2006 Detroit Tigers season

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2006 Detroit Tigers
American League Champions
American League Wild Card
Major League affiliations
Location
Results
Record 95–67 (.586)
Divisional place 2nd
Other information
Owner(s) Mike Ilitch
General manager(s) Dave Dombrowski
Manager(s) Jim Leyland
Local television FSN Detroit
WDWB
(Mario Impemba, Rod Allen)
Local radio The Detroit Tigers Radio Network
(Jim Price, Dan Dickerson)
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The 2006 Detroit Tigers won the American League Pennant. They represented the AL in the World Series before falling to the St. Louis Cardinals 4 games to 1. The season was their 106th since they entered the AL in 1901. It was their 7th season since opening Comerica Park in 2000.

Regular season

The Detroit Tigers were baseball's surprise success story of 2006.[1] After years of futility, including 12 consecutive losing seasons and an AL-record 119 losses in 2003, the season had the Tigers surging to the top of the major league standings in May, a position they did not relinquish until the final day of the season.[2] The play of veterans like Kenny Rogers and Todd Jones, the emergence of previously unestablished players Curtis Granderson, Brandon Inge, Craig Monroe and Marcus Thames, and significant production from erstwhile All-Stars Iván Rodríguez, Magglio Ordóñez and Carlos Guillén all contributed to the team's success.

A great deal of credit was also given to manager Jim Leyland. On April 17, after an uninspiring 10-2 loss at home to the Cleveland Indians dropped the team's record to 7-6, the manager launched into a tirade against the team about its lack of effort, telling the media, "We stunk. They [the players] were already on the plane to Oakland." It appeared to light a fire under the players, spurring them on to a stretch in which they won 28 of 35 games.[3] Leyland repeatedly preached the concept of playing hard for nine full innings, and the players took up that mantra, as evidenced not just by their words but also by the team's propensity for late-inning clutch hits, rallies and comebacks.[4]

Statistically, the biggest factor in the team's success was its pitching, which led the major leagues in ERA and shutouts.[5] Rookie Justin Verlander won the AL Rookie of the Year Award, and fellow starters Kenny Rogers, Jeremy Bonderman and Nate Robertson, as well as rookie reliever Joel Zumaya, all had noteworthy seasons. There was concern when starter Mike Maroth—who had lost 20 games in 2003, but had since rebounded—had to undergo surgery early in the season, but his replacement Zach Miner proved to be adequate.

The Tigers' newfound success attracted a new generation of fans, many of whom who had never seen winning baseball in Detroit.[6] Detroit hit 16 home runs in their first four games, the most ever by any team in their first four games of the season. Tigers fans traveled to road games in large numbers, most notably at the interleague series with the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field from June 16–18. The crowd could be heard chanting "Let's Go Tigers!" throughout all three games, all of which were Detroit victories.[7]

The major doubt many fans and pundits had was whether the Tigers could compete against other top-tier American League teams. Early in the season, the team lost series to the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, and lost five of six games to the reigning World Series champion (and AL Central rival) Chicago White Sox.[8] However, on July 20, at a game which featured a particularly stirring rendition of the national anthem by local opera singer Eugene Zweig,[9] and a standing-room-only crowd that included actor Tom Hanks and director Ron Howard,[10] the Tigers beat White Sox pitching ace José Contreras to take the series two games to one from the White Sox, the team's first series victory against an upper-echelon AL team in 2006. In their next two series, against the AL West division-leading Oakland Athletics, and the red-hot Minnesota Twins, who were 34-8 over their previous 42 games, the Tigers also won two out of three.

On July 31, Tigers management traded minor-league pitcher Brian Rogers to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for left-handed hitting and three-time All Star first baseman Sean Casey.[11] The move added a left-handed bat to the lineup, especially necessary after Dmitri Young was released in September.

