Grading the Tigers’ Offense After a Turbulent 2025 Season

As I mentioned earlier, the Tigers were one of the top offenses in baseball during the first half of the season. Per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, from March 27-August 31, the Tigers' offense ranked No. 10 in MLB with a 105 wRc+. The league average is around 100.

Detroit had six players named to the All Star Game including position players Riley Greene, Gleyber Torres, Javier Baez, and Zach McKinstry. They were on a roll and looked like no one could stop them until the woes of September sent the team spiraling.

From September 1-28, the Tigers ranked No. 24 in MLB with an 87 wRc+, only ahead of some bottom-tier teams. President of baseball operations Scott Harris had a lot to say about the offense's late struggles.

He said, "The first thing is our approach at the plate. In the big leagues, it seemed like our approach started to deteriorate down the stretch. We posted a really high-powered offense for five months, and then we really stumbled. We've got to figure out why."

It starts with the plate discipline. Detroit had nearly a 24% strikeout rate with a 26% whiff rate. They were fifth in total strikeouts with 1,454.

They did finish in the top five in total walks with 511, but their .247 batting average was middle of the pack.

On the flip side, this Detroit offense could mash. They hit nearly 200 long balls in 2025, led by Riley Greene. The all-star left fielder hit 36 home runs with 111 RBIs. His teammate Spencer Torkelson, trailed closely behind him with 31 homers and 78 runs driven in.

Guys like Gleyber Torres, McKinstry, and Kerry Carpenter also turned in solid years at the plate. Carpenter had a tremendous four-hit effort in their game five ALDS loss to the Mariners.

Their final game of the season perfectly encapsulated the Tigers late season struggles. They showed flashes of greatness here and there, but the lack of plate discipline and inability to move runners over killed them.

Torres, Greene, and Torkelson combined for a 0-18 showing. They got by with timely hitting against Cleveland, but it finally caught up to them in a crushing game five loss.

The pieces are there for this offense to have a turnaround in 2026, but expect Harris to be aggressive in adding a bat to the lineup.

Overall, the offense held its own for the majority of the season, but the way it ended is too hard to ignore, and it cost them a chance to make a deep playoff run.

Final Grade: B-