Detroit Tigers history

 

The club is a charter member of the American League, one of four clubs still located in it’s original city. Detroit is the only member of the Western League, the AL’s minor league predecessor, that remains in it’s original city. It was established as a charter member in 1894. The name “Tigers” originates from the 19th century military unit based in the city and held the same name.

The Tigers played their first major league game at home against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 25, 1901, with 10,000 fans at Bennet Park. After entering the ninth inning behind 13-4, the Tigers staged a dramatic comeback to win 14-13. The team finished third in the eight team league.

The 1905 season was a remarkable one for the Tigers in that it marked the first in a Detroit uniform for Ty Cobb, the most famous Tiger of them all. Cobb played his first of 3,033 games on August 30, 1905.

The 1907 season saw the emergence of two individuals, neither of them players, who would both play significant roles in turning the fortunes of the young Tigers. One was Frank Navin, who began as a bookeeper with the franchise in 1902 before acquiring a full half interest ownership in the club and becoming team president. After Ban Johnson’s retirement in 1927, Navin was considered the most powerfull man in the American League. The other was Hugh Jennings, a man with a keen eye for talent was regarded as one of major league’s most colorfull managers.

During the 1907 season, Ty Cobb won his first batting crown hitting . 350 and his first steals title, stealing 49 bases. With Cobb batting behind him, Sam Crawford hit .323 and slugged .450, scored an AL high 102 runs and banged out 34 doubles and 17 triples. The Tigers won their first American League pennant. A dissapointing loss to the Cubs in the World Series followed.

In 1911, Cobb finished with a personal best batting average of .420, finishing just short of the all-time American League single-season record of .422 set by Nap Lojoie in 1901. Cobb led the league in runs (147) hits (248) doubles (47) triples (24) and stolen bases (83). Cobb also won the first AL Chalmers Award (MVP).

In 1912, the club moved to it’s new ballpark named after owner Frank Navin, but the season was marked by a one-game players strike in retaliation for a suspension put on Cobb for taking a punch at a fan in New York. The strike forced the Tigers to put together a team of sandlot players for on e game in which they lost 24-2 against Philadelphia.

In 1915, the Tigers posted a regular season record og 100-54, yet the manager, Hugh Jennings, remembered the season as the “biggest dissapointment ” of his career after Babe Ruth’s Red Sox calimed the pennant with 101 wins.

By 1920, the Tigers had fallen to seventh place, Jennings was released and the managerial position dropped into the hands of Cobb. The highlight of Cobb’s reign as manager came in 1924, the same season that Hall of Fame player Charlie Gehringer first wore the Tiger uniform. The club remained in the pennant race until the season’s final week with a record of 86-68.

After five seasons with Bucky Harris as manager, Navin attempted to hire Babe Ruth as manager in 1934. Unable to land Ruth, Navin turned to Mickey Cochrane as catcher/manager, the Tigers soared to a 101-53 record in 1934. Schoolboy Rowe set a record with 16 consecutive wins. The Tigers lineup featured an awesome five 100-run men (including Charlie Gehringer, the league leader with 134), and four 100-RBI men (led by first baseman Hank Greenberg with 139). The Tigers won the American League pennant, but lost again in the World Series to the St.Louis Cardinals in seven games.

In 1935, Detroit took the AL pennant with a 93-58 record, 3 games better than the Yankees. AL MVP Hank Greenberg was the Tigers big banger, hitting .328 with 121 runs, 46 doubles, 16 triples, and 36 home runs. Greenberg also drove in 170 runs. Charlie Gehringer was fifth in hitting at .330 and scored 123 runs. As a team, Detroit scored 919 runs, 101 more than the second place team. Tommy Bridges, Schoolboy Rowe, and Eldon Auker all recorded ERAs below 4.00 and , together with General Crowder, gave the Tigers four pitchers with between 16 and 21 wins.

The Tigers began the 1935 World Series down 1-0. When Greenberg left game two with a season ending injury, things looked bleak. Bridges, Rowe, and Crowder won games two, three, and four, however after losing to Warneke 3-1 in game five, Detroit clinched the series on Bridges second win, 4-3, to capture Detroits first World Series title.

After the 1935 World Series, owner Frank Navin died of heart complications at the age of 64. Walter Briggs Sr, already half owner, purchased the remainder of the club and became team president.

In 1940, under new manager Del Baker, Detroit earned it’s sixth pennant with a 90-64 mark. Greenberg had an MVP season hitting .340 and leading the league in home runs (41), RBI (150) and doubles (50). Rudy York contributed 134 RBI and 33 home runs, and the Tigers as a whole scored a league-leading 888 runs. On the pitching side, Detroit featured 21-5 Bobo Newsome, who finished the season with a ERA of 2.83, Schoolboy Rowe who finished with a 16-3 record and Tommy Bridges, who won 12 games.

In the 1940 World Series, the Reds beat the Tigers in seven games, despite Newsome winning two games in the series.

In 1945, the Tigers won the AL flag by 1 1/2 games. The Tigers had been barely hanging on by the efforts of MVP Hal Newhouser, who went 25-9 with a 1.81 ERA to lead the league in wins and ERA, and fellow teamates Dizzy Trout and Al Benton, who was runner -up in ERA at 2.02. Greenberg batted .311 to lead his team into first place with two games to go in the season.

