DETROIT – The Detroit Tigers polished off a sweep of the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday as the playoff race comes down to the final weekend of the regular season.
After taking down the Rays in the first two games of the series, the Tigers fell behind early in the finale, trailing 3-0 through five innings.
Old friend Tyler Alexander got the start and tossed five scoreless, allowing just four hits and striking out six batters.
Detroit finally broke through in the sixth against the Tampa Bay bullpen. Matt Vierling walked with two outs and Colt Keith brought him in with a triple. Kerry Carpenter pinch hit for Spencer Torkelson and singled home Keith to make it 3-2.
The Tigers struck again in the bottom of the eighth. Riley Greene hit a one-out single, and Vierling drew a walk. Keith came through with another huge hit, singling home Greene and moving Vierling to third as the go-ahead run.
Justyn-Henry Malloy pinch hit for Carpenter and hit a fly ball to center that was just deep enough to score Vierling and give the Tigers a 4-3 lead.
Jason Foley came in and slammed the door.
It’s the fifth-straight win for the Tigers, who began the day with playoff odds over 90%. This isn’t the end of the world, but it could make this weekend a bit more uncomfortable.
Here’s what the win means for the Tigers:
Battle with Twins for final wild card spot
The Twins play the final game of their series against the Marlins tonight in Minneapolis. They’re currently w.5 games behind the Tigers, with a chance to pull within two games if they win Thursday.
A loss Thursday would make for a bit of an uncomfortable weekend in Detroit, as the Twins own the tiebreaker and would get in over the Tigers if the two teams finish with the same record.
The Tigers have the advantage of hosting the White Sox -- the worst team in the league -- this weekend. Chicago has already tied the record for most losses in a single season.
The Twins have a much tougher matchup on paper, as they welcome the Orioles to Target Field. But there’s a chance the Orioles will already be locked into the top wild card spot by Friday, or likely Saturday at the latest.
If the Twins are fighting for their playoff lives and the Orioles are already looking ahead to the wild card round, that matchup might not work as heavily in Detroit’s favor.
That’s why Thursday’s comeback was so critical for the Tigers. They now have a bit of breathing room heading into the weekend.
Home wild card games still on the table
Thursday’s win kept open the possibility for the Tigers to catch the Orioles for the top wild card spot, as they began the day four games behind with four to play.
So the Tigers need to win their final three games, and the Orioles must finish 0-4. Then the Orioles would come to Detroit for the wild card round.
Second vs. third wild card spots
The Tigers and Royals started the day tied for the second and third wild card spots.
The Royals also had a day game, and they beat the Washington Nationals. So the two teams are still tied, with the Royals holding the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Kansas City is heading to Atlanta for the final three games, and the Braves are in the heat of a wild card race of their own.
The second wild card team will head to Baltimore for the first round, while the third wild card team heads to Houston.
Seattle Mariners eliminated
The Tigers’ win eliminated the Mariners from playoff contention.
Detroit has the tiebreaker, so it wouldn’t matter if Seattle found a way to finish the season with the same record as the Tigers.
