The Tigers have six weeks left—and no time for another stumble.
This past week, there was a little bit of everything. Good, bad, and ugly.
We started looking like contenders, to looking vulnerable, and then immediately reminding everyone why they’re still in the race.
But I do not think there is a reason to be all gloom and doom.
There are still six weeks of the 2026 regular season left. 4 and a half games out of first for the central, and in a three-way tie for the third wild card spot in the American league with the Orioles and Rangers.
But boy, the White Sox sweep hurt.
I don’t necessarily mean hurt our chances, or for that matter our momentum. But it was brutal. Especially blowing a 4-1 lead in the finale.
We had a chance to close the gap. On our home field no less.
By all intents and purposes, the run we just had looked promising. Winning 8 out of 10 before the Cleveland loss. However, we were quick to bounce back and took that series Cleveland.
Then our dear friend Mr. Inconsistency came back home with us to Comerica.
Let’s face reality. Whether it was being tired of how bad they were doing or some sort of divine intervention thanks to the Pope, the White Sox are a good team this year.
Detroit’s hit differential is vastly large than Chicago’s this season. And in this season Detroit has allowed 487 runs while Chicago has allowed 554.
But? Yet he we are. Swept at home against the team ahead of us in the division.
Chicago can be at 65-59 despite being outscored by only 45 runs because they can close the door on close games. While Detroit is 61-64 despite an 86 run positive differential.
Does this mean the Tigers are a bad team with some signs of good? Not at all.
Does it mean that has underperformed its underlying numbers. Yes.
Now again, this isn’t all gloom and doom. Compared to how we looked going into the all-star break, the fact we can even have a discussion about winning the central is amazing.
The fact that we are tied for the third wild card spot shows that we can make a good run.
With that said, it is obvious we wanted to shake that sweep off as quickly as we could. Which is exactly what we did yesterday against the Pirates. Pounding out 14 hits, and jumping on the Bucs early thanks to Professor McGonigle’s two run homer.
However, we had an 8-1 lead for Framber Valdez, which was then cut to 8-5. Thanks to the bullpen and Kenley Jansen, we were able to close the door and snap a three-game losing streak.
You can do that against a team like the Pirates.
You CAN NOT do that against a team like the White Sox.
As was obvious in the finale where we blew a 4-1 to lose 7-5.
The margin for error is getting smaller. The injury list remains a concern with Greene leaving the Cleveland game with hamstring tightness. And yes, that is a big concern. We can afford losing him for at least 10 days in June. Not August in a highly competitive AL Playoff race.
But glass half full? McGonigle and Clark are developing into really vital parts of the starting lineup.
We are still hanging around the wild card picture despite losing one of our better offensive players during a playoff push.
I’ll be more than happy to see October baseball for the Tigers again this season. It’s not out of the realm of possibility. No matter what the record of 61-64 says. We have played better baseball than what is reflected on the standings.
The problem is getting swept by the White Sox. Not in just some meaningless early season series. But at a time, we needed to win more than ever.
In simpler terms, when we make mistakes, we make BIG mistakes. But when we bounce back, we bounce back hard.
So, if you’re a tiger’s fan saying “Just get into a wild card” That’s ok. I don’t see that as settling. But accepting reality.
But if you are saying “The division is over. Forget abut it.” I think that is a premature overreaction.
I do not think it is greedy to want the division win. If you’re this close going into September, you don’t start aiming for the lowest possible playoff seed. You aim high.
And in all honesty, I’d rather have this problem than no problem at all.
If we can play closer to that +86-run differential, I think the division is 100% attainable.
If they continue to play at or near .500 baseball, I’ll gladly take a wild card spot.
Bottom line is, when you get into October, nobody cares if it’s by winning the division or sneaking in on the third wild card.
There is still a ton of baseball left and the AL Central race is wide open. Which means Tiger’s baseball from now until September 27th is going to get very nerve wracking, exciting, disappointing and heated all at the same time.
That’s what makes this time of year so much fun.
The upcoming schedule will be a test. Got two more against the Pirates. Just need one more to win this series.
Going to Kansas City this weekend. The Royals are well behind Detroit in the standings. We MUST make up some room in this series.
Then to close the month we have the Rays and Dodgers coming to town. Obviously, the big story there is a potential Skubal start in a Dodgers uniform at Comerica, and it is a much sexier matchup. Skubal, Ohtani, defending champions, so on and so on. I consider that a measuring stick series.
The Rays are going to be the tougher test and that series will have major implications to the Wild Card picture. And if we can take two from them, that’s two losses against another AL Contender. This is a must win series.
Can we do it? Yes. Without a shadow of a doubt, we can.
As long as the Tiger’s team with the eye of the tiger shows up.
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