By August 7, the Tigers were an astonishing 40 games above .500 (76-36) and cruising. They would lose their next five games, sixteen of their next 22, and the last six weeks of the season were punctuated by a nosedive, as a suddenly silent offense led to a 19-31 record in the last 50 games of the season. Perhaps the biggest loss the team suffered was not a singular game, but one of their best all-around players, Plácido Polanco, who separated his shoulder making a spectacular over-the-shoulder catch in Fenway Park against the Red Sox on August 15.[12]

Only the big cushion built in the summer saved the Tigers from what would have been baseball's most statistically infamous collapse, as they clinched a playoff berth on September 24 with an 11-4 win over the Kansas City Royals. But even that cushion couldn't save a division title. On October 1, despite a rare relief appearance from Kenny Rogers, the Tigers fell out of the top spot in the American League Central with a 10-8 extra-inning loss to the 100-loss Royals in their last regular season game.

Detroit lost their last five regular season games, all at home, against the Toronto Blue Jays and the Royals. The final loss gave the Twins the AL Central title, and made the Tigers the wild card entrant in the American League Playoffs. Their opening-round opponent would be the New York Yankees.

The Tigers ended the regular season with a 95-67 record, marking the team's first winning season since 1993 and their most wins since 1987.

Highlights

There were many memorable moments during the regular season. Some of the highlights:

  • On April 16, Chris Shelton became the fastest player to eight home runs in American League history, and the Tigers won a 1-0 game behind a sparkling three-hitter by Mike Maroth and one-hit relief by Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney.[13]
  • On April 20, the Tigers came into the ninth down 3-1, but clutch hits tied the game, and Brandon Inge's resolute 15-pitch walk (Jim Leyland called it a "1½ Marlboro" at-bat, in reference to his noted chain-smoking when in the dugout) forced in the winning run.[14]
  • On May 3, in the eighth inning of a tense pitching duel, Brandon Inge beat a throw to second to avoid a double play, then Alexis Gómez singled him in for a 2-1 comeback victory.[15]
  • Oy May 14, the Tigers swept the Indians in a three-game series with a 3-2 victory, the first time Detroit swept a series from the Indians in Cleveland since 1990.[16]
  • On May 20, Cincinnati's Ken Griffey, Jr. hit a grand slam that put the Reds up, 6-5, but with two outs in the ninth inning, Curtis Granderson hit a home run that tied the game, and the Tigers won in extra innings.[17]
  • On June 1, hits by Ivan Rodríguez and Magglio Ordóñez (and gum-chewing by Nate Robertson) set up Carlos Guillén's game-winning ("walk-off") single, completing a five-run comeback and defeating the Yankees.[18]
  • On June 18, Kenny Rogers won his 200th game, becoming only the 26th left-hander in baseball history to do so; Detroit hit eight home runs to set a club record.[19]
  • On June 27, Roger Clemens hurled a three-hitter, but Nate Robertson outpitched him and the Tigers won, 4-0.[20]
  • On July 11, the 2006 All-Star Game featured three Tigers—Rodríguez, Kenny Rogers and Ordóñez—for the first time since 1987. Rodríguez was voted as a starter, while Rogers was named the starting pitcher.[21] The battery combination of Rogers and Rodríguez was the first time a Tigers pitcher threw to a Tigers catcher to start the Mid-Summer Classic since Denny McLain threw to Bill Freehan in 1966.
  • On July 14, in a tie game, with two out and two on in the top of the ninth, reliever Todd Jones faced dangerous slugger Mark Teahen, who had already hit two home runs in the game. Jones threw Teahen every pitch he could, and Teahen repeatedly fouled each pitch off. Finally Jim Leyland walked to the mound—where he told Jones his visit was a ruse, designed to fool Teahen into thinking Jones would be throwing anything but a fastball. Leyland walked off the field, Jones threw a fastball, and Teahen swung and missed for strike three. Then, in the bottom of the ninth, Carlos Guillén hit the Tigers' first walk-off home run of the season for the victory. After the game, Jones said of Leyland's visit to the mound: "I thought, 'Wow, you're a really good manager.[22]'"
  • On July 19, Craig Monroe hit a grand slam in a Tigers victory over the Chicago White Sox.[23]
  • On July 20 (see above), the Tigers essentially beat the White Sox on a Marcus Thames slide into second. The slide broke up a seemingly sure double play, which allowed the winning run to score later that inning.[24]
  • On July 24, the Tigers became the first team since the 1891 St. Louis Cardinals to score 5 runs or more in the first inning in three consecutive games.[25]
  • On July 28, the Tigers weathered 12 strikeouts by rookie Twins phenom Francisco Liriano, and won another tight game with a 10th-inning single by Craig Monroe.[26]
  • On August 1, Carlos Guillén hit for the cycle, becoming the first Tiger since Damion Easley did it in 2001, and the third since 1950, to do so.[27]
  • On August 5, Iván Rodríguez hit a walk-off home run with two outs in the ninth inning to complete a comeback against the Cleveland Indians.[28]
  • On August 27, a 7-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians secured the Tigers an 82nd victory—and their first winning season since 1993.
  • On August 30, with two outs in the top of the ninth, Craig Monroe hit a dramatic three-run home run, erasing a one-run deficit, stunning the crowd at Yankee Stadium, and giving the Tigers a 5-3 come-from-behind victory over the Yankees.[29]
  • On September 12, Craig Monroe tied a club record with three outfield assists, including throwing two runners out at the plate, and Carlos Guillén hit two home runs, one from each side of the plate, the second being a walk-off in the bottom of the ninth that won the game, 3-2, over the Texas Rangers.[30]
  • On September 23, the Tigers scored ten runs in the first inning in a 15-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals. The game marked Plácido Polanco's return from the disabled list; he had three hits.[31]
  • On September 24, the Tigers scored nine runs in the second inning en route to an 11-4 victory. The win secured their first playoff appearance since 1987.[32]

