The Detroit Tigers are 1-9 over their last ten games. After dropping their season opener to the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday, the Tigers are in a tie of the top spot in the American League Central. Detroit manager AJ Hinch saw his ace, Tarik Skubal, suffer a crazy inning in what became a 5-2 loss. Despite the defeat, the Tigers' chances at the AL playoffs are still good.
Detroit's slip down the standings puts them in a special place in Major League Baseball history. If Hinch cannot get his team to recover in the final week of the regular season, the Tigers might go from the top of the AL standings to out of the playoff picture completely. Detroit has five games left to determine its fate, including two more games on the road against the Guardians.
Hinch has downplayed his team's struggles with the postseason looming. According to him, the Tigers' focus is not on the fact that their playoff spot is not secure. However, Detroit's path to the playoffs is clear. Detroit News writer Chris McCosky talked to the team, which explained the different ways the Tigers can get into the MLB playoffs.
“The AL Central will not be decided this week while the Tigers are in Cleveland,” the team said. “…any combination of six Tigers wins/Guardians losses, and Detroit wins the division. Any combination of five Guardians wins/Tigers losses, and Cleveland wins the division. Any combination of four Tigers wins/Houston Astros losses, and the Tigers clinch a playoff spot.”
Detroit saw another player suffer an injury scare on Tuesday night. The pressure is on the entire team to get back on track before the playoffs start. If Detroit can return to its former glory, they are a dangerous team. However, Detroit's recent stretch has a lot of fans worrying about their team's future.
