The Detroit Tigers clinched a playoff berth on Friday with a 4-1 win over the White Sox, putting a bow on an impressive and surprising second-half surge. Two-run rallies in the fifth and seventh innings, respectively, were enough for another outstanding team effort on the mound for the Tigers Friday night.
Coincidentally, the Tigers win also meant a historic loss for the White Sox. In the Tigers' clubhouse, though, the most important thing was the playoff berth.
They will be making their first trip to the postseason since 2014.
The Tigers seemed like longshots to reach this point as recently as two months ago. Indeed, the Tigers entered August with a 52-57 record. They felt so pessimistic about their chances of reaching October that they traded veteran starting pitcher Jack Flaherty to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the deadline, along with catcher Carson Kelly, reliever Andrew Chafin, and outfielder Mark Canha.
Detroit subsequently went on an impressive tear. They entered Friday with a 33-17 record since Aug. 1, a mark that prorates to a 107-win pace over 162 games. The Tigers have played so well despite introducing a number of young players to their lineup and largely relying upon a makeshift rotation complete with openers.
Manager AJ Hinch has assembled his lineups as of late from a 14-deep position player pool that includes 11 players who had two years of service time or fewer entering the season. Six of those players debuted at some point or another during the 2024 campaign. Outfielder Riley Greene has been Detroit's most productive hitter, setting a career-high in home runs and OPS+ and making his first All-Star Game.
On the pitching side of things, the Tigers have been able to rely upon ace and probable American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal. Otherwise, Detroit has started 14 different pitchers this season. That includes deploying openers like Beau Brieske, Tyler Holton, and Brenan Hanifee.
The Tigers join an American League playoff field that includes the New York Yankees, Houston Astros, Cleveland Guardians, and Baltimore Orioles.