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Page 2 MacombDaily.com DailyTribune.com Thursday, September 29, 2011DETROIT TIGERS

Squad could provide more postseason memoriesthat, it’s this one.

The ‘68 title brought this area to-gether after the destruction of theriots the summer before. The ‘84championship came in the yearsafter a recession drove manypeople from Michigan to the SunBelt because of a meltdown in theauto industry.

We were in a one-state recessionin 2006, soon to be joined by the restof the country.

Yet, postseason baseball helped

Players running out of the dugoutwith bottles of Champagne andshowering fans in the seats downthe left field line with it.

n Oakland’s Huston Street pitch-ing, Magglio Ordonez swinging.The ball hanging in the air for whatseemed like ages against the back-drop of a Downtown Detroit skylineas it crossed the left field wall atComerica Park. The celebration ofan American League pennant in2006.

Postseason baseball is magical. Ifthere is any town that understands

jumping for unmitigated joy. The1984 world champs.

n The Tigers, with the wholeworld thinking it would be differ-ent, beating the Yankees in theAmerican League Division Series.

girth. Freehan carrying himaround as if he could lift the world.He probably could have at that mo-ment. The Tigers rallying from athree games to one deficit to beatthe Cardinals in the 1968 World Se-ries.

n Sparky Anderson miked in thedugout, yelling toward Kirk Gibsonin the batter’s box at Tiger Stadi-um. “He don’t want to walk you.”Gibby looking back at Sparky. Theblazing fastball from San Diego’sGoose Gossage. The drive deep intothe right field upper deck. Gibson

–– DETROITPostseason. The Tigers.This is what we see.n A faraway shot of the field at

Tiger Stadium. The Cardinals LouBrock, one of the greatest baserunners ever, rounding third..Wil-lie Horton picking up the ball in leftfield. Brock bolting home. BillFreehan applying the tag. The pho-tos showing Brock’s foot stoppinginches short of the plate.

n Freehan catching a popup.Mickey Lolich jumping into hisarms with every bit of his ample

Pat

Caputo

COLUMNIST

Back to the postseasonThis one is different.“A little bit different. We’re definitely not

the sleeper. I think everybody knew we had agood team. In ’06, we just came out of no-where. The Indians earlier this year remind-ed me a lot of that, catching everybody offguard. But this year, you look at the talent onthis team and people expected us to be, if notwhere we are now, right there,” ace JustinVerlander said. “I think we’re also a teamthat nobody really wants to face. We’ve gotkind of that good group of talent. We hit theball well, we play good enough defense andwe pitch well. ... It’s a team, like I said, I don’tthink anybody wants to play us.”

They had been telling us all along that theywere good, but how many believed them?Shoot, there were those who advocated ahousecleaning if this team came up short.

“I think the only difference is (in) 2006 Iwasn’t getting fired every day — a little bitdifferent this year,” joked Leyland, who did

come into the season as a lame duck, beforehe and GM Dave Dombrowski earned mid-season contract extensions.

“But no, I think we took care of, we wereable to take care of negative conversationsabout us. We were able to do that becauseof what we did. ...

“I think 2006 was a little different,you’re right, it had been down for quite awhile and I think for the most part, the

last few years, and I don’t mean this tosound wrong but I think it’s been pretty ex-

citing and I think people have been expectinga little bit more because they thought wewere pretty good.”

After years of being accused of crying wolf,this would be a perfect time for Leyland to

This year, regardless of how many timesmanager Jim Leyland hammered it homethat this was a good team, no matter howmany times guys like Brandon Inge call thisthe best team they’ve played on — on paper— fans were understandably reticent.

Too many old wounds.To be clear, though, this is not the Tigers of

2006. Or even of 2009.The 2011 Tig-

ers had no suchcollapse, noswoon, no let-down, maybefinally erasingall the badmemories ofthe past bymaking theplayoffs forjust the sec-ond time in24 years, win-ning theirfirst divisiontitle since

1987.

reinvent run-scoring, instead finished last.In 2009, when it looked like all the stars

might be aligning again, with the Tigersspending nearly six months in first place,they managed a collapse for the ages, blow-ing a seven-game lead in September.

That may be when the hope stopped, whenthe faithful began to doubt. It was going totake something special to bring them backwith all their hearts.

Even last year, before a string of injuriesquickly ruined what looked like it could be abounce-back season, fans were hesitant tobuy in.

With good reason.

It’s Tigers’ first playoffappearance since 2006

By Matthew B. MoweryJournal Register Newspapers

DETROIT — No one thought it would takethis long to get back to the postseason.

When the Detroit Tigers made it to theWorld Series as a Wild Card underdog in2006, it almost seemed too easy.

Despite backing into the playoffs with asecond-half swoon that would soon turn intostandard operating procedure for the fran-chise, the magical march through the post-season — punctuated by that unforgettable,series-clinching homer by Magglio Ordonez— pumped up expectations.

Never mind that it was out of nowhere, and— if you’re being fair — too early in the res-urrection of a franchise that had been mor-bid through the 1990s.

This was supposed to become a yearly oc-currence.

“When you go to the World Series you al-ways think you’re coming back the nextyear, and the next year, and the next year,”admitted Magglio Ordonez in spring train-ing this year.

That certainly didn’t happen.Five years went by with noth-

ing but disappointment, nomatter how much ownerMike Ilitch spent.

In 2007, they merelycouldn’t keep up withthe red-hot Indiansdown the stretch.

In 2008, a star-studdedlineup that was supposed to

See CAPUTO, Page 3

I think we’re also a team that nobody really wantsto face. We’ve got kind of that good group of talent.

— Justin VerlanderTigers starting pitcher

See PLAYOFFS, Page 3

Tigers under

Jim LeylandThe Tigers’ A.L. Cen-

tral finishes since JimLeyland took over asmanager in 2006:

2011: First2010: Third2009: Second2008: Fifth2007: Second2006: Second (A.L.

wild card)