Tigers Enter Yankees Series Riding One of Baseball's Hottest Pitching Streaks
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The Detroit Tigers have needed the month of June to go their way if it meant having a heartbeat for a potential playoff push for the second half of the season. Lucky for them, the Tigers have played better baseball than they did in May, though it wasn't a very daunting task to do so.
Sweeping the Chicago White Sox out of Comerica Park to open the 10-game homestand at Comerica Park was exactly what the franchise needed. And even before the sweep at home this weekend, Detroit has been one of the hardest pitching staffs to hit across the MLB in June.
Tigers PR posted on X ahead of the series finale against the White Sox, which resulted in a Matt Vierling walk-off hit, that Detroit's starting pitching has been lights out almost every game this month.
Detroit's SP Dominance
"Tigers starting pitchers have allowed no more than four runs in 24-straight starts, which is MLB's longest active streak," Tigers PR on X (formerly Twitter) wrote.
With Keider Montero going seven innings, allowing three runs on Sunday, that streak got pushed to 25 straight starts of four runs or less allowed by Detroit starting pitchers. Funny enough, the Tigers lead the American League with a Team ERA of 3.12 in June, as the incoming New York Yankees follow right behind them at 3.82.
If there were ever a time for the Tigers' starting pitching to dominate on the mound, it's this upcoming three-game series against New York. Detroit will send Framber Valdez, Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal to the mound in the series, giving the franchise a strong chance to win another crucial series at this point in the season.
What To Watch From Valdez
Valdez is coming off one of his better starts in a Tigers uniform and it came against his former team, the Houston Astros. Valdez went six strong innings allowing one run, zero earned runs, six hits, six strikeouts and three walks.
In June, Valdez holds a 2.81 ERA as he takes on the Yankees entering the game with a season ERA of 4.09. Another quality start from Valdez could put his ERA back under four, further proving how deep the Detroit starting pitching is.
Valdez will need to keep the ball in the ballpark against the Bronx Bombers, and one way he can do that is with his curveball and slider. Those are his putaway pitches on the mound, and even if they get hit, it typically results in soft contact, something he has to do against New York.
If Valdez can continue the streak of holding the opponent to four or fewer runs as a starter, the Tigers' offense should be able to get a few across Gerrit Cole and the New York bullpen.
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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.