Detroit Tigers: Former Starting Pitchers Advance To 2019 World Series

Former Detroit Tigers pitchers Anibál Sánchez and Max Scherzer have advanced to the 2019 World Series as a part of the Washington Nationals. The Nationals could be facing another former Tigers pitcher, Justin Verlander, if the Houston Astros advance.

The Detroit Tigers advanced to the 2012 World Series, where they would get swept by the San Francisco Giants in four games. The Tigers must be feeling some deja vu as the Nationals are heading to the World Series, carrying two of the Tigers starters from their 2012 and 2013 playoff runs.

If it wasn’t enough just for the former Tigers starters to make it this far, they even created some allusion to 2013 with their success in the NLCS against the St. Louis Cardinals.

For those who do not remember, in 2013, the Detroit Tigers opened up the ALCS with Sánchez and Scherzer holding the Boston Red Sox scoreless through at least five innings in consecutive games.

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This would be the first time in Major League Baseball postseason history that this would happen until the 2019 NLCS. Sánchez and Scherzer would go on to hold the Cardinals scoreless through at least five innings in the first two games of the NLCS.

The worst part for Tigers fans is that, if the Nationals do continue their postseason run and can complete the 2019 World Series victory. There will now be five former Tigers from the 2012 season on that went on to win a World Series ring for another franchise. Those five players are…

1. Justin Verlander (traded to the Astros)
2. David Price (traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, won with Red Sox)
3. Rick Porcello (traded to Red Sox)
4. Max Scherzer (signed with Nationals)
5. Anibál Sánchez (signed with Nationals)

Something that may bring even worse memories to the Tigers fans, the team opted to sign former Nationals pitcher Jordan Zimmermann instead of Scherzer. To put that into perspective, here are the two pitchers stats compared since 2016.

Jordan Zimmerman: 25-41 record, 508.2 innings pitched, 5.61 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 4.86 FIP, 362 strikeouts

Max Scherzer: 65-27 record, 822 innings pitched, 2.73 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 2.83 FIP, 1095 strikeouts

Just to be clear, Zimmermann is not a strikeout pitcher, but its pretty simple to see how dominant Scherzer has been on the mound in comparison to him. Not listed is the fact that Scherzer has been a four-time all-star since then, winning two NL Cy Young Awards and being runner-up in the third year.

Sánchez’s success may not be as glamorous as Scherzer’s, but he found how to dominate differently. After being granted his free agency from the Tigers organization, Sánchez spent time with the Minnesota Twins, Atlanta Braves, and, most recently, the Nationals.

While with the Braves, Sánchez had revamped some of the pitches he throws, becoming a threat on the mound again. He was no Cy Young candidate, but with the reemergence of success, Sánchez was able to earn his way into the Nationals postseason rotation, where he has thrown really well for the team.

Detroit Tigers fans can rest assure that their former team for the ages has broken down but is being revived within other organizations across the league, and three of those great pitchers are going to compete for a World Series ring in the coming weeks.

Best of luck to Sánchez and Scherzer as they look to bring home a World Series ring and join an “elite” club of former Tigers players who won it all with other franchises.