Season standings

AL Central		 W L Pct. GB Home Road
Minnesota Twins 96 66 0.593 — 54–27 42–39
Detroit Tigers 95 67 0.586 1 46–35 49–32
Chicago White Sox 90 72 0.556 6 49–32 41–40
Cleveland Indians 78 84 0.481 18 44–37 34–47
Kansas City Royals 62 100 0.383 34 34–47 28–53


Record vs. opponents

2006 American League Records

Sources:

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Team BAL BOS CWS CLE DET KC LAA MIN NYY OAK SEA TB TEX TOR NL 
Baltimore — 3–15 2–5 4–2 3–3 5–1 4–6 3–6 7–12 2–4 4–6 13–6 3–6 8–11 9–9
Boston 15–3 — 4–2 3–4 3–3 4–5 3–3 1–5 8–11 3–7 4–6 10–9 5–4 7–12 16–2
Chicago 5–2 2–4 — 8–11 12–7 11–8 6–3 9–10 2–4 3–3 5–4 3–3 5–5 5–4 14–4
Cleveland 2–4 4–3 11–8 — 6–13 10–8 4–5 8–11 3–4 3–6 4–5 6–1 5–4 4–2 8–10
Detroit 3–3 3–3 7–12 13–6 — 14–4 3–5 11–8 2–5 5–4 6–3 5–3 5–5 3–3 15–3
Kansas City 1–5 5–4 8–11 8–10 4–14 — 3–7 7–12 2–7 4–5 3–5 1–5 3–3 3–4 10–8
Los Angeles of Anaheim 6–4 3–3 3–6 5–4 5–3 7–3 — 4–2 6–4 11–8 10–9 7–2 11–8 4–6 7–11
Minnesota 6–3 5–1 10–9 11–8 8–11 12–7 2–4 — 3–3 6–4 5–3 6–1 4–5 2–5 16–2
New York 12–7 11–8 4–2 4–3 5–2 7–2 4–6 3–3 — 3–6 3–3 13–5 8–2 10–8 10–8
Oakland 4–2 7–3 3–3 6–3 4–5 5–4 8–11 4–6 6–3 — 17–2 6–3 9–10 6–4 8–10
Seattle 6–4 6–4 4–5 5–4 3–6 5–3 9–10 3–5 3–3 2–17 — 6–3 8–11 4–5 14–4
Tampa Bay 6–13 9–10 3–3 1–6 3–5 5–1 2–7 1–6 5–13 3–6 3–6 — 3–6 6–12 11–7
Texas 6–3 4–5 5–5 4–5 5–5 3–3 8–11 5–4 2–8 10–9 11–8 6–3 — 4–2 7–11
Toronto 11–8 12–7 4–5 2–4 3–3 4–3 6–4 5–2 8–10 4–6 5–4 12–6 2–4 — 9–9


Roster

2006 Detroit Tigers
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

 Outfielders

Other batters

 Manager

Coaches

Game log

2006 Game Log
April
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