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AJ Hinch's emotional comments after Tigers' elimination hit Detroit fans hard

We're not crying ...
Emma Lingan
Emma Lingan

Motor City Bengals

Wild Card Series - Detroit Tigers v Cleveland Guardians - Game One / Nick Cammett/GettyImages

It was the longest winner-take-all game in postseason history. Both teams turned to starters out of the bullpen. Both Tarik Skubal and Kerry Carpenter saw their October legends grow. But in the end, it still wasn't enough for the Detroit Tigers, who fell to the Seattle Mariners in a 15-inning instant classic in Game 5 of the ALDS.

It was a dramatic and chaotic game that encapsulated the Tigers' season. MLB's first team to reach 30, 40, 50 and 60 wins endured an epic, late-season collapse that saw them stumble into the playoffs with the worst September record of any team in MLB postseason history.

It all culminated Friday with Skubal pitching like every bit of the ace he is through six innings of one-run ball and Carpenter going 4-for-5 with a home run and a pair of walks; but their heroic efforts fell short.

AJ Hinch quote captures pain, disappointment of Tigers' gut-wrenching loss to Mariners in ALDS

Tigers manager AJ Hinch never once turned to his bench during the rollercoaster of a game in Seattle. His group fought valiantly for 15 innings while still falling short of the expectations they set for themselves at the beginning of the season.

"It hurts, you know," Hinch said after the game. "That group, they gave everything they could. You had guys pitching on short rest. You had players giving everything they had because this was game five and we wanted so badly to take the next step as a team."

Indeed, the Tigers did what they could with what they had, but their inconsistent lineup reared its ugly head. Their pitchers kept them in the game as their batters struck out 17 times and walked only four. Their two through five hitters went 0-for-23 with two walks and 10 strikeouts.

In the end, the Tigers got to be part of MLB playoff history. They were proud of their group, especially for the way they gutted through the final two months of the season. But it's difficult to know how exactly one is supposed to feel after an unbelievable game that ends in heartbreak.

As Hinch said, it hurts. And, for Tigers fans, this one is going to hurt for a while.

Emma Lingan

Emma Lingan

Emma Lingan is an MLB Staff Writer for FanSided primarily covering the Pittsburgh Pirates. She has been covering baseball for more than a decade dating back to her time as a student at Wake Forest University, and she has won two gold medals as a member of the U.S. National Team delegation (2016 Pan-American Championships & 2017 World Baseball Classic). A native of Washington, D.C. and current resident of Nashville, Tenn., she is also entering her seventh season as a credentialed NHL media member and currently covers the NHL’s Nashville Predators for The Hockey News. When she's not watching hockey, baseball or football, she enjoys podcasting, reading, going to the gym, consuming large amounts of coffee and taking long walks with her dog, Minkah. You can follow her @Emma_lingan on Twitter and Instagram.