DETROIT — The Tigers entered the All-Star break with the best record in the Majors, thanks in large part to their ability to avoid long losing streaks. They didn’t lose more than three games in a row until the Mariners swept them last weekend, sending them into the break on a four-game skid. Manager A.J. Hinch’s relentless focus on each day’s game means Detroit has ridden the ebbs and flows of its season without getting carried away with momentum.
“We continue to be a resilient group who’s very dialed into the game that we need to play that day,” Hinch said. “And I’m not surprised, because I say it over and over, and we preach it, my staff preaches it, the players respond to it. And I think not allowing some of the noise that goes around with success and failure, whether you’ve lost a couple or whether you’re comfortably in first place, it doesn’t matter to our guys. And I think keeping that perspective is really important to run the marathon of the season.
“Us being able to maintain that as the attention has grown, our win total has grown and the questions are starting to be bigger and bigger about this season, our players have remained the same, and I’m very proud of that.”
As the Tigers head into the second half, that focus on individual games becomes even more important as they try to avoid looking too far ahead to October while still looking to play their best baseball when it matters most.
“There are so many great things that we can look back on the first half,” Spencer Torkelson said. “This team’s great, and it’s been great. Four games is nothing in a 162-game season. It’s going to be how we get into this break and come back like we’re 0-0. Regardless of our record, stay hungry.”
One goal for the second half: Clinch AL’s top seed
Nobody knows better than the Tigers how playoff odds mean nothing (0.2 percent, anyone?), but Detroit enters the second half with the Majors’ largest division lead. At this point, the Tigers are very well-positioned for their first division title since 2014. Beyond that, Detroit can think about how best to position itself for a deep postseason run, a quest that begins with a Wild Card round bye and continues with a No. 1 seed and home-field advantage at Comerica Park.
Likely Trade Deadline strategy: Strategic buyers
The Tigers have a deep farm system and clear opportunities to upgrade their roster ahead of the postseason, from a deeper bullpen — not necessarily a traditional closer, but definitely more strikeouts — to another starter and maybe a veteran situational hitter. All contenders look for pitching at the Trade Deadline, but the Tigers have a lot to offer and a front office that can get creative to find what they need.
Key player: Jack Flaherty
A year ago, Flaherty was a trade piece to get Trey Sweeney and prospect Thayron Liranzo into the system back when the Tigers were sellers. This time, Flaherty isn’t going anywhere, not with a chance at a second straight World Series ring. But Detroit needs to get him out of an inconsistent stretch and back in frontline form to best set up its four-man postseason rotation.
Prospect to watch: Troy Melton (club No. 10 prospect)
The Tigers’ aggressive promotion of Jackson Jobe down the stretch last season, from Triple-A Toledo in September to Detroit’s bullpen in the final week and into the postseason, shows they’re not afraid to give prospects a chance. That should create a lot of intrigue around Melton amidst a run of high-strikeout starts since he joined Toledo in June. He has a big arm and wipeout stuff that could be useful in a bullpen that needs more strikeouts.
The remaining schedule is a mixed bag. It includes a few more road games than home contests, tempering the impact of the Tigers’ incredible home record. But the slate includes a good number of winnable series against teams that should be out of contention and could be selling at the Trade Deadline.
Detroit begins the second half with a six-game trip to Texas and Pittsburgh to face sub-.500 opponents, though the Rangers remain on the fringe of the AL Wild Card race. The Tigers also have six games remaining against the White Sox, plus a three-game series in Pittsburgh.
Games remaining: 65 (31 home, 34 road)
Remaining strength of schedule: .485, fifth lowest in MLB, second lowest in AL Central
Key series
July 24-27: Four-game series vs. resurgent Blue Jays
Aug. 18-20: Three-game series vs. Astros
Sept. 9-11: Three-game series at Yankees with AL’s top seed potentially on the line
Sept. 23-28: Six-game road trip to Cleveland and Boston to end the regular season. Tigers play Guardians six times in the final two weeks.