Fastball

Detroit Tigers On Verge of Making History Not Seen in Last 13 Years

After selling at the trade deadline this year, the Detroit Tigers enter the final week in possession of a playoff spot.

Brady Farkas

Detroit Tigers pitcher Jason Foley (68) throws a ninth inning pitch against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Sept 22.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Jason Foley (68) throws a ninth inning pitch against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Sept 22. / Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images
In this story:

With six games left in the regular season, the Detroit Tigers are currently in possession of a playoff spot. It's been a remarkable turnaround for Detroit, who is now 82-74. They are tied with the Kansas City Royals for the second/third wild card spot, one game ahead of the Minnesota Twins and 2.0 ahead of the Seattle Mariners.

If Detroit pulls this off, it would be one of the best playoff stories in baseball history.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

the Tigers were 10 GB of a postseason spot thru 118 games

4 teams have made the postseason after being 10+ games out of a postseason spot after 115+ games played:

2011 Cardinals (latest 10 GB: 133g)
1964 Cardinals (124)
1951 Giants (115)
1930 Cardinals (117)

h/t @EliasSports

Not only was Detroit that far out of a playoff spot, they also sold off pieces at the trade deadline. They dealt away veteran players like Jack Flaherty and Mark Canha, both of which they presumably could use right now.

The Tigers are off on Monday but will be back in action on Tuesday night against the Tampa Bay Rays. First pitch from Comerica Park is set for 6:40 p.m. ET.

For scoreboard watching purposes: The Royals take on the Washington Nationals, the Twins take on the Miami Marlins and the Mariners take on the Houston Astros.

The Tigers will finish out the season with a three-game series on the road at the woeful Chicago White Sox, giving them even more reason for optimism.

Detroit hasn't made the playoffs since 2014.

Follow Fastball On SI on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball On SI coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.

Published
Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

Home/History