he and his future brother-in-law Kirk Gibson were goofing around in a bar. Gibson kicked a chair out from under Rozema and he fell. Dave had a bottle of medicine in his back pocket and it shattered. Just before the opening of the 1982 season Dave playfully shoved Alan Trammell at a bar. Trammell's face hit the rim of a beer mug and the injury required 40 stitches.
- In 1980 Dave began the season as a starting pitcher. After six starts Rozema was converted to a relief pitcher. He still made occasional spot starts over the next few years. Dave ended up with a 6-9 record with four saves and had a 3.92 ERA in 42 games (13 starts).
- Rozema had a similar role in 1981 (5-5, 3 saves, 3.63 ERA in 28 games (9 starts).
- Dave got off to a good start in 1982. In the middle of May he had a 3-0 record with a 1.63 ERA. Unfortunately he severely injured his knee during an on-field brawl on May 14. Rozema had surgery and missed the rest of the season.
- Rozema came back in 1983 and had a pretty good year (8-3, 3.43 ERA in 29 games/16 starts).
- Dave started off the 1984 season well. Rozema was 7-0 in mid-July, but he tailed off and finished with a 7-6, 3.74 ERA line. Dave wasn't used in the postseason.
- After the 1984 season Rozema became a free agent. He wasn't sure about what his role would be in Detroit, so he signed a 2-year deal with the Texas Rangers. Dave didn't have a good experience in Texas. The team was struggling and so did Dave (3-7, 4 saves, 4.19 ERA in 34 games / 4 starts).
- The 1986 season was Rozema's final season. He had a 5.91 ERA in six appearances when he was released on May 6. Dave was signed by the Chicago White Sox two weeks later, but he spent the year in AAA. Rozema pitched in the minors in 1987 and in 1988 but he never got back to the majors.
- After his playing career Rozema worked for a diagnostic imaging company and has made some occasional TV and radio appearances with the Tigers.
- 1978 Stats: 9-12, 3.14 ERA in 28 starts
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 29 - Allowed seven hits and shut out the Seattle Mariners 5-0.
- Sept 15 - Pitched a 4-hit shutout against the Cleveland Indians.
- This was Chuck Scrivener's last card. Scrivener didn't play with the Tigers in 1978. He spent the year in AAA Evansville. Chuck was released after the season. He signed with the Toronto Blue Jays in 1979, but there are no records of him playing after 1978.
- 1978 Stats:
- Evansville Triplets (AAA): .262, 9 HR, 46 RBI in 93 games
- Steve Foucault started the 1978 season with the Tigers. On August 16 Steve was acquired on waivers by the Kansas City Royals. Foucault stayed with the Royals for two weeks and then was designated for assignment in late August.
- Foucault had saves in his first three appearances and pitched well for most of the season. Steve was used sparingly during the season. Perhaps he was having arm or shoulder problems.
- After leaving baseball Steve became a police officer. Foucault has been a pitching coach for various minor league teams since the 1990s.
- 1978 Stats:
- Detroit Tigers: 2-4, 4 saves, 3.13 ERA in 24 games
- Kansas City Royals: 0-0, 3.86 ERA in 3 games
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 15 - Pitched two scoreless innings against the Toronto Blue Jays to pick up his second save. The Tigers beat the Blue Jays 6-3.
- May 16 - Held the Seattle Mariners scoreless for three innings and got the win as the Tigers beat the Seattle Mariners 4-2 in 16 innings.
- Mark Fidrych started the 1978 season strong with wins in his first two starts. He made his third start of the season and came out of the game after four innings. Except for a rehab assignment with Class A Lakeland, that was it for Mark's 1978 season.
- 1978 Stats:
- Lakeland Tigers (Class A): 1-1, 3.46 ERA in 4 starts
- Detroit Tigers: 2-0, 2.45 ERA in 3 starts
- 1978 Highlights:
- April 7 - Pitched a complete game victory on opening day as the Tigers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-2.
- April 12 - Pitched another complete game and got the win in Detroit's 3-2 win over the Texas Rangers.
- April 17 - Made the start and allowed two runs in four innings. It was Mark's last game with the Tigers in 1978.
- Steve Kemp was a pretty solid player for the Tigers in 1978. His numbers were very slightly down from his rookie 1977 season, but he would bounce back in 1979 to earn All Star honors.
- 1978 Stats:
- .277, 15 HR, 79 RBI in 159 games
- 1978 Highlights:
