DETROIT – There are only four series left in the regular season, and the Tigers are knocking on the door of their first AL Central Division title in a decade.
It was a bit of a rough weekend for the Tigers, who went into Miami and not only lost two of three, but also saw Tarik Skubal and Javier Baez go down with injuries.
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Skubal is expecting to make his next start after experiencing tightness in his left side, and Baez actually entered the following game as a defensive replacement, so he seems to be fine, too.
But the Tigers went from virtual locks to win the Central to, well, it’s slightly less certain.
With their win on Sunday afternoon, the Tigers dropped their magic number to seven. That means any combination of Tigers wins and Guardians losses that adds up to a total of seven would clinch the division for Detroit.
Well, technically the Kansas City Royals aren’t out of it, but at 10 games back, the Tigers’ magic number to eliminate them is down to three.
Obviously, this is a Tigers-Guardians battle, as it always seems to be. That means this week’s series at Comerica Park is one of the most important of the entire season.
A 6.5-game lead is pretty massive with just 12 games (13 for the Guardians) left in the season. But let’s just say Cleveland swept this three-game series -- that lead would be down to 3.5.
With another three-game set in Cleveland next week, the Tigers have actually allowed the Guardians to control their own destiny in the AL Central.
Right now, the Tigers lead the season series against the Guardians 4-3, and head-to-head is the first tiebreaker if the two teams finish with the same record.
The Tigers have been a much better team at home this season than on the road, so they need to take care of business now and not leave it up to those three games in Cleveland.