Lakeland, Fla. ― Some newcomers to the Tigers rookery in Lakeland talked last week about life at TigerTown and what they have learned in less than a month about professional baseball’s culture.

They were the Tigers’ first three July draft picks : shortstop Jordan Yost, catcher Michael Oliveto, and right-handed pitcher Malachi Witherspoon.

Yost, 18, is a left-handed batter who this spring wrapped up a senior season at Sickles High, north of Tampa, less than an hour from TigerTown. Early feedback: Yost, who is 6-foot, 165, is marvelously fluid in the field and has a swing of such smoothness it led Tigers scouts to see him as a first-rounder.

Oliveto, also 18 and a left-handed stick, is from Long Island, New York, was a July compensation choice (34th overall), and has a swing that has m

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