lordstanley

4-0 Athletics. The turtle race for the final wildcard spot is on.

11 losses in 12 game. 8 straight losses overall. 5 straight losses to Cleveland. 18 teams in baseball have a positive run differential. Cleveland isn’t one of them, they are minus 4 on the season.

If you have a torrid summer fling with a hot co-ed but you broke up after Labor Day, 10 years later will you be able to put the ending out of your head and just remember the good times? Probably if it was an amicable breakup, like if the Tigers lost a pennant race that was close and hard fought the whole way. But this collapse is the equivalent of not only her breaking up with you, but doing so after cheating on you with some loser dude. Hard to erase and move past that.

1 strike from keeping the game close and now it’s 5-1. Seems like that has happened half a dozen times the past 2 weeks.

The Tigers have scored more than 2 runs just twice in the past 8 games and with 6 outs to go they haven’t done so tonight.

Other than Carp’s 9th inning homer last Tuesday and Tork’s homer on Saturday, have the Tigers had one big clutch hit in the past 11+ games?

Just like that the Tigers trail.

Tigers lead 1-0. Tigers seem to seeing Bibee well.

McKinstry hits it hard….far an out. Of course.

Double play on a hard ground ball by Wenceel to end the Tigers 2nd inning. Would just like to see a game where the Tigers hit ‘em where they ‘ain’t.

A rain delay that pushed back Game 2 in the 2006 ALDS turned the tide.

Next to last Sunday of the year they clinched at least a playoff spot while the division was still in play. I remember Andrew Miller striking out a Royal for the final out, on the road, and everyone from the Tigers' dugout streaming onto the field. Goggles in the clubhouse too. Attached is Mario Impemba's call of the final out. Video of it is from 16:07 to 16:37 of this YT clip. finalstrike.mp3

They had a 1-12 stretch in July and a 1-10 stretch in September. The rest of the season they had the best record, or close to it, in MLB. As recently as September 11 the Tigers had the best record in the American League. It's pretty remarkable.

I wonder if the Texans mockingly waved goodbye to him as he left the office after getting the news.

Celebrate on the field, on the same scale as you would after a big walkoff win. But would be ridiculous to have a clubhouse celebration. In fact I wouldn't have a clubhouse celebration for the division unless it was clinched Saturday, since if on Sunday there'd be a game the next day.

A possibility. In which case the 2025 Tigers would also have "blown a big lead" versus the 2024 Tigers. The 2024 Tigers were 55-63 after 118 games; the 2025 Tigers were 67-51 after 118 games, or 12 games better than 2024. The 2024 Tigers finished 86-76 and the 2025 Tigers need to go 1-4 to tie that, 2-3 or better to beat that.

While the Tigers’ magic number to win the division is stuck at 6, the magic number to clinch a playoff spot has dropped to 4 with Houston’s loss tonight to Athletics. Houston has to play 2 games better than the Tigers over the final 5 games. The Tigers could actually lose out (possible) and still make the playoffs if Houston goes no better than 1-4 in remaining road games vs Athletics and the Angels.

2025 Cleveland Guardians Magic Number: 5

All the 6th inning pain in under one minute

The Tigers were drowning, but Tork’s homer on Saturday was one final life preserver tossed their away to save themselves. Instead they strangled themselves on the rope and now their lifeless body is drifting aimlessly towards shore.

In the 11 games starting September 11, the Tigers have only led by more than 2 runs once. A 3 run lead for one inning on September 13, in a game they’d go on to lose in extra innings.

5-2. How many hours I have absolutely wasted the past 10 days watching this team.

And now a balk? Insane. Tigers trail.