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Well that's a strange Wild Card. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Baseball_tie-breaking_procedures#Two-way_tie_for_the_division_or_wildcard This is apparently the Wild Card tie breaking rules.

Hey hey, go Brewers.

Well, I thought about doing something similar, but it would have to be crammed into the same day, because there is a one-day break between the end of the regular season and the start of the postseason section of the schedule. Don't know why that wasn't programmed better, but here we are. I'll try better to make it better next year, if it happens again.

ALDS Game 1 - October 3, 2014

Detroit Tigers vs. Oakland Athletics
Matchup: Max Scherzer vs. Justin Masterson

Athletics - 1 | 7 | 1
Tigers - 6 | 10 | 0

W - Scherzer (1-0)
L - Masterson (0-1)

Multi-Hit Offense leads Tigers over A's in Game 1

DETROIT (NAP) - The Tigers used 2-hit performances from Torii Hunter, Alex Avila, and Nick Castellanos, and a 3-hit game from Ian Kinsler, to take a 1-0 lead in the ALDS over the Oakland A's, 6-1 at Comerica Park.

The floodgates opened early for the Tigers against Justin Masterson in the bottom of the second, when with the bases loaded and one out, Stephen Drew hit what would've been a surefire inning-ending double play, but A's SS Jed Lowrie botched the throw from Eric Sogard, advancing all the runners, and scoring the first run of the game. 3 more runs would later score, courtesy of Carrera, Hunter, and Kinsler, making it 4-0 after the inning.

In the top of the fourth, Max Scherzer, who was cruising along at this point, gave up a solo home run to Josh Donaldson to give the A's their first run of the game. Scherzer did struggle at points today, though, with a bases-loaded jam in the 5th with 2 outs. Donaldson, looking to give the A's the lead with one swing of the bat, grounded out to Drew to end the threat.

Masterson would be out of the game in the 6th after Kinsler's RBI single, and though Eric O'Flaherty was shaky for the A's (4 walks to no strikeouts), the Tigers wouldn't score the rest of the game. Then again, neither did the A's, as Phil Coke and Evan Reed pitched the last 3 innings to seal the Tigers victory and take a 1-0 lead in the ALDS.

Justin Verlander and Sonny Gray are expected to start for both teams in game 2 of the series.
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OAK:
Donaldson: 1-4, HR (1)
Vogt: 2-3, BB
Masterson: 5.2 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 2 ER, 2 K, 2 BB (97 pitches)
DET:
Kinsler: 3-4, 2 RBI, R
Hunter: 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI, R
Avila: 2-3, BB, R
Scherzer: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R/ER, 5 K, 3 BB, HR (105 pitches)

Full Box Score
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Out Of Town Scoreboard

American League

ALDS Game 1
Angels - 5 | 8 | 0
Rays - 6 | 13 | 1

Rays lead series 1-0

National League

NLDS Game 1
Dodgers - 7 | 12 | 1
Cardinals - 5 | 9 | 0

Dodgers lead series 1-0

NLDS Game 1
Brewers - 4 | 12 | 1
Nationals - 5 | 7 | 0
F/10

Nationals lead series 1-0

Is that a Jack Merluzzi reference?

Wasn't intentional, but if you want to think that, go ahead.

"And he gives his team the lead, with one swing of the bat." - Jack Merluzzi 2k8

I want to think that.

ALDS Game 2 - October 4, 2014

Detroit Tigers vs. Oakland Athletics (Detroit leads series, 1-0)
Matchup: Justin Verlander vs. Jesse Chavez

Athletics - 5 | 9 | 0
Tigers - 8 | 15 | 1

W - Lopez (1-0)
L - Scribner (0-1)
S - Nathan (1)

Huge 6th-7th Inning Comeback Cruises Tigers to Game 2 Victory, Could Sweep in Oakland

DETROIT (NAP) - Justin Verlander's usual dominance of the A's was non-existent today, but some clutch late-inning offense by the Tigers gives them a chance to sweep Oakland in the ALDS for the third year in a row, with a final score in Game 2 of 8-5.

