Paws and His Tigers Coming to Town Today

It's not quite baseball weather, but a whirlwind caravan is ignoring the snow as it parades the Detroit Tigers through Michigan and right into Rochester Hills today.

Tigers players Magglio Ordonez and Jose Valverde will play celebrity servers at on Walton Boulevard from 2-2:40 p.m. At the same time, Manager Jim Leyland and several players will headline a rally for students and community members at .

Both events are free and open to the public.

The appearances will be part of the Tigers' annual Winter Caravan, intended to spread baseball fever across the region. The Tigers will visit 37 destinations from Mount Pleasant to Detroit over two days, beginning Thursday.

“Tigers Caravan has become a baseball winter tradition, and our players, coaches and broadcasters enjoy visiting local communities and the hometowns of our fans,” Elaine Lewis, Tigers vice president of community and public affairs, said in a statement this week.

The OU rally, planned for the school's O'Rena, will feature Tigers mascot Paws, along with Leyland, coach Gene Lamont and players Alberto Alburquerque, Duane Below, Miguel Cabrera, Audy Ciriaco, Andy Oliver, Jhonny Peralta, Ramon Santiago, Max Scherzer and Robbie Weinhardt.

That event will include a question-and-answer session and prizes. Doors open at 1 p.m.