MLB Hall of Famer Believes in the Detroit Tigers' Chances in 2026
In this story:
It's been a very weird season for the Detroit Tigers so far. The just under .500 record has been good enough to second the AL Central; however, it is a strong indication that this is the Tigers' division to lose at this point in the campaign.
Despite having a tremendous record at Comerica Park this season, having only lost two games in Detroit, the Tigers feel like they've been a step behind the other franchises deemed contenders before the season got underway.
And while it may be hard for fans to see this team making it back to the playoffs at this stage of production, one MLB Hall of Famer and multi-time World Series champion still believes that the Tigers have all the necessary pieces to be a force in the latter half of 2026.
Pedro Martinez's Belief in Detroit
Even with the Tigers falling 5-2 to the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday and 4-3 on Wednesday night, three-time Cy Young Award winner Pedro Martinez didn't shy away from what Detroit is building. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the legendary pitcher revealed his exact thoughts on the Tigers.
"Detroit: They’re set. I love their pitching! All they need to do is continue to play baseball as good as they can and continue to play defense which they do really well," Martinez wrote.
If there is one person in the world to believe when commenting about pitching success, it's Pedro Martinez. Going into the campaign, the Tigers were viewed as having one of the best starting rotations and a strong bullpen. Only one of those has been accurate thus far.
The bullpen has been an issue for Detroit, but that doesn't mean that it can't find its footing. Kyle Finnegan, Will Vest, and Kenley Jansen were slated to be the three-headed monster, and Finnegan has been the best of the three at holding things down, while typically only throwing in one inning.
The likes of Tarik Skubal, Framber Valdez, Casey Mize, Jack Flaherty, Justin Verlander, and Keider Montero allow the Tigers a strong chance at competing every game, despite a few hiccups along the way thus far.
As the calendar turns to May and the weather heats up, the Tigers need to heat up as well. Pulling away in the Central division is a must before they encounter a similar situation to last season, in which they blew a 15.5 game lead and almost missed the playoffs.
There are some underrated stats that the Tigers rank highly in that get overlooked due to their .500 record. Some of those can be viewed below.
- 10th in Team AVG (.248)
- 6th in Team OPS (.746)
- 3rd in Team Doubles (60)
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Dominic Minchella is a 2024 Eastern Michigan University graduate with a BA in Communications, Media, and Theatre Arts and a Journalism minor. He covers Major League Baseball for On SI and spends his free time watching games and sharing his insights.