The Tigers got on the board first in the 3rd, when Miguel Cabrera, who was surprisingly quiet in Game 1, doubled down the line at third off Oakland starter Jesse Chavez to score Ian Kinsler. As Justin Verlander was cruising at that point (only one hit through the first three innings), it seemed like it would be all the Tigers would need. That only remained true until the next half-inning. With runners on the corners and 1 out for Oakland in the 4th, a slow grounder to Miguel Cabrera got one out at first, and boldy tried to go to second to get Yoenis Cespedes. Cespedes was called safe on a very close play, and Eric Sogard, who singled and reached on an error by Detroit left fielder Tyler collins to start the inning, scored on the play to tie the game.

In the fifth, Oakland would blow the game wide open. What started as what Tigers fans would call #TwinsHits from Chris Carter ('tweener pop-up to short right field) and Josh Reddick (bunt base hit) turned into a 4-run inning for Oakland, with a Mitch Moreland RBI double, a Sogard RBI single, and a Stephen Vogt sac fly. After Verlander wild-pitched in Sogard with Brandon Moss at the plate, who later walked, manager Brad Ausmus decided he has enough of Verlander, and decided to go to his bullpen. Joba Chamberlain would get Josh Donaldson to fly out to deep left field to end a stressful inning for Detroit's pitching.

The Tigers would start to claw away at the lead in the very next half-inning, as Miguel Cabrera cut through the right-to-left wind at Comerica to hit a HR (1) to center field to bring the game within 3 runs. The bomb measured 448 feet, one of the longest home runs of the season for the Tigers. The rally-killing homer would be all the offense the Tigers would muster in the inning. The sixth got a little dicey for Detroit, as Chamberlain walked two in the inning with two outs, forcing Ausmus to go to southpaw Javier Lopez, who would get Sogard to strike out looking to end the threat.

The sixth inning started out strong for Detroit, as Collins and Alex Avila singled to start the inning, bringing up shortstop Stephen Drew. The light-hitting Drew smacked a hanging 0-2 pitch to the deepest part of the yard in center. The ball just over the glove of Cespedes and into the bushes beyond the center field fence to tie the game up for the Tigers, giving the Comerica faithful renewed hope. The Tigers would then go quietly in the inning after that. A shutdown inning from Lopez kept the game tied, and just as the floodgates opened for Oakland in the 5th, it would open more for the Tigers in the 7th. They scored three runs again in the inning off reliever Evan Scribner, who came in after the Drew HR, with an Avila RBI single to score Victor Martinez, and two walks later, a Don Kelly pinch-hit single to score Avila, and an Ian Kinsler RBI single to top it all off.

The A's would threaten in the 8th, but did not score after Torii Hunter made a phenomenal catch with 2 outs and Phil Coke on the mound to rob Mitch Moreland of 2 RBIs, after Jose Ortega allowed a couple hits and a couple outs. After that, both the Tigers and A's went quietly in the bottom of the 8th and top of the 9th, respectively, with Joe Nathan notching his first save of the postseason to seal the deal with a couple strikeouts.

In Game 3 in Oakland, the Tigers will send Anibal Sanchez, while the A's will counter with Sonny Gray. Gray was originally slated to start Game 2, but got pushed back to Game 3.
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OAK:
Sogard: 3-5, RBI, 2 R
Moreland: 1-3, 2B, RBI, R, BB
Vogt: 1-4, RBI
Chavez: 5 IP, 9 H, 5 R/ER, 2 K, 2 BB, 2 HR (89 pitches)
DET:
Cabrera: 3-4, 2B, HR (1), 2 RBI, BB
Drew: 1-3, HR (1), 3 RBI
Avila: 3-4, RBI, 2 R, BB
Verlander: 4.2 IP, 7 H, 5 R/ER, 3 K, 2 BB (88 pitches)

Full Box Score
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Out of Town Scoreboard

American League

ALDS Game 2
Angels - 1 | 4 | 0
Rays - 3 | 6 | 0

W - Hellickson (1-0)
L - Skaggs (0-1)
S - McGee (2)
HR - Joyce (1)

Rays lead series, 2-0.

National League

NLDS Game 2
Brewers - 7 | 12 | 1
Nationals - 3 | 4 | 0

W - Gorzelanny (1-0)
L - Clippard (0-1)
HR - Braun (1), Herrera (1), Mayberry, Jr. (1, 3-run), Napoli (1, 2-run)

Series tied, 1-1.

