Detroit Tigers: Postseason Chase Intensifies in Cleveland

The Detroit Tigers now have an incident that could potentially add fuel to the fire amid the race for the postseason.

Daniel Norris is a good teammate.

The Detroit Tigers‘ lefty was not pleased with Cleveland Indians’ starter Trevor Bauer plunking three of his teammates so he took it upon himself to respond.

Former Tiger Rajai Davis stepped to the plate in the third inning and dodged the first pitch he saw from Norris. The intent was clear, as is baseball’s unwritten rule of the retaliating bean ball.

It’s unlikely that Bauer purposefully hit Miguel Cabrera, Ian Kinsler, and Victor Martinez, but manager Brad Ausmus perfectly summed it up in his post-game interview: “If you can’t command the ball inside, you gotta, maybe not go inside.”

Ausmus acknowledged the fact that the odds of Bauer coming inside with intent is unlikely, but the situation presents itself with potential retaliations.

“This is the big leagues, and if you’re gonna hit guys in the head and kneecap like that, something’s gotta give.”

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It was good to see Norris stand up for his own guys. In a way, it resembles the way he’s taken the mound this year; the bulldog-mentality with free-flowing confidence. In his last seven starts, Norris owns a 2-2 record with a 3.46 ERA. The Tigers are 5-2 over that stretch.

Then it was Justin Upton‘s turn to stick up for his boys.

In the fifth inning of a tight, 3-2 Tigers lead, Upton got ahold of Bauer’s 92 mph fastball and drove it over the wall in center field. He knew it was gone. Bauer knew it was gone. Everybody knew it was gone.

So he watched it. And watched it some more. About six steps into admiring his work, he began a lengthy home run trot that lasted 31.2 seconds, according to Statcast.

Upton’s 451 foot blast drove in J.D. Martinez from second base and extended the Tigers lead to three runs.

What’s better than the old eye-for-eye hit by pitch? A two-out blast that silences a home crowd and puts an exclamation point on the Tigers’ afternoon efforts. It could potentially be a rallying cry, something that sparks the team and shows unity in the clubhouse. Boy, could the Tigers use one of those.

Just two games out of the wild card, they travel to Minnesota for three games before returning back to Comerica Park for the last homestand of the season.

There are thirteen games left to play and the Tigers desperately need that final jolt of momentum. Three of your best guys getting dotted during an intense playoff race? That could do it.

This would be the week to gain ground, too. The Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles, the two wild card winners if the season ended today, match up against playoff contenders this week while the Tigers play the worst team in all of baseball.

A two-game deficit isn’t enormous, but time is winding down for the Tigers to pounce. Now they have an incident that could add fuel to the fire, in a time when the spark seemed to be extinguished.

Thank you, Trevor Bauer.

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