Surging Detroit Tigers Still Underrated in Latest MLB Power Rankings
After their surprising run to the playoffs last year, it was fair to wonder if the Detroit Tigers were for real. Were they legit contenders now? Or did they merely get hot at the right time?
This season, the Tigers have picked up right where they left off. They've started the campaign 10-6, becoming the first American League team to reach 10 wins with Monday's 9-1 rout of the Milwaukee Brewers.
Detroit has come on strong over the last two weeks since getting swept by the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in its first series of the season. In their 13 games since, the Tigers are 10-3 with a plus-31 run differential. They've won four straight series and haven't lost back-to-back games at any point during that stretch.
Dating back to Aug. 11, Detroit is 41-19 over its last 60 regular-season games -- good for a stunning .683 winning percentage.
The Tigers rightfully cracked the top 10 in MLB's power rankings this week, which were released on Monday. Detroit checked in at No. 8, ranking as the second-best team in the American League behind the New York Yankees.
While the Yankees are the defending AL champs, it's hard to see how they're better than the Tigers.
New York's been trending in the wrong direction since sweeping the Brewers at Yankee Stadium to open the season. Over the last two weeks, the Yankees have been woefully inconsistent, going 6-7 with a minus-1 run differential.
New York's offense has cooled off significantly, averaging just 3.4 runs per game over its last eight games. The starting rotation is also a mess, ranking 29th in MLB with a 5.17 ERA, ahead of only the Baltimore Orioles (5.30).
The injury-riddled Yankees are merely treading water and have clearly been surpassed by Detroit, which has one of the best pitching staffs in baseball. The Tigers' 3.40 ERA (seventh in MLB) is over a full run better than New York's mediocre 4.44 mark (24th).
The Yankees do have a better offense with AL MVP frontrunner Aaron Judge leading the charge, but Detroit isn't far behind. It's also hard to envision New York's pitching staff holding up for an entire season, especially in the AL East.
The Bronx Bombers appear slightly overrated based on their star power, reputation and last year's results. However, the Tigers have been demonstrably better for months now and deserve to be ranked ahead of them, especially after taking two of three from them last week at Comerica Park.
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