In the World Series, the Tigers faced off against the Chicago Cubs. The Tigers, managed by Steve O’Neal, knocked off the Cubs in seven games, with Hall of Fame pitcher Hal Newhouser winning two games in the series, giving the Tigers their second World Series crown.

After a pair of second place finishes in 1946 and 1947 and the acqusition of Hall of Fame player George Kell, the Tigers watched as a fresh mix of young talent from the minors matured and nearly captured the 1950 pennant, falling just three games short after leading the pack for 119 days finishing with a 95-55 record.

In 1955, young outfielder Al Kaline won the batting title with a .340 average, becoming the youngest player in history to win the batting crown.

After just finishing one game out of first place in 1967, the Tigers were poised and loaded with talent entering the 1968 campaign. Under manager Mayo Smith, the club took the lead on May 10 and never looked back, finishing 12 games ahead of second place Baltimore. Denny McLain was the hero of the season with a 31-6 record. The Tigers led the league in runs (671), home runs (185), and slugging average ( .385 ). Willie Horton hit .285 to go along with 36 home runs, while Jim Northrup added 90 RBI to the mix. The Tigers won the American League with a 103-59 record, winning the AL by a 12 game margin.

In the World Series, the Tigers faced off against the St. Louis Cardinals. After St.Louis went ahead 3-1, Detroit stormed back winning games five and seven. Mickey Lolich was the star of the series, winning three games for the Tigers and beating Bob Gibson in the final game.

In 1969, the Tigers posted a record of 90-72 under manager Billy Martin. With the start of divisional play, the Tigers won the AL East, but were unable to beat the Oakland A’s in the postseason.

The 1979 season saw a change in leadership when Sparkey Anderson took over as manager.

In 1984, the Tigers opened the season with a 35-5 record, the best start in club history and maybe in Major League history. The Tigers were the premier team of 1984, going 104-58. Their pitching was solid, with Jack Morris, Dan Petry, and Milt Wilcox all winning at least 17 games. Reliever Willie Hernandez won both Cy Young and MVP Awards, posting 32 saves in his first 32 save opportunities.

The Detroit offense, powered by Kirk Gibson, Lance Parrish, Alan Trammell, and Chet Lemon, led the league in home runs ( 187 ) and runs scored ( 829 ). Their defense with Lou Whitaker, was the best in baseball. The 1984 Tigers were so dominant, that their record was 100-0 when after leading eight innings.

In the AL playoffs, the Tigers faced off against the Royals, which would prove to be no contest. The Tigers completed the sweep at Tiger Staduim in game three after Kansas City’s Darryl Motley poped out to third, sending the Tigers to the World Series.

In the World Series, Detroit rolled right through the Padres starting pitching and won the series four games to one. Alan Tramell led all World Series players with a .450 batting average and collects two home runs and six RBI.

In 1987, the Tigers started out the season with an 11-19 record, but finished strong a looked ready to move into first place at the end of the season. The Tigers won their division by two games on the last week of the season. The Tigers joy didn’t last long as they were defeated by the Minnesota Twins in the ALCS.

In 1995, the Tiger President and CEO John McHale was hired, and the following season, Vice President/General Manager Randy Smith was brought on board. The organization began to rebuild the franchise through scouting and player development.

On September 27, 1999, the last Detroit Tiger game was played at Tiger Stadium. After an 87-year old run, the Corner saw it’s 6,873rd -and final game with a sold out crowd of 43, 356 fans. The Tigers took that historic game, beating the Royals 8-2.

On April 11, 2000, Detroit saw the beginning of a new era as the Tigers were welcolmed into their new home, Comerica Park. Opening Day saw a sold out crowed and a 5-2 win against Seattle. Also in 2000, Todd Jones won the Rolaids Relief Man Award, making 42 saves in 46 save situations.

In 2003, the Tigers lost a club record of a 119 games. However, a combination of veteran additions and maturing youngsters made the struggles of 2003 a distant memory with the second-largest-year-to-year improvement in American League history.

In 2004, Ivan Rodriguez signed two weeks before Spring Training, and quikly became the face and heart of the franchise. He earned the Tigers their first All-Star starter since 1991. Carlos Guillen became the best Tiger shortstop since Alan Trammell with one of the best all-around hitting seasons ever from a Tiger.

In 2006, the Tigers were Major League’s suprise success story. The play of veterans Kenny Rogers and Todd Jones, the emergence of Curtis Granderson, Brian Inge, Craig Monroe and Marcus Thames, and production from All-Stars Ivan Rodriguez, Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Guillen all contributed to the teams successs, as they finished off the season with a 95-67 record under manager Jim Leyland, who was named AL Manager of the Year.

In the ALCS, the Tigers faced off against the Oakland A’s. The Tigers took care of Oakland in four games. The Tigers won the AL pennant for the 10th time in their franchise history, and looked forward to meeting the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series. However, the Tigers went on to loss the series in five games.

In 2007, the Tigers finished the season with a 88-74 record, second in the AL Central. Magglio Ordonez hit .363 to go along with 28 home runs and 139 RBI. Pitcher Justin Verlander won 18 games and Todd Jones saved 38 games. The Tigers fell short of repeating as AL champs after a season ending slump that cost them a trip to the postseason.