I am taking a bit of time this week to relax and think about things other than work, hence this blog post on one of my hobbies, following Detroit and Michigan sports. I don’t have time or patience to watch all of the games, but I do follow the Tigers and Lions.
The Detroit Tigers baseball team was a big part of my childhood and adolescence. My mother was a baseball fanatic and she watched or listened on the radio, to all 162 Tigers baseball games annually. I played Little League Baseball and all the way into high school, when West Iron County Wykons had a team and participated in the Western Upper Peninsula Baseball League. I was an average player, a pretty good fielder at second base and a below average hitter. My speciality was bunting and our coach loved the suicide squeeze play. The “suicide squeeze” was the runner at third base starts sprinting home as soon as the pitcher throws the ball to the batter. With the runner rapidly coming down the baseline, the batter, often me, had to bunt or tap the ball into play. I would commit “suicide” by getting out and this play would “squeeze” the runner home. Often I got on base as well as I could place the ball adeptly down the third base line, far enough away from the catcher, pitcher, and third baseman so all had to run to it.
The Tigers won the World Series my senior year of high school in 1984 against the San Diego Padres. I remember going to a float-making party for our homecoming in October of 1984, and that night, the Tigers won Game 5 to be crowned champions. They have not won another one 40 years later and instead of being 17 years old, I am 57 years old. They did come close, losing the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals in 2006 and the San Francisco Giants in 2012. In their 124 years of being a franchise, they have 4 World Series titles and made the playoffs 17 times.
It was a huge surprise that they made the playoffs for the first time in 10 years this year, in 2024. The Tigers owner, Mike Ilitch, the owner of Little Caesar’s Pizza chain was pumping a lot of money into the team and was desperate for the World Series title before he died. The Tigers made 2 of the six World Series during that era and had a lot of success. He died and his children stopped putting so much money into the team and they had 10 years of losing teams. This season, it looked to be the same, as they struggled to reach .500 all season long. They traded their second-best pitcher at the trade deadline to the LA Dodgers and it looked like a mediocre but finally, respectable season. However, starting in mid August, they went on an incredible winning streak and earned a playoff spot in the new format. They swept the Houston Astros in the first round and took the Cleveland Guardians to a final Game 5 before dropping out. It was like a lightning strike, a bolt out of nowhere, and gave me happiness and entertainment as the season ended in September and October.
The 2024 Tigers have the youngest roster in baseball and have loads of young talent because they drafted in the early rounds for so many years. The Tigers have the best pitcher in baseball, Tarik Skubal, and a bunch of relievers that manager A.J. Hinch rotates for the other games. It would be good for them to find or develop another key starter or two to give them consistency over a long season and help in post season 7-game series. They also need a couple of power hitters, maybe some veteran slugger that could play designated hitter. One issue is a big contract they gave to Javier Baez, an aging star who is not aging well. He was injured during the Tiger’s miraculous run, so they really don’t need him. He still has 3 years of a $140 million dollar deal that they might as well burn the money. I hope he can turn it around, but having so much money going to a 31-year-old hitter with an average of .187 and 6 home runs, it such a waste. He was an amazing player for the Chicago Cubs in his early 20s and I hope he can find that touch again. The Tigers have one of the lowest payrolls in baseball, #24 of 30 teams, at $104 million. That compares to the two teams in the World Series this year, the NY Yankees ($303 million) and LA Dodgers ($250 million).
On the football side, the Detroit Lions are in first place in the NFC North with a record of 5 wins and 1 loss. They have probably the best team in the NFC and are one of the favorites to make it to the Super Bowl. They lost last season in the NFC championship game to the San Francisco 49ers after having a big lead. They kept their team together and have the most explosive offenses in the league with superstar athletes and arguably the best players at their position. Wide receiver Am-ran St. Brown, running back Jahmir Gibbs, Tight End Sam LaPorta, are considered one of the best at their respective positions. Combine that with the best offensive line in football, a genius offense coordinator (Ben Johnson) and a smart quarterback who finds the open player, Jared Goff, the Lions are unstoppable. They will always be able to stay in games because they can score points. They are so exciting to watch. Their weak point is their defense and they recently lost Aiden Hutchinson, one of the best rushers in the game. However, they have one of the best defensive backs in football, Brian Branch. The question is can they get enough stops to win football games.
Their coach Dan Campbell really changed the culture of the franchise. The Lions since 1934 have only won 4 championships, the last being 10 years before I was born in 1957. They are one of the few teams that has never made it to a Super Bowl (started in 1967). Could this be the year? One criticism of coach Campbell is late game decisions and there is always a bit of luck involved. The hope is they can have the number one seed and play two home games to get to the Super Bowl. It is just so refreshing to have a good football team to follow!
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