NLDS Game 2
Dodgers - 1 | 5 | 0
Cardinals - 2 | 7 | 0

W - Wacha (1-0)
L - Billingsley (0-1)
S - Uehara (1)
HR - Gonzalez (2)

Series tied, 1-1.

ALDS Game 3 - October 6, 2014

Detroit Tigers @ Oakland Athletics (Detroit leads series, 2-0)
Matchup: Anibal Sanchez vs. Sonny Gray (1-0, 0.00 ERA)

Tigers - 1 | 7 | 0
Athletics - 2 | 9 | 1

W - Gray (2-0)
L - Sanchez (0-1)
S - Doolittle (2)
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LOBsters Hurt Tigers in Game 3 Loss

OAKLAND, CA (NAP) - Both teams had their chances to score, yes, but the Oakland Athletics made the best use of their opportunities to extend this ALDS series to a 4th game, with a 2-1 win over Detroit.

The game's first run came from the A's, when Anibal Sanchez wild pitched Josh Reddick to home plate to give them a 1-0 lead. As for the Tigers having their chances, they had a good one in the 3rd with 2 outs and the bases loaded, but Nick Castellanos grounded into a fielder's choice to end the inning. The Tigers did get on the board, though, as in the 5th inning, Ian Kinsler found the gap in left-center field. Oakland LF Brandon Moss had trouble with the ball when it went to the wall, allowing Kinsler to use his speed to leg out an inside-the-park home run to tie the game.

The last score of the game came with 1 out in the bottom of the 5th, when Stephen Vogt found that same left-center gap to hit an RBI triple to put the A's on top, 2-1.

However, the game would not end quietly. The Tigers got a leadoff walk from Tyler Collins in the 9th off of Sean Doolittle, and placed Rajai Davis in as a pinch runner. Davis stole second on the 2-1 pitch to Stephen Drew, who advanced him to 3rd with a groundout to the pitcher. But, with Ezequiel Carrera up and the infield in, manager Brad Ausmus decided to try a squeeze bunt to try to get the speedy Davis in to score. However, Doolittle made a great flip to the catcher Vogt for the 2nd out of the inning, getting the runner out at the plate. Ian Kinsler then made a bid for a base hit up the middle, but Eric Sogard made a superb diving catch behind second to end the game.

The Tigers finished the game with 8 men left on base, the same number Oakland left on. Ausmus said after the game, "we needed to do better with what we had on base. I think it should get better by next game, but we'll see."

In Game 4, the Tigers will send Rick Porcello to the mound, while Oakland will send Justin Masterson to the hill. Masterson gave up 9 hits and 6 runs (2 earned) in Game 1, his only appearance so far in the postseason.
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DET:
Kinsler: 2-5, ITPHR (1)
Martinez: 1-3
Sanchez: 6 IP, 9 H, 2 R/ER, 2 K, 1 BB (100 pitches)
OAK:
Vogt: 2-4, 2B, 3B, RBI
Moreland: 2-3
Gray: 7.1 IP, 7 H, 1 R/ER, 2 K, 3 BB, HR (112 pitches)

Full Box Score
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Out of Town Scoreboard

American League

ALDS Game 3
Rays - 1 | 7 | 1
Angels - 0 | 1 | 0

W - Smyly (1-0)
L - Richards (0-1)
S - McGee (2)
HR - Myers (1)

Rays win series, 3-0, and advance to ALCS

National League

NLDS Game 3
Nationals - 6 | 8 | 1
Brewers - 7 | 11 | 1

W - Garza (2-0)
L - Gonzalez (0-1)
HR - Harper (1), Zimmerman (1), Desmond (1), Werth (2, 2-run), Morris (1), Mayberry, Jr. (2), Ramirez (1)

Brewers lead series, 2-1

NLDS Game 3
Cardinals - 2 | 7 | 0
Dodgers - 3 | 7 | 0
F/10

W - Rodriguez (1-0)
L - Uehara (0-1)
HR - 2 Gonzalez (4)

Dodgers lead series, 2-1

ALDS Game 4 - October 7, 2014

Detroit Tigers @ Oakland Athletics (Detroit leads series, 2-1)
Matchup: Rick Porcello vs. Justin Masterson (0-1, 3.18 ERA)

Tigers - 4 | 10 | 0
Athletics - 5 | 4 | 0

W - Masterson (1-1)
L - Porcello (0-1)
S - Doolittle (3)
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Big 4th Inning For A's Forces Game 5

OAKLAND, CA (NAP) - Two huge dingers by the Oakland A's helped them to force a deciding Game 5 in Detroit for the ALDS. Stephen Vogt, with 1 out in the 1st, hit a towering drive over the wall in right-center, measured at 404 feet, to give the A's an early 1-0 lead.

