Detroit Tigers Named Winners for 'Improbable' Comeback Season Leading to Playoffs
The Detroit Tigers have greatly exceeded the expectations the team and its fans had for them heading into the 2024 season.
With PECOTA projecting the club to finish the year with 75 wins, they blew that number out of the water and finished the 2024 campaign with an 86-76 record, good enough for a Wild Card berth and their first trip to the playoffs since 2014.
It was not always sunshine and daffodils for the club this year, however.
As late as Aug. 31, the Tigers had a 69-68 record, sitting 8.5 games back of the American League Central division lead and five games from the third Wild Card spot.
While the pitching staff was carving up opposing lineups, their offense was being carved up day after day.
It took a 17-8 run in September to get to where they are today, gearing up to face the Houston Astros in a three-game Wild Card Series at Minute Maid Park.
The 2024 season can only be considered a major win for Detroit, and Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report said as much in a recent article.
"They were sellers at the trade deadline," writes Miller, "dropping to 55-63 and a full 10 games back in the wild-card standings with 44 remaining."
They shipped out key contributors in Jack Flaherty, Mark Canha, Andrew Chafin, and Carson Kelly for prospects and salary relief, and got a 31-13 record as a further return.
The pitching staff did not miss a beat, with ace Tarik Skubal leading the charge and finishing the year as the American League Triple Crown winner.
While most may look at 2024 as the breakout season for the young ace, it was actually 2023.
Not stepping foot onto a Major League mound last year until July, Skubal made 15 starts after returning from injury, pitching to a 2.80 ERA across 80.1 innings with a 0.90 WHIP and 102 strikeouts.
The lefty brought that success over into 2024, showing the world it was no fluke and that he would be here to stay in the ace conversation for many years to come.
This has been an improbable season for the Tigers, as they blew expectations before and during the year out of the water with ease.
With a Game 1 victory, they are now one win away from advancing in the playoffs, keeping this sensational campaign alive during October.
