DETROIT — If the Detroit Tigers can complete this run, it will be difficult to forget so many of the moments over their latest 5-1 road trip. It was a trek to Kansas City and then Baltimore that might have changed their season once and for all.
There was Jace Jung’s karate-kick slide under Salvador Perez’s glove, then Tarik Skubal’s roar after striking out Perez for the final out of his night. There was Trey Sweeney darting off the infield grass, tracking down a fly ball that could have changed everything, and holding on despite hard contact with Riley Greene in shallow left field. The next day, there was the blast to center, one that fooled television cameras and appeared long gone until suddenly, Parker Meadows leaped and reached and made yet another ridiculous catch.
There were more images and more heroes. Kerry Carpenter’s two blasts Sunday. Shelby Miller twisting his way out of two bases-loaded jams against the Royals. Beau Brieske pitching the biggest innings of his life. We’re still just getting started.
Kerry Carpenter has homered in back-to-back at-bats!@Tigers regain the lead! pic.twitter.com/Jm55McEeXx
— MLB (@MLB) September 22, 2024
But here we are, entering the final homestand of the season, staring at the playoff picture and understanding that a team that was once nine games under .500, that had 0.2 percent playoff odds on Aug. 10, is in prime position to play in the postseason.
Here are a few key points as the Tigers enter their biggest homestand in a long, long time.
Tigers control their own destiny
American League wild-card standings
|
Team
|
W
|
L
|
GB
|
Playoff odds
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
86 |
70 |
4 |
99.9% |
|
|
82 |
74 |
– |
69.5% |
|
|
82 |
74 |
– |
69.1% |
|
|
81 |
75 |
1 |
55% |
|
|
80 |
76 |
2 |
5.9% |
The Royals have lost seven straight. The Minnesota Twins lost both games of a doubleheader Sunday. That means the Tigers enter their final six games with a one-game lead in the wild-card standings. If they were to win out, they would make the playoffs. The Tigers do not hold the tiebreaker advantage over the Twins or Royals, a factor that remains highly relevant. But after making up so much ground, the Tigers are chasing no longer. Now it’s about holding on.
Us checking the standings 👀 pic.twitter.com/YV4BaWAZYx
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) September 22, 2024
If the Tigers were to be the third wild card, they would likely begin the playoffs with a three-game series against the Houston Astros. If they were to pass Kansas City for the second wild card, they would likely open the playoffs with three games against the Orioles in Baltimore.
“We need to keep winning,” Skubal said only a few days ago, “and hopefully we can control our own destiny down the stretch.”
Finish against the White Sox could make all the difference
The homestand starts Tuesday with three games against the Tampa Bay Rays, who have won four straight. Then the season ends with three games against the Chicago White Sox. Awful as the White Sox are, this is the big leagues, and even they have beaten their opponents 36 times. But if there is ever a team you want to face on a definitive final weekend, it is this year’s iteration of the South Siders, a team that has lost 120 times this season, tying a modern MLB record.
The Tigers happen to be 9-1 against the White Sox this season. They outscored Chicago 58-29 in those games.
Why they’re here
Two weeks ago, when the Tigers were still three games behind the Twins, we generalized two factors the Tigers needed to continue their otherworldly play: continue getting elite pitching and add more contributions from their young hitters. When it comes to the pitching, there’s been little problem. No matter the circumstance, no matter whom the Tigers have turned to, Detroit’s arms have continued to thrive. The Tigers entered Sunday with a 2.71 ERA in September, the fourth-best mark in baseball.
Young hitters such as Dillon Dingler, Jung and Sweeney are still battling varying levels of growing pains. But they’ve all made big plays in big moments. There was Dingler’s two-run triple Saturday in Baltimore. Jung had his exceptional slide in Kansas City, then contributed on offense and defense Sunday in Baltimore.
Sweeney in particular has been a difference-maker. He went 7-for-21 with five RBIs on the road trip. His game-saving catch Saturday was the stuff postseason runs are made of. The Tigers might not be here without him.
Since Aug. 13, the Tigers’ 26-11 record is the best in MLB. And their run is not over yet.
(Photo of Kerry Carpenter: Scott Taetsch / Getty Images)
