Tigers clinch 1st playoff spot since 2014 with improbable run

The Detroit Tigers are headed back to the postseason for the first time in a decade after a 4-1 win over the Chicago White Sox on Friday.

Detroit posted a 31-11 record since Aug. 10 to punch its ticket despite being a seller at the trade deadline. The club was 5.5 games back of the AL's final wild-card spot as recently as Sept. 6 but surged in the last few weeks to win 16 of 20 contests, including a current six-game winning streak.

"This team is pretty dangerous," Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris said postgame, according to Larry Lage of The Associated Press. "We got a chance to make some noise in October, and we're going to keep fighting for the opportunity."

Prior to this season, the Tigers hadn't made the playoffs since 2014 and haven't finished with a winning record since 2016.

"With every player I hugged, I had a flashback to some moment of adversity they faced, or some moment where we challenged them to do something differently, and all of these guys did," Harris added. "They rose to the occasion and they deserve it. I'm really, really proud of them."

Detroit became only the fifth team in MLB history to qualify for the postseason after being as far back as 10 games through 118 contests. The 2011 St. Louis Cardinals were the last club to accomplish the feat, and they captured the World Series that year.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch will take part in the playoffs for the first time since the 2019 World Series when he was the Houston Astros' skipper. He was eventually fired due to the sign-stealing scandal.

"When I came here to Detroit, I didn't know if I was going to manage again," Hinch said, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network. "So, it means a lot to me to be a leader of this team, and for an organization to take a chance on me, to put me back in this chair, bring my experience, and see the good I've done before."