The good news for the Detroit Tigers is that they got off to a positive start in their three-game set against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday evening, enjoying an 8-5 victory at PNC Park to improve their record to 61-64.
But the bad news is that it came on the heels of a damaging sweep at the hands of the divisional rival Chicago White Sox over the weekend at Comerica Park, which dealt a blow to their chances of eventually overtaking them for first place in the American League Central Division standings.
And not long after the series finale on Sunday, a Chicago radio host decided to declare Detroit’s chances for the rest of the season as essentially dead on arrival.
Chicago Radio Host Buries Detroit Tigers After Series Sweep
According to Chicago sports radio host David Haugh, the co-host of “Mully and Haugh” on 670 The Score, the Tigers are essentially finished after they were swept by the White Sox over the weekend.
“The Tigers lurk? No, the Tigers tiptoed away,” he said. “Lame Tigers. Lame. They’re done. This was the end of the Detroit season this weekend. The White Sox? Just getting started.”
“The Tigers’ season is done,” he continued. “The White Sox are in first place by 5.5 games, and it’s good for baseball. It’s good for baseball.”
Meanwhile, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch hasn’t given up on Detroit’s playoff chances.
“We have a lot of character on this team, and we’ve played so many games, not just this season, but over the last few seasons with a lot of attention around us,” Hinch said. “So, I have a lot of trust and faith that we show up ready to play every day. And it’s because this isn’t just like a week or a month or even a season. It’s multiple seasons of our style of play matching the day-to-day grind. So, it shouldn’t surprise me.”
Hinch also said that he believes both fans and players are keeping a close eye on out of town scores, especially given the availability of the information right there in the ballpark.
“I think anyone that says that they don’t scoreboard watch is in denial,” Hinch said. “These ballparks have such huge scoreboards; you can’t help but watch and see what is happening around the league. In terms of the playoff race, of course, the interest level in other games grows as the year goes on. But I’m curious how teams are playing in March, April, and May. So I don’t think it just comes down to the final month. It’s just maybe the importance of those observations is noteworthy.”
The Tigers Beat The Pirates In Their Series Opener On Monday
The Tigers improved their record to 61-64 on Monday evening with a victory over the National League’s Pittsburgh Pirates on the road.
The win, which broke Detroit’s three-game losing skid, put them into a tie for the final Wild Card playoff spot in the American League.
The Tigers and Pirates will resume their series on Tuesday night starting at 6:40 p.m. ET.
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