In 2008, they finished fifth. In 2009, they crawled up the standings to second.
Will this finally be the year the Tigers finish first in the AL Central?
The Tigers haven’t finished first in their division since 1987, when they were still a part of the seven-team AL East. Since then, they’ve been runner-ups a handful of times, but never have they established dominance over a division that now also boasts the Twins, White Sox, Indians and Royals.
But maybe this could finally be the year.
Currently, the Tigers are 20-16, just 2 1/2 games behind Minnesota, which sits in first place in the Central. They boast a team batting average of .272 — good for third in the league — and a team ERA of 4.28, seventh in the league. Detroit’s offense isn’t exactly blowing anyone away; it has hit just 27 home runs thus far in 2010, 11th in the league, and it has scored 164 runs, seventh in the league.
But after taking three of four from the Yankees this week, it seems that people are suddenly taking the Tigers seriously.
Justin Verlander currently leads the starting rotation with a 3.88 ERA and a 4-2 record, and the shaky Dontrelle Willis is right behind him with a 3.99 ERA, going 1-1 in five starts. If those two can continue to commandeer a starting five that also features Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello and Jeremy Bonderman, who knows? The Tigers may actually be able to overtake the Twins and make a run at the division crown.
Saturday’s NESN.com Question of the Day powered by KGB comes from Julie in Stratford, Conn. Are the Detroit Tigers good enough to win the AL Central?
Text “SOX1” to 542542 if you think this is the year for the Tigers, or text “SOX2” to 542542 if you think they’re just not good enough.
As of 11 p.m., a full 100 percent felt the Tigers would not win the AL Central.
