5 Best Non-World Series Seasons for Detroit Tigers

Credit: Creative Commons, C.J. Peters http://goo.gl/IkaRqG

The Detroit Tigers have won 11 American League pennants and four World Series championships, but postseason success does not always go hand-in-hand with regular season success.

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Until the 1968 season, there were no regularly scheduled playoffs in baseball. Which meant the best team in the regular season in each league went to the World Series. In 1969 a round of playoffs before the World Series was introduced with the best team from each newly formed division playing each other for the right to go to the Fall Classic. For the first time in history, a team with a worse regular season record could represent their respective league.

The wildcard, and an addition round of playoffs, was added to the game in 1995. Another round, a one-game playoff, was added in 2013.

Heading into the 2015 season, the Tigers have won 9,011 games placing them 12th-best in the baseball. When you take into account that the top seven teams on that list are all National League teams (which predated the AL by 20-25 years), they rank fourth among AL teams, behind the Yankees, Red Sox and Indians–really, the INDIANS?!

So because of these circumstances (only one team going to postseason from 1901-1968 and better teams in regular season possibly losing in the playoffs post-1969) there are quite a few Detroit Tigers teams that were very good, but are now a footnote in history because they didn’t win the pennant.

Take a time traveling trip through the slide show with us to look at the top five non-World Series Tigers’ teams.

Oct 15, 2013; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Justin Verlander (35) throws against the Boston Red Sox during game three of the American League Championship Series baseball game at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

#5: 2011 Detroit Tigers (95-67, 15 GA of Cleveland Indians) 

By the time 2011 rolled around, much of the surprising team from 2006 had left. That 2006 AL champion team will be remembered very fondly by Tigers’ fans because they came out of nowhere after nearly 20 years of terrible baseball to make Detroit a baseball town again, but as those players aged and injuries set in the franchise tried to retool.

They had a decent year in 2007 and were actually MLB’s best team at the All-Star break but fell apart terribly in the second half. Despite winning 88 games they could not match the Indians. That ensuing offseason, the team made a blockbuster trade which brought superstar Miguel Cabrera and former phenom pitcher Dontrelle Willis to Detroit. Just two years out form a World Series, the Tigers were the consensus pick to win it all–they finished in last place.

The following year looked promising and the Tigers held a 7.5-game divisional lead on Labor Day but watched it disappear. Unlike 2006 there was no wild-card spot to fall back upon and they lost a heartbreaking (and still tough to remember) 163rd game in Minnesota.

In 2010, the team received many new pieces in a offseason blockbuster trade that brought in a raw Scherzer, Austin Jackson and some other piece to the team.

By the time 2011 rolled around, the rejuvenated baseball town was yearning for another taste of the playoffs. Throughout much of the season the Tigers had trouble putting distance between themselves and their AL Central rivals. A late-August into early September 12-game winning streak helped to do just that, but they had the same divisional lead that they held two seasons ago. There would be no collapse this time.

That year the Tigers were led by a once-in-a-generation performance from Justin Verlander. Every time he went out to the mound he just embarrassed batters. He threw his second career no-hitter in June at Toronto, won 24 games (winning 12 straight at one point), posting a 2.40 ERA in 251 innings. He easily won the Cy Young award and also became the first AL  pitcher since 1990 to the MVP.

On the offensive side of things, the team was led by Miguel Cabrera’s 30 homers, .344 average and 105 RBIs. Victor Martinez, Jhonny Peralta, Brennan Boesch and Alex Avila were also key offensive performers that season.

The Tigers had dominated the regular season series with the defending AL champion Texas Rangers and though they would start on the road, Detroit was confident they could win there. Verlander didn’t have his best stuff in Game 1 and put the Tigers in an early hole in the ALDS. Though they won two out of the three games in Detroit, they really needed to sweep to have a chance in Texas. In Game 6 at Arlington they clung to a brief lead but Texas came back and put them away.

Although it was a disappointing outcome, most fans figured this new core of players would be back and ready to take the next step the following year. They did–going to the World Series, but that didn’t work out so hot.

Creative Commons, Aaron Webb http://goo.gl/9Bm9To

#4: 1915 Detroit Tigers (100-54, 2.5 GB Boston Red Sox) 

We go in the way, way back machine for this team, exactly 100 years in fact. The Tigers seemingly had a dark period in their history from 1910 to 1934. The Ty Cobb-led clubs went to the World Series three straight years from 1907 to 1909 and didn’t return until 1934, but that’s not to say they didn’t have some close calls along the way.

The 1915 team was one of the closest calls. For the first time in their 15-year history to that point, the Tigers won 100 games, but it was all for naught as the pesky Boston Red Sox won 101 games and eventually became World Champions.

This team was led by a still-in-his prime Ty Cobb and two other stellar outfielders in Sam Crawford and Bobby Veach. The trio finished in the top three in RBIs and total bases. That outfield was named as the best one-year outfield in major league history by Bill James.

The pitching staff was led by two 20-game winners in Hooks Dauss (24-13, 2.50 ERA) and Harry Coveleski (22-13, 2.45 ERA). Jean Dubac also picked up 17 wins in the four-man rotation.

