The Gritty Kitties did it.
They walked into Houston and stole two games off the Astros to advance to the American League Divisional Series against the Cleveland Guardians. The Guardians, winners of the AL Central division title during the regular season, await to host the Tigers in a best-of-five series, with the winner advancing to take on the New York Yankees or Kansas City Royals.
To conquer the Astros, Detroit had to come up clutch in several big moments. In the first game, the Tigers pounced on Houston’s Framber Valdez in the second inning for three runs. Detroit starter and prospective Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal kept the Astros off the board until the ninth inning.
Things got dicey. Closer Jason Foley let up three hits and a run before being pulled for Beau Brieske, who walked one to load the bases. With two outs, Houston’s Jason Heyward lined out to first baseman Spencer Torkelson, getting the Tigers out of a huge jam and securing the win.
Detroit found themselves in a similar situation in Game 2, down late in the eighth inning 2-1. After scoring a runner on a wild pitch, the Tigers came up with some clutch walks off Astros reliever Josh Hader that loaded the bases.
Up came rookie pinch-hitter Andy Ibáñez. On a 1-2 pitch with two outs in the inning, Ibáñez roped a triple down the third base line, scoring three runs and giving the Tigers a lead they would not relinquish.
Clutch moments like this can define a postseason for a team, but they can’t be expected to carry Detroit the rest of the way. What needs to happen for the Motor City to advance to the ALCS?
4 Keys to Cleveland
1. Get an early lead: It sounds obvious, but it’s probably the biggest key to victory in this series. The Guardians have one of the best bullpens in the league. They have 53 saves on the year, tied for second in MLB behind the St. Louis Cardinals. They also boast the best reliever ERA in the league at 2.57, a whole .6 runs better than the Brewers in second. Detroit must be able to score on Cleveland’s starters.
2. Keep reliever Emmanuel Clase out of the game: Clase is so good that he could receive some down-ballot Cy Young votes. For a reliever, that’s absurd. 47 of those 53 saves are his. He boasts a .61 ERA over 74.1 innings. That’s right; he has allowed only five earned runs all year. The star reliever has also only let up ten walks to 66 strikeouts, a ridiculous ratio. Only two home runs have been hit off him this season, as well. In short, don’t let the game get to him tied or with your team down.
3. Make other players besides José Ramírez & Josh Naylor beat you: Ramírez has long been one of the most underrated players in the league. The star third baseman is in the midst of his fourth-straight +5 WAR season. He has 39 home runs and 118 RBIs on the season. He has been a franchise cornerstone for years; he wants his moment to shine. Behind him is first baseman Josh Naylor, who hit 31 homers on the year. Outside of these two, the offense is very league average. Naylor and Ramírez combine for just under a third of Cleveland’s RBIs. Cleveland’s offense will struggle if the Tigers’ pitchers can work around these two.
4. Steal a game in Cleveland: This final point isn’t as statistically driven as the rest, but if the Tigers can go 1-1 and bring the series back to the D, they won’t lose. Comerica Park will be packed to the absolute brim to cheer on their team, not having seen home playoff baseball since 2015. Detroit has been waiting for this moment for almost a decade; the Gritty Tigs will not let the city down.
Tigers in 4. Book it.
