Is It Finally Time to Get Excited About the Detroit Tigers?

 We’ve been waiting quite awhile now for the Detroit Tigers to put it all together, and compete for Division Titles and Championships.  It appears they have made strides in that direction of late.  They have had some unexpected production from some unlikely sources recently.  Newcomer Zach McKinstry has had some timely hits, and some good defensive play.  Furthermore, Spencer Torkelson and Riley Greene are finally contributing on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball in a manner experts thought they should.  If we continue to see these type of performances by this team, the height of their achievement is unlimited.

As a general rule, for a team to have success, several players must exceed expectations and the Tigers are no exception.  Players like Matthew Boyd, Alex Faedo, and Alex Lange have been pivotal to the Tigers being division contenders for most of the season. In Boyd’s case, he has accumulated 3 wins, and hitters have only accrued a .249 batting average against him.  Moreover, closer Alex Lange has maintained a 1.21 ERA, along with hitters only batting .135 against him.  With a few more contributions from others on the squad, the Tigers could far exceed expectations for this season 

One of the most prominent improvements of this year’s version of the Tigers is their offensive output.  During this campaign, Tigers hitters have featured more homers, hits, and walks.  In fact, in the month of May, the Tigers have led the league in walks.  Up to that point, the team was at the bottom of the pack in that category.   Because the team has been more selective in the pitches they choose to swing at, it has led to a dramatic improvement in overall offensive numbers.  If this type of production is maintained, it’s quite likely that the Tigers rise to success will continue.

A final facet of the game that must be superb in order to achieve as much success as possible is defense.  Without tight defense, the opponent is given extra outs, and thus the opportunity to score unnecessary runs.  Thankfully, this season, the Tigers are averaging less than 1 error per game.  In addition, this squad is usually good for a couple outstanding plays per game, which is necessary to be considered an elite defense.  This is a status that must be attained to play at a championship level.  If the team is able to maintain this level of play, the future looks bright for this ball club.

When emphasis is placed on completing the fundamental tasks of the game, successful outcomes are more likely.  For the first time in several years, team leadership is demanding that the fundamental facets of the game be completed more successfully.  With that being said, it’s no surprise, that the Tigers are experiencing moderate success at the moment.  As long as the current philosophy continues to be implemented, the amount of success for this team should be unlimited.