The Tigers looked like they were in control, when they scored 3 runs in the top of the second. A Tyler Collins RBI double, and an Ian Kinsler 2-run triple produced those three runs, and they tallied on one more in the 4th, when Kinsler hit an RBI double to left to score Ezequiel Carrera.

However, Porcello gave up four runs in the bottom half of that same inning. After intentionally walking Josh Reddick to load the bases with one out, he promptly threw a wild pitch to Jed Lowrie to score Brandon Moss from third, and Lowrie eventually hit a sac fly to score Josh Donaldson. The next batter, Mitch Moreland, then homered down the right field line to give the A's the lead to stay.

David Price kept the Tigers in the game the last 3 innings out of the bullpen, striking out 5 batters showing heat he previously never featured. "Looking at it now, he could be a huge weapon out of our bullpen," Brad Ausmus said after the game, "He might be used in the next game, but we'll play it by ear and see what happens."

Both teams went quietly the rest of the game, and the 5-4 final score stood. In Game 5, the Tigers will send Game 1 winner Max Scherzer to the hill, while Game 3 winner Sonny Gray will toe the slab for the A's.
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DET:
Kinsler: 3-4, 2B, 3B, 3 RBI, BB
Collins: 2-4, 2B, RBI
Carrera: 2-4, 2 R
Porcello: 5 IP, 4 H, 5 R/ER, 1 K, 4 BB, 2 HR (79 pitches)
OAK:
Moreland: 1-2, HR (1), 2 RBI
Vogt: 1-4, HR (1)
Masterson: 5 IP, 9 H, 4 R/ER, 5 K, 1 BB (103 pitches)

Full Box Score
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Out of Town Scoreboard

National League

NLDS Game 4
Nationals - 5 | 10 | 1
Brewers - 6 | 10 | 1
F/10

W - Gorzelanny (2-0)
L - Soriano (1-1)
HR - Zimmerman (2, 2-run), Rendon (1. 2-run), Lucroy (1), Gomez (1)

Brewers win series, 3-1, advance to NLCS

NLDS Game 4
Cardinals - 2 | 6 | 0
Dodgers - 4 | 8 | 3

W - Kershaw (1-0)
L - Wainwright (0-2)
S - Jansen (2)
HR - Gonzalez (5, 2-run), Sanchez (1, 2-run)

Dodgers win series, 3-1, advance to NLCS

Go Brewers

And hey, these Athletics are making it an interesting series!

ALDS Game 5 - October 9, 2014

Detroit Tigers vs. Oakland Athletics (Series tied, 2-2)
Matchup: Max Scherzer (1-0, 1.50 ERA) vs. Sonny Gray (2-0, 0.59 ERA)

Athletics - 3 | 8 | 0
Tigers - 8 | 9 | 1

W - Scherzer (2-0)
L - Gray (2-1)
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Martinez Grand Slam Propels Tigers to ALCS

DETROIT, MI (NAP) - Timely hitting by the Detroit Tigers offense gives the Tigers their 3rd straight ALCS appearance with an 8-3 win at Comerica Park tonight. Victor Martinez hit a Grand Slam in the 7th inning off Evan Scribner to extend a 2-0 Tigers lead to seal the deal.

The scoring started with Martinez grounding out to third base with the bases loaded and one out in the 3rd, scoring Ian Kinsler, to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead. The score became 2-0 in the 4th when Stephen Drew, whose only other hit this postseason was his 3-run HR in Game 2, hit a solo shot to right field off starter Sonny Gray to increase the lead.

