September 28 – The Detroit Tigers qualified for the playoffs for the first time in 10 years.
After the raucous celebration, the Tigers will have to calm down and play another game on Saturday afternoon.
Detroit (86-74) clinched a spot in the American League wild-card playoffs by beating the Chicago White Sox 4-1 on Friday night. They did so with two games remaining in the regular season.
The Tigers were nine games below .500 on July 4, having won six games in a row and 15 of their last 18. On Friday, they drew 44,435 spectators.
“As a player, you want to be right there,” said Matt Vierling, who ran with the ball and scored the second goal. “You want to make the playoffs. That’s what we play for. We work every day and work hard for it. That’s the goal, to get here. I’m proud of the whole team. To see the whole team in town is absolutely incredible… we’re motivated to keep going.”
Detroit hasn’t made the playoffs since 2014.
The Tigers were overjoyed to receive an invitation to the party. They were nine games under .500 on July 4 and were still hovering around .500 at the start of the month.
“You know what we love? We love winning,” head coach AJ Hinch said in a postgame TV interview while wearing an “October Ready” jersey. “There’s nothing better than that. We’re going into October, like it says on our shirts. We deserve it. We don’t talk about it much because we need to build these days. I’m happy, because I got a chance to see a team grow before my eyes and now I get a chance to see this team play in October.
Hinch once again strung together a dominant bullpen day, holding the White Sox to three hits over five pitchers.
“It’s been a long journey to get to this point,” first baseman Spencer Torkelson said. “From the lowest guy on the totem pole to the highest guy, everybody puts in effort. Those tough moments, those moments when you work together as a team, that’s what makes it so sweet.”
The White Sox (39-121) on Friday surpassed the 1962 New York Mets to set the modern record for most losses in a season.
Rookie right-hander Sean Burke (1-0, 1.93 ERA) is scheduled to make his fourth career appearance and third start for the White Sox on Saturday.
Burke was brilliant against San Diego on Sunday. He held the Padres to one run and two hits, struck out eight in six innings and allowed only one four-base hit. He exited with a 2-1 lead, but the Padres won 4-2.
“Burke played a great game,” outfielder Andrew Benintendi said. “They have a lot of good hitters in their lineup, and they’ve all been playing a long time.”
Burke is Chicago’s 2021 third-round pick who spent most of the season with Triple-A Charlotte. In 16 starts, he compiled a 2-6 record and a 4.62 ERA.
The Tigers have not yet named a starter.
–Visual-level media
