Detroit Tigers Announcer Delivers Iconic Call Following Improbable Comeback Win

The Detroit Tigers battled back late to beat the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday, cutting their magic number to two and earning a poetic soliloquy from play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti.

Detroit Tigers pitcher Jason Foley (68) celebrates striking out Tampa Bay Rays center fielder Jose Siri (22) during the ninth inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Tigers have made quite the habit of staging dramatic comebacks this fall.

For one, they were eight games under .500 as recently as Aug. 10, but somehow entered Thursday at 84-74. To battle back to where they are now – in the driver's seat for an AL Wild Card spot – Detroit has had to eke out win after win, 11 of which have been by just one run.

The Tigers added to that total on Thursday.

Detroit went down 3-0 to the Tampa Bay Rays, unable to get any traction at the plate through five innings. They finally got the ball rolling in the sixth, scoring runs on a triple from Colt Keith and a single from Kerry Carpenter, boosting their win probability from 10.8% to 34.2%.

Still, the Tigers trailed 3-2 entering the bottom of the eighth inning. Keith came through once again with a game-tying single, though, and it was Justyn-Henry Malloy who pinch hit for Carpenter and drove in the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly.

Suddenly up 4-3, the Tigers turned things over to closer Jason Foley.

The right-handed reliever got Dylan Carlson to fly out to open the ninth, then he struck out Josh Lowe on five pitches. Foley struck out Jose Siri for the final out, securing his 27th save of the season and sending the fans at Comerica Park into a frenzy.

Per usual, Bally Sports Detroit play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti delivered an instantly iconic call as the game went final.

"Tigers win again," Benetti yelled, before pausing to give the raucous crowd its moment over the airwaves. "A city that doesn't care about the odds has a baseball team to match. Out of nowhere, again, the Tigers have won."

THE MAGIC NUMBER IS 2⃣ FOR THE @TIGERS 🚨 pic.twitter.com/vtCIHBAX6A

— MLB (@MLB) September 26, 2024

The Tigers have won 30 of their last 39, catapulting their way up the standings in the process. They are currently tied with the Kansas City Royals for the second AL Wild Card spot, 2.0 games ahead of the Minnesota Twins with three games to go.

Detroit's magic number is now two, since Minnesota won the head-to-head season series 7-6. FanGraphs gives the Tigers a 96.6% chance of reaching the postseason, compared to the 0.2% chance they had back on Aug. 10.

The Tigers will wrap up their regular season slate this weekend, hosting the last-place Chicago White Sox.

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