Detroit Tigers: Takeaways from Tigers’ first series win in nearly a month

With a 4-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday night, the Detroit Tigers won their first series in almost a month, taking two of three games against the O’s.

Wednesday night’s win could prove to be a huge morale boost for the Detroit Tigers. Not only is it the team’s first series win since taking two of three games against Kansas City back in the first weekend of May, but back-to-back wins on Tuesday and Wednesday marks the first time the Tigers have won consecutive games since a doubleheader against Boston on April 23rd.

With Detroit now on a bit of a winning streak, let’s take a look at some of the takeaways from the series win over Baltimore.

Detroit Tigers- Shane Greene Further Proves His Trade Value

In both Tuesday and Wednesday night’s wins, the Tigers counted on closer Shane Greene to come in and seal the victory. Both nights, he got the job done, earning his 17th and 18th saves of the season while not giving up a run in either performance.

Greene’s 18 saves this season gives him the most in the American League and second most in the entire MLB behind San Diego’s Kirby Yates who has 21. By now, it’s pretty clear the Shane Greene is definitely the most valuable asset on this Tigers team that could be used in a trade, but when will GM Al Avila try to start shopping him?

With the trade deadline still about two months away, Greene will probably stay on Detroit’s roster until at least the All-Star break in early July. Though waiting that long to trade Greene might as well be just Avila delaying the inevitable, it likely won’t be until around then when certain postseason hopefuls, like perhaps the Atlanta Braves, will start really looking to add those final pieces to their rosters before making their playoff pushes.

Detroit Tigers- JaCoby Jones Stays Hot

After going 6-14 at the plate with five RBI over the weekend against the Mets, Tigers centerfielder JaCoby Jones continued his solid string of performances at the plate in Baltimore. In three games against the Orioles, Jones recorded a hit in each game and knocked in RBIs on both Monday and Tuesday.

In just the past six days, Jones has seen his BA rise from a dismal .173 to a more respectable .218. It seemed like not too long ago there was talk among several Tigers fans about wanting to send Jones down to Triple-A, but now that type of chatter may need to slow down.

Jones has shown the largest amount of growth in the shortest amount of time of probably anyone in Detroit’s lineup so far this year. If his recent success is just a flash in the pan or is a sign of longterm improvement is still yet to be determined, but right now JaCoby might just be the hottest bat the Tigers have.

The Tigers have a day off on Thursday but remain on the road for the weekend, beginning a three-game series against the Braves in Atlanta on Friday night.