Detroit Tigers Tumble Further Down in Latest MLB Power Rankings
Coming out of the All-Star break, the Detroit Tigers were on the fringe of the playoff race in the American League. They took two out of three against the Toronto Blue Jays out of the gate and won the opener of their series against the AL Central-leading Cleveland Guardians.
However, that was where all the positive on-field results stopped.
The Tigers played 13 straight games against AL Central rivals; six against the Guardians, three against the Minnesota Twins and four against the Kansas City Royals.
It was made abundantly clear that Detroit is a few tiers behind their division peers. After winning game one against Cleveland and pushing their record to 50-51, the Tigers lost nine out of 12 games.
Detroit is now 15 games behind in the AL Central and 10 games back of the final wild card spot in the league. With a record of 53-60, Joel Rueter of Bleacher Report believes their 2024 campaign is crumbling.
In Reuter’s recent MLB power rankings, the Tigers have come in at No. 25. He has put them in the tier of “Season’s Over, Bring on 2025” which seems like an appropriate landing spot.
"Despite holding onto ace Tarik Skubal at the trade deadline, the Tigers did sell off Jack Flaherty, Mark Canha, Andrew Chafin and Carson Kelly, and they went 1-5 last week against the Cleveland Guardians and Kansas City Royals," wrote Rueter.
That poor performance last week certainly earned a drop in the rankings. The Tigers fell three spots, as they were on the fringe of “still alive lots of work to do” tier right above them.
Only the Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, Colorado Rockies, Miami Marlins and Chicago White Sox are behind Detroit in the rankings. The other two teams rounding out this tier are the Los Angeles Angels and Washington Nationals, who are ranked No. 24 and No. 23 respectively.
It isn’t all negative news for Detroit, though.
They did receive positive injury updates on two key players; outfielder Riley Greene and starting pitcher Casey Mize.
Mize threw live batting practice to Greene over the weekend and both exited the session feeling good. Greene hasn’t progressed to full running yet, but taking live BP is a step in the right direction. Mize is expected to begin a rehab assignment this week and return when first eligible later in the month.
KENNETH TEAPE
Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. In addition to his work here, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.