Max Scherzer was absolutely dealing for the Tigers tonight. Those two runs would be all he needed in his 7 stupendous innings of work, striking out 7 in 101 pitches. He left to a standing ovation after the 6th inning.

The A's made it a bit more interesting in the 8th inning, though, as the Tigers brought in David Price to pitch the 8th. It didn't go as well as it did in Game 4, giving up 3 runs, with Eric Sogard's RBI single to score Jed Lowrie, and Josh Donaldson's 2-run single to right field off of Al Alburquerque to make it 6-3. The final out of the inning gave Tigers fans a scare, when 2B Ian Kinsler had to be taken out of the game with an undisclosed injury, and was replaced by Hernan Perez. Kinsler was later diagnosed with a knee contusion, and will be out for the ALCS, and 1-2 weeks.

The Tigers added two insurance runs in the bottom of the 8th, when Perez hit a 2-run single to score Tyler Collins and Stephen Drew to make it 8-3, and Joe Nathan pitched a clean ninth to send the Tigers to the ALCS to face off with the Tampa Bay Rays. Projected pitching matchups are still pending for that series, which starts a couple of days from now.
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DET:
Martinez: 1-3, GS (1), 5 RBI, BB
Drew: 2-4, HR (2), 2 R
Perez: 1-1, 2 RBI
Scherzer: 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R/ER, 7 K, 1 BB (101 pitches)
OAK:
Donaldson: 2-4, 2 RBI
Sogard: 1-4, RBI
Gray: 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R/ER, 4 K, 4 BB (76 pitches)

Full Box Score
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So, we're off to the ALCS to face the Rays! Should be fun!

Stop saying that

Alrighty then. It should be a good series to partake in.

How's that?

ALCS Game 1 - October 11, 2014

Detroit Tigers vs. Tampa Bay Rays
Matchup: Justin Verlander (0-0, 9.64 ERA) vs. Matt Moore (0-0, 4.70 ERA)

Rays - 3 | 5 | 1
Tigers - 0 | 6 | 2

W - Moore (1-0)
L - Verlander (0-1)
S - McGee (4)
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Free Passes, Lack of Hitting Hurt Tigers in ALCS Game 1 Loss

DETROIT, MI (NAP) - The Tigers couldn't muster any offense off of Matt Moore and Co., and key WTF-type walks plagued the Tigers as they drop Game 1 of the American League Championship Series, 3-0.

One of those costly walks were via Justin Verlander walking Mike Carp in the 4th with the bases loaded on a 3-0 pitch to give the Rays first blood in the ALCS. He would later get out of that inning after Ryan Hanigan struck out and Kevin Kiermaier flied out to left on a 3-1 pitch. Their other two scores came off of Al Alburquerque in the 8th, when he walked Ben Zobrist with the bases loaded (as part of two straight walks), to make it 2-0. The third run came off an error by SS Hernan Perez on a groundball by Hanigan that he threw away to 1st.

The Tigers, as a team, issued out 6 free passes tonight. Said Brad Ausmus after the game, "we just couldn't find our spots too often today, and it cost us with those bases-loaded walks. The fact our offense couldn't get anything going goes to show you how good Tampa's pitching and defense are, but hopefully we can break through with some runs tomorrow."

NOTES:
To replace the injured Ian Kinsler, the Tigers called up 2B Devon Travis from Toledo to take his place on the roster. The 23-year old Travis scorched AAA pitching this year, hitting .303/.354/.499 with 16 HR and 85 RBI, the HRs and RBI being career-high totals. He is said to have a good shot at making the big league roster next year, due to his performance at the highest minor league level this year.
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TB:
Zobrist: 0-1, RBI, 3 BB
Myers: 2-5, 2 R
Joyce: 2-3, 2B
Moore: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 0 R/ER, 7 K, 1 BB (120 pitches)
DET:
Cabrera, Martinez, Castellanos: 1-4 each
Verlander: 6.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R/ER, 7 K, 4 BB (119 pitches)

Full Box Score
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Out of Town Scoreboard

National League

NLCS Game 1
Brewers - 4 | 7 | 1
Dodgers - 5 | 13 | 0

W - League (1-0)
L - Kintzler (1-0)
S - Jansen (3)
HR - Ellis (1, 2-run)

Dodgers lead series 1-0