Last time the Tigers won it all, they beat the Padres to finish the job. Will they be clocking back in this fall?
Hall of Famer and MLB on TBS analyst Pedro Martinez has a bold prediction about a quarter of the way through the season: "I have the Tigers going to the World Series against the Padres," he said Tuesday night after Detroit walked off the Red Sox thanks to the heroics of Javy Baez.
The Tigers walked off the Red Sox again Wednesday night to complete the series sweep, this time with Justyn-Henry Malloy playing the hero. They lead the majors at 29-15, their best start since they were 30-14 in 2006 -- another year in which they went to the World Series. And they're 17-5 at Comerica Park, their best home start since they had the same record in, yep, 1984.
As Pedro put it, the Tigers have "found their own identity and they’re executing everything they need to and more! They’re hungry Tigers! They go hunt and they eat!"
Malloy explained it like this after his game-winning knock off Aroldis Chapman:
"You come to the ballpark and you're just ready to win. There's a feeling of momentum. There's a feeling of wanting to contribute. And you know you have a role. I think the amount of buy-in with that role creates a really selfless atmosphere where guys are just ready to jump in the game: How can I impact it? How can I help the guys out? How I can move a guy over? How can I run the bases for my boy so that his at-bat gets easier?
"It really is just the selfless act of trying to play the game and I think our group is doing an incredible job of doing so."
The Padres, meanwhile, are third in the majors at 27-15. The Tigers hosted them last month and took two of three, albeit while the Padres were without All-Stars Jackson Merrill, their best all-around player, and Luis Arraez, the three-time batting champ.
Suffice to say, both teams are worthy contenders. They won't meet again this season -- unless they collide in October.