With a week remaining in Major League Baseball’s regular season, the Detroit Tigers are now part of the projected playoff field.
The Tigers moved into a tie for the American League’s second wild-card spot on Sunday, a result of them defeating the Baltimore Orioles, the Minnesota Twins losing to the Boston Red Sox in the first game of a doubleheader, and the Kansas City Royals losing to the San Francisco Giants.
The Tigers were, at day’s start, a half game back of the Twins and a full game back of the Royals in the hunt for those two spots. (The Twins and Red Sox will wrap up their doubleheader this evening, meaning that there will be more movement in that race.)
The Tigers, who traded away right-handed starter Jack Flaherty, veteran outfielder Mark Canha, catcher Carson Kelly, and reliever Andrew Chafin in a major sale at the deadline, were 8 1/2 games behind the Twins entering August. They’ve since authored an impressive and unexpected rise up the standings. Detroit is 30-17 since the start of August, a 63.8% winning percentage that prorates to a 103-win pace over the course of 162 games. The Tigers had the AL’s best record over their last 30 games entering Sunday.
That the Tigers have performed so well with a patchwork rotation (they’ve often resorted to using openers) and an in-progress youth movement (only three players in Sunday’s lineup were in their age-26 season or older) is a testament to the idea that there is more than one way to win in baseball.
The Twins have series remaining with the Miami Marlins and Baltimore Orioles. The Tigers, who haven’t made the postseason since 2014, have dates left with the Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago White Sox. The Royals, meanwhile, will close out the year with series against the Washington Nationals and Atlanta Braves.
