Tigers head to the World Series
On Oct. 18, an 8-1 victory over the New York Yankees in Game Four of the American League Championship Series (ALCS) sealed the sweep and launched the Detroit Tigers into their first World Series appearance since 2006.
The road to the World Series has been six years in the making. They were only able to win one game in the 2006 Series, losing to the St. Louis Cardinals.
In 2008, fans watched as what analysts all over Major League Baseball called the best lineup on paper failed to meet those expectations and as the team found themselves in last place in the American League (AL) Central Division. Similar feelings arose in the 2011-2012 offseason when the Tigers signed first baseman Prince Fielder.
But with the Tigers surging at the end of this season and the Chicago White Sox falling apart at the seams, the Tigers were able to sneak in and become AL Central Champions for the second year in a row.
This year as the Tigers made their trek through the playoffs to the World Series, things seemed oddly familiar. Their first opponent in the postseason was the Oakland Athletics, the team they defeated in the ALCS in 2006. They would then face the Yankees, who were their AL Division Series opponents in 2006. The Tigers would also sweep their ALCS opponent in both years.
Even though they faced off against the same opponents, the 2012 roster contained only three players from the 2006 team. In 2006 Justin Verlander, the ace of the 2012 Tigers’ pitching staff, was a rookie. Utilityman Ramon Santiago started at shortstop in two games in the World Series. Omar Infante would spend one more year with the Tigers before being traded and then brought back to the Tigers in late July.
The Tigers would have to wait a little over a week after they defeated the Yankees before they would head out to California to begin the World Series against the San Francisco Giants, who earned home field advantage during the All-Star Game. The Tigers will be back at Comerica Park on Oct. 27 for the first of what could be three games in Detroit.
Verlander, Fielder and 2012 Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera will be leading the Tigers against a strong Giants team, which includes 2012 National League Batting Champion Buster Posey and starting pitcher Matt Cain, who threw a perfect game on June 13.
As the end October nears, so does the end of baseball season. Maybe six years after their last World Series appearance and 28 years after their last World Series victory, the Tigers will be able to call themselves World Series Champions.
[WRITER’S NOTE: ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE OCTOBER 2012 EDITION OF “THE PULSE”]