After turning around the Detroit Tigers during his first five seasons, Dave Dombrowski was given a four-year contract extension yesterday that runs through 2011.

Dombrowski, the team's general manager, president and chief executive officer, helped lead the team this year to its first playoff appearance since 1984.

"Dave is a great leader and a great 'baseball guy' who is bright, hardworking and committed to success," owner Mike Ilitch said in a statement. "He is clearly the top executive in baseball today and unmatched in terms of his ability to oversee this club, both on and off the field."

Through savvy trades and signings along with sound drafts, Dombrowski helped the Tigers build a team good enough to reach the World Series for the first time since 1984 and to end a streak of 12 straight losing seasons. Detroit lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in five games, three years after setting an A.L. record with 119 losses.

Only five of the 25 players on Detroit's playoff roster were a part of the franchise before Dombrowski arrived.

Dombrowski was hired away from the Florida Marlins, where he helped the expansion team win a World Series.

ROUNDUP FREE-AGENT FILING: St. Louis Cardinals center fielder Jim Edmonds filed provisionally for free agency yesterday, awaiting a decision by the team on his $10-million option for 2007. St. Louis has until Nov. 11 to decide on the option. If the Cardinals decline, Edmonds would receive a $3-million buyout, payable as part of the deferred money in his contract, which he will receive each December from 2010-19. Cardinals pitcher Mark Mulder, who had surgery in September to repair a partially torn rotator cuff, also filed.

ANOTHER OPINION: Twins left-hander Francisco Liriano is going to see another doctor about his ailing elbow. Liriano was traveling to California, the Twins said, for a visit today with Dr. Lewis Yocum, who serves as team orthopedist for the Los Angeles Angels. Yocum is a shoulder and elbow specialist who performs dozens of ulnar collateral ligament replacement surgeries each year.

OPTION ON KIM: The Rockies yesterday exercised their $2.5-million option on right-hander Byung-Hyun Kim for next season. Kim, who made $1.5 million last season, was 8-12 with a 5.57 E.R.A. this season when he was used exclusively as a starter for the first time in his career.

JAPAN STAR TOUR: David Wright and Andruw Jones homered in the top of the ninth inning yesterday, erasing a three-run deficit to tie the Yomiuri Giants, 7-7, in a warmup game ahead of an MLB All-Star tour of Japan.

CONTRACT EXTENSION: The Astros gave GM Tim Purpura a one-year contract extension yesterday, a deal that runs through the 2008 season.