Clinch Eludes Tigers, Command Doesn't

DETROIT -- It couldn't be playing out any better for the Yankees. At least, that's how it seems.

Whether that's true remains to be seen.

Ask the Yankees, and they'd wish for the AL Central race to go down to the wire, to a Tuesday one-game playoff preferably. Don't let the Twins or Tigers rest their players, or line up their pitching for the Division Series.

Well, Detroit lost 8-3 on Thursday to Minnesota, leaving the magic number at two and keeping its drought without a division title at 22 years (longer than every franchise but Milwaukee, Kansas City and Washington/Montreal).

So the champagne remained corked. But eventually it should flow.

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"I felt like we did what we had to do," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said after the four-game series ended in a split, "and not necessarily what we wanted to do."

Realistically, the Twins had to win at least three of four to either gain a tie or take a two-game lead. Instead they trail by two games with three to play.

"The worst-case scenario didn't happen," Detroit shortstop Adam Everett said, "which is getting swept or losing three out of four."

And even though Detroit has to face Jake Peavy Friday, Minnesota is in more dire straits.

With the rotation muddled after Monday's rainout, the Twins will go with rookie Jeff Manship (5.81 ERA) on Friday against Kansas City. Then Nick Blackburn, who threw 111 pitches Tuesday, is scheduled to come back on short rest Saturday against Royals ace Zack Greinke.

We're not going to declare the Twins dead just yet; they're too good to just roll over.

Let's put it this way; we like the Tigers' chances in a five-game series against the Yankees more than the Twins' chances of winning the division.

Sure, the Yankees will be overwhelming favorites. That's hard to dispute. They'll go in as baseball's only 100-win team with their choice of series schedule, their postseason rotation aligned and (it seems) healthy.

Meanwhile, the Tigers don't have a reliable fourth or fifth starter, are shaky in middle relief and can't come up with big hits (.263 for the four-game series with runners in scoring position).

After the chance to celebrate slipped away for a day, someone asked Detroit losing pitcher Nate Robertson if he was reminded of 2006 -- when the Tigers lost the final five games of the regular season to go from home-field advantage in the first round to a wild card that had to face the Yankees.

"Nothing slipped away," Robertson said. "We got to the playoffs, and that's your goal.

"We draw off the good stuff, not the bad."

And they can.

Despite "backing in" in 2006, despite having to open on the road, Detroit won the Division Series in four games.

And maybe it could happen again. There are reasons to believe other than some kind of mystical "Motown Mojo," where the people of an economically depressed state get a happy ending from their athletic heroes (a la the Final Four).

Reason No. 1 is Justin Verlander. If the Tigers can just clinch before his turn comes up Sunday, they can save their ace for the playoff opener, and he could also pitch Game 4 (presuming the Yankees pick the series with the extra off day). While Verlander would be matched up with CC Sabathia, Detroit always has a chance to win when he pitches.

In fact, Verlander and No. 2 starter Edwin Jackson have both allowed two runs total in two starts against the Yankees this year.

And if the Tigers can steal a game at Yankee Stadium, they have gone 50-28 at Comerica Park -- including 35-17 in their past 52 games at home. The atmosphere will be inspiring, as it was Thursday; despite playing a weekday afternoon game in a city with 17 percent unemployment, Detroit sold 7,000 tickets on the day of the game to get its first sellout since July 25.

The Yankees won the season series 5-1, but their three wins at home were by a total of four runs. So the Tigers know they can play with the Yankees, and they also have the manager with more postseason (and overall) experience.


While there's no evidence of any connection between playoff results and going in to them hot or cold or having clinched early or having had to play hard to the end, it is a fact that the Yankees have not felt pressure to win since an early August four-game sweep of the Red Sox that extended their division lead to 6 1/2 games.

Not only will the Tigers (if they hold on) enter the postseason accustomed to the pressure -- even more so than in '06, when they had the safety net of the wild card wrapped up before that final week -- they won't be rattled.

Leyland cited a professionalism as his favorite thing about his team.

"This is the best group of guys I've had since I've been here," he said. "Overall, I think it's been a less stressful group.

"I just think that when your veterans buy into the program, you've got a big advantage. ... I think we've got good guys that do things right, even though they're not boisterous. I don't need somebody yelling all the time, getting on guy's asses. They quietly take care of their business. I think we've got a bunch of guys that do things right, that set an example. It's not just one or two.

"It takes a lot of stress off the manager and coaching staff."

Of course, if the Yankees play the next five weeks like they have the past five months, they will roll through the playoffs. Asked if all his team's attitude shows up in the win-loss record, Leyland said, "I don't know about that. It's just been a fun bunch to be with."

So the good guys may not win. But they have a chance.