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Tigers' AJ Hinch Has Words of Warning for his Team After Guardians Narrow Gap in AL Central

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Nick Meyer | Last updated Aug 6, 2025 6:38 PM ET

The Detroit Tigers dropped a 9-4 game to the Minnesota Twins at Comerica Park on Wednesday, the same day last year's playoff conquerors, the Cleveland Guardians, defeated the New York Mets by a score of 4-1, closing to within six games of Detroit in the AL Central Division.

The rough turn of events means that the Tigers' seemingly guaranteed division title could take a bigger fight than expected in the coming days, weeks and months to secure.

On Thursday, comments surfaced from Tigers manager AJ Hinch on the situation, and they painted the picture of a leader of men who knows that his team must start playing its best baseball again in the very near future to keep its title hopes alive.

Hinch Warns Tigers Ahead of Friday's Game vs. Angels

The Tigers are scheduled to face the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night in Motown in what could be a trap game for Hinch's team coming off of an emotionally draining loss to their division rivals from the Twin Cities.

The Tigers have two days off to simmer and marinate in their recent loss and are expected to send ace Tarik Skubal to the hill on Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET against an Angels starter still to be determined.

Hinch didn't mince words on what the Tigers must now focus on in comments shared Wednesday.

"We better worry about ourselves...This is a good league, so we've gotta play better," Hinch said, seeming to brush off the Guardians' growing presence in the rear view mirror.

Skubal could be just the guy to stop the bleeding for Detroit with Friday's game looming. The Tigers' lefty recently matched Dodgers ace and fellow lefty Clayton Kershaw with an incredible three-game stretch that left fans in awe.

Tigers left fielder Riley Greene has also become a sparkplug for his team in recent days, putting on a defensive masterclass with an amazing sliding catch before he was given a day off on Wednesday in favor of Jahmai Jones.

Hinch's team has the firepower to make a run down the stretch, now it's up for his players and coaches to rest up in preparation for what should be an exciting weekend series at Comerica Park.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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