The Detroit Tigers have bigger games coming up, but they still want to finish the regular season the right way.
The Tigers (86-75) clinched an American League wild-card berth with a 4-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Friday. Detroit saw its six-game winning streak snapped with a 4-0 loss to the White Sox on Saturday. The teams will play the series and regular-season finales in Detroit on Sunday afternoon.
The Tigers enjoyed a Friday night celebration, then had to get ready for a Saturday afternoon contest. It wound up being delayed by 2 hours and 20 minutes by inclement weather.
Manager A.J. Hinch wouldn’t attribute the shutout defeat to a post-celebratory hangover.
“I don’t want to make any excuses whatsoever,” he said. “There was a lot of energy this morning coming out of last night. Then we sat around a little bit and then go out and it wasn’t a great day to play. We’re going to chalk this up and get through it and bounce back tomorrow.
“We have a chance to win the series and (finish) the regular season on a much better note and get a good night’s sleep. I think we all need it.”
Detroit will face either Houston or Baltimore in the wild-card round, which will begin on Tuesday.
Tigers ace Tarik Skubal (18-4, 2.39 ERA) was available to pitch Sunday if the team’s playoff fate was still undecided. The likely American League Cy Young Award winner now will be held out until the postseason opener on Tuesday. The Tigers have not announced a starter for the regular-season finale.
“It’s going to be fun. That’s the motivation for me to put in work every offseason and during the season, to get that opportunity and have confidence from A.J. and the guys in the clubhouse,” Skubal said in an MLB Network interview.
The White Sox (40-121) on Friday set the modern-day record for most losses in a season, surpassing the 1962 New York Mets. But Chicago’s victory on Saturday was its fourth in five games.
Rookie right-hander Jonathan Cannon (4-10, 4.37 ERA) will start the finale for the White Sox. Cannon had one of his best outings of the season on Tuesday, holding the Los Angeles Angels scoreless for six innings while scattering three hits and recording seven strikeouts in Chicago’s 3-2 victory.
He’ll make his 21st start of the season on Sunday. He’s struggled in two outings against Detroit this season, going 0-2 with an 18.00 ERA. He’s allowed 13 runs (10 earned) on 15 hits in five innings in those two starts. Tigers second baseman Colt Keith has four hits, including a homer, and a walk against Cannon.
Whatever the outcome on Sunday, it will be a merciful end to a historically bad season for the White Sox.
“It’s been an extremely difficult year for everybody,” first baseman Gavin Sheets said. “It’s been hard mentally, hard physically. I feel bad for everybody in this room, to be a part of this.”
The White Sox’s victory on Saturday was just their second against the Tigers in 12 meetings this season. Detroit is 28-23 against Central Division opponents.
