With the Tigers entering this season red hot after last year’s seemingly miracle playoff run, the expectations for the Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal and his fired up team were high. Stars like Javier Baez and Kerry Carpenter hitting well last post-season, alongside the pitching depth and an experienced team Manager in AJ Hinch, the team had fans ready to go.
Red hot was an understatement for the Tigers. While heading into the all star weekend break, the team had the best record in all of baseball, 59 wins with a mere 38 losses. At one point, gaining up to a 15.5 game lead in their division, looking like a certain playoff-bound team. Life long fan and South baseball player, Jack Danielewicz, felt the first half of the season was unbelievable and nearly perfect.
“I would say the Tigers had a great year,” Danielewicz said. “I think the team met expectations from before the season started.”
But with the amount of pressure the team faced coming off their break, they began to struggle. No major trades at the deadline, fans began to get slightly nervous. They lost a lot of their batting power, alongside no depth in their relievers, amounting to a struggling organization, going on to lose 37 games, only winning 28 after the break, eventually giving up their 15.5 game lead to the Cleveland Guardians.
“The second half of the season was extremely underwhelming,” Danielewicz said. “The hitting down the stretch was difficult to watch, some reinforcements will be needed there.”
South baseball player Henry Getz ’28, not only is a passionate Tigers fan, but also has family in the MLB. Getz sees eye to eye with Danielewicz, believing the team spiraled out of control for the second half of the year.
“I think the Tigers fell short of expectations,” Getz said. “The outcome we had would be amazing for Tiger fans if we hadn’t been the best team in baseball for a good amount of time.”
Nick Bernbeck, a counselor and an avid Tigers fan, believes baseball has its ups and downs, giving a little less blame to the players and more towards the game itself.
“Baseball is a very streaky sport,” Bernbeck said. “We were the hottest team in baseball, and then we went down, as the playoffs started again, we ascended.”
Barely scrapping together a few wins towards the end of the year, the Tigers still snuck into the playoffs as the six seed in the American League. A fresh start is what the team needed, and they stepped up to the plate, beating the Guardians in the wild card round. Having to face the stacked lineup of the Mariners in the ALDS, the team sent the series to a game five, win or go home, where they eventually lost in the 15th inning.
“I’d say the season was both a success and a failure,” Getz said. “Although the Tigers are fun to watch at times, I wasn’t completely satisfied with the season.”
