Detroit Tigers Punch Ticket to ALDS for Second Straight Year

Game one was one of the better pitching duels all season. Clevelands' Gavin Williams went six strong, allowing two unearned runs while striking out eight. Unfortunately for Cleveland, Tarik Skubal was even better. He made history.

In 7.2 innings, the reigning Cy Young winner allowed one run on three hits while walking three and striking out a whopping 14 batters. It was a career high, and he tied the franchise record for most strikeouts in a single game.

Spencer Torkelson and Zach McKinstry each drove in runs, but game one was all about Skubal.

Game two was a lot more frustrating. Starter Casey Mize only went three innings, so the bullpen had the bulk of the work. Tyler Holton and Kyle Finnegan combined for four scoreless innings, but the Guardians ran away with it, scoring five in the ninth. Detroit went a staggering 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position.

It all came down to game three on Thursday. Not only did Detroit need to win this game to stay alive, but they needed to win in order to get the stink of the blown division off of them and prove they still belong in the playoffs.

Detroit did everything right on Thursday afternoon. Jack Flaherty started the game, and gave a valiant effort throwing 4.2 innings, allowing a run and striking out four. The bullpen took over in the fifth, where Kyle Finnegan and Tyler Holton combined for another 2.1 scoreless.

Tommy Khanle came on for the eighth and only got one out before being pulled. Will Vest came in to replace him, and with two outs in the inning, Vest dropped a ball covering first, allowing two runs to score. The Tigers got lucky, though, as the defense made a good play to get Jose Ramirez out at second and end the inning.

On the other side of the ball, the bats finally got going. Dillon Dingler hit the go ahead homer in the sixth inning, and Wenceel Perez began piling it on in the seventh when Detroit scored four runs. It was their first time scoring more than five since September 10 against the New York Yankees.

It was a hard-fought series, but the Tigers got it done. They washed away a poor end to the regular season, one of the most epic collapses in recent memory, and will now play in the ALDS for the second straight year.

On to Seattle

With a Wild Card win, the Tigers will head to Seattle to take on the number two seed Mariners. Seattle boasts one of the better, more complete rotations in baseball and an AL MVP, hopefully in Cal Raleigh, who hit 60 home runs this season.

The series begins on Saturday, but both teams' starters are labeled as TBD as of Thursday. Expect Skubal to take the ball against whichever ace Seattle sends to the bump. Detroit will need length out of Skubal again with the bullpen being worked heavily in the Cleveland series.

The ballpark in Seattle is one of the more difficult offensive environments in baseball. Detroit will need to make sure they take advantage of runners in scoring position this series, as it may be the key to chipping away and getting to Seattle's bullpen.

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