How about these Detroit Tigers?

As we wind down the final weekend of the MLB regular season, the Tigers find themselves popping bottles, shotgunning beers and celebrating as they have officially clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2014. That breaks the longest playoff drought in the MLB, as they were tied with the Angels at 10 years.

It truly is incredible to see the growth with this Tigers team. Having covered them all season, when they were the only undefeated team to start the season, to multiple 5-game losing streaks, to going 31-11 in the last month, nobody could have expected this roller coaster of a season, especially not Tigers fans.

Let’s break down how improbable this run really was. On August 11th, the Detroit Tigers had a 0.2% chance of making the playoffs. Teams like the Toronto Blue Jays were in that same position, and look how their season turned out. Just a couple weeks later, they improved their chances to 1.4%, still virtually impossible. They stuck with it and as of September 14th, they had an 8.7% chance at making the playoffs, still an extreme long shot, but technically not out.

This gritty Detroit squad however would not be denied and as of Friday, September 27th, the Tigers beat the lowly Chicago White sox to secure their spot in October baseball.

Now that the Tigers have done their part and punched their ticket to the postseason, it’s time for the fans to step up. Over the course of the season, the Tigers ranked 24th in the league in attendance, averaging 22,871 per game in a park that holds 41,083. Even in this final home stretch, where it became clear there was a path to the postseason, ticket sales weren’t the greatest.

Something that really stands out to me with this organization is everything they do for their fans. From multiple ‘Barks in the Park’ where dog-owners bring their pups to the game, to their concert series that is held after every Friday home game, to high-quality merch giveaways, it’s clear that the Tigers organization goes the extra mile with fan engagement. Leading up to the final game of the regular season, the front office made the decision to waive all service fees for tickets in an effort to pack out the park. You would never see other organizations put forth that kind of effort for their fans, this is your queue to rally behind your team Detroit.

It just goes to show that this Tigers team never had any quit in them. The front runner for the AL Cy Young Tarik Skubal has put together an immaculate season, regardless of where they were in the standings. Skubal has notched 18 total wins, which is more wins than the Chicago White Sox have on the road this season. The ‘next man up’ mentality has been very evident this season, with callups like Colt Keith, Parker Meadows and Justyn-Henry Malloy have been bright spots in this lineup, backing up the mantra in the clubhouse ‘one game at a time.’

It’s the unwavering effort from each and every Tigers player that has gotten them to this point. With the playoff picture not fully painted just yet, this is the time to rally behind the Tigers as they have won over baseball fans’ hearts from across the league.

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