Because baseball had a 154-game schedule at the time, the Tigers’ .649 winning percentage was the second-best in franchise history (even higher than the championship years on 1968 and 1984 when the team won 103 and 104 games respectively), only bested by 1934 when they won 101 of the 154 games.

The Tigers never really competed in the Cobb-era after that.

Oct 19, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Red Sox right fielder Shane Victorino (18) reacts after hitting a grand slam against the Detroit Tigers during the seventh inning in game six of the American League Championship Series playoff baseball game at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

#3: 2013 Detroit Tigers (93-69, 1 GA of Cleveland Indians)

Let’s fast forward 98 years. The 2013 season seemed like THE year for the Tigers. The year before, after their first trip to the playoffs in four seasons, the team had been bounced out of the postseason by a more experienced Texas Rangers team and they figured to be ready to roll in 2012, they struggled most of the season, winning the division late by overtaking the Chicago White Sox.

Detroit Tigers

That team finished with just 88 wins, but got incredibly hot in the playoffs and made it to the World Series for the second time in seven seasons before being humiliated via a four-game sweep. This seemed to serve as motivation for the Tigers as they fought a resurgent Cleveland Indians team for much of the season, but decimated them in the season series, 15 wins to 4 losses.

Led by Miguel Cabrera’s second-straight MVP season (.344 avg., 44 homers, 137 RBIs), Max Scherzer‘s Cy Young campaign (21-3, 2.90 ERA, and a solid season from Anibal Sanchez, the Tigers were in good shape heading to the postseason–except for their recurring Achilles Heel, the bullpen.

For the second consecutive season, the Detroit Tigers and Oakland Athletics battled through a memorable ALDS with Justin Verlander (who had a fairly pedestrian regular season) shut down the A’s twice and beat them in their own place for a second straight year in a do-or-die game.

Though they would start on the road for the ALDS you had to like the Tigers chances of getting to their second straight World Series against the Boston Red Sox, a team that had finished in last place the year before and had a new manager. The Tigers matched up better at nearly every position–except the bullpen.

We all know the story, the Tigers won Game 1 by the score of 1-0 behind a terrific performance from Sanchez. They had Boston on the ropes in Game 2, leading 5-0 behind Scherzer, but Max got tired, allowed some runs and then the bullpen allowed a Grand Slam that changed the momentum of the series.

Back in Detroit for the middle three games a pitching duel, a bad performance by Sanchez and an inconsistent offense saw the Tigers lose two out of three games. Back in Boston for Game 6, history repeated itself as the bullpen imploded and allowed another Grand Slam and the season was over.

Out of all the playoff teams since 2006 that just haven’t gotten the job done, I truly believe this one was the best of the bunch. The one that could have won it all if not for a few badly located pitches.

Creative Commons James Marvin Phelps http://goo.gl/EBWNPM

#2: 1987 Detroit Tigers (98-64,  2 GA of Toronto Blue Jays) 

The Detroit Tigers horribly underachieved in the two seasons following their fourth, and most recent, title. They tumbled 20 games in the standings in 1985 and fell to third place. They ascended to three more wins but remained in third place in 1986.

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The core of 1984 team had started to slowly fall off. Lance Parrish was gone, replaced by unknown rookie catcher Matt Nokes who ended up having an incredible first season. Because of those two lost seasons in ’85 and ’86, the Tigers were not given much of chance to compete in the tough AL East with the defending AL champion Red Sox and an up and coming Toronto Blue Jays.

The season started out flat, with an 11-19 record in April, but Detroit began to heat up in May. Ascending up the standings, they could not quite get past Toronto and the teams played a couple of memorable series in the final two weekends of the year.

Playing in four games in old Exhibition Field, Toronto seemingly put the division out of reach by taking the first three games, each by a single run, before Kirk Gibson rallied the Tigers late in an extra innings victory.

Going back to Tiger Stadium for a final home stand, the Tigers needed to be near perfect on the week to overcome a 3.5-game deficit in the standings. They didn’t do themselves any favors by dropping two of three to Baltimore before Toronto came in for the final series of the regular season.

The Blue Jays could have wrapped up the division with a couple wins against Milwaukee, but dropped all three home games before coming to Detroit.

The Tigers tied the division with a win on Friday night and could guarantee at least a one-game playoff with a win on Saturday. It would go into the 12th inning before Alan Trammell brought home Jim Walewander to earn the hard-fought 3-2 victory.

On Sunday, before more than 51,000 fans, the Tigers clinched the division as Frank Tanana went the distance and outdueled Jimmy Key in a 1-0 victory.

It was a remarkable comeback for the 98-win Tigers who were led by Trammell (who was robbed for the MVP that year) with a .343 average, 28 homers and 105 RBIs. Darrell Evans and Nokes hit 66 homers between them and Tanana, Jack Morris, and Walt Terrell were solid on the mound. The trade with Atlanta for Doyle Alexander (with John Smoltz in exchange) made all the difference as the veteran went 9-0 down the stretch.

The Tigers were the heavy favorite to win it all heading into the playoffs, but the crazy two weekends against Toronto seemed to sap the energy of the aging club. Despite winning just 85 games in the regular season, the Minnesota Twins steamrolled the Tigers, winning the ALCS in five games.

Detroit finished a game back in 1988, but would not even sniff the postseason until 2006.