How the Tigers won the AL Central

For the fourth straight season, the American League Central crown resides in the Motor City.

On Sunday, the Detroit Tigers finally turned away the worthy challenge of the Kansas City Royals by defeating the Minnesota Twins, 3-0. Had Detroit lost, they would have been facing a tiebreaker game against Kansas City on Monday.   

It was anything but a smooth road for rookie manager Brad Ausmus.  The offense was up and down, the bullpen was a disaster waiting to happen, the rotation was stacked following the addition of David Price. but Justin Verlander was shaky and Anibal Sanchez was shelved late. And that doesn’t even factor in the Royals, who refused to go away en route to their first playoff berth in 29 years. 

It ended up being one of baseball’s best races when most expected a runaway, but the Tigers emerged after 162 games. Here’s a look at five reasons why Detroit was able to survive and advance.  

Got a career season from Victor Martinez

Two years removed from surgery for a torn ACL, 35-year-old Victor Martinez proved healthy and posted the most productive season of his 12-year MLB career. Martinez set career highs in home runs 32, hits 188, batting average .335, and total bases 317. He finished second to Jose Altuve (.341) in the American League batting race. He essentially replaced the run production one would expect from Prince Fielder, who was dealt to Texas during the offseason, while hitting for a higher average and striking out far less. In 151 games, he only went down on strikes 42 times. MVP consideration is due for the man known as V-Mart.

Dominated Royals head-to-head

Baseball’s unbalanced schedule allows a better chance for division races to be determined within the division itself. In the Tigers case, they handled their own business, posting a 42-31 mark against their Central foes, and the opponent they had the most success with happened to be Kansas City. In 19 overall meetings, Detroit finished 13-6. That included taking four out of six when the chips were down in September.

The signing of J.D. Martinez

An absolute gift fell into the lap of general manager Dave Dombrowski when the Houston Astros elected to release outfielder J.D. Martinez on March 22. Two days later, the Tigers scooped him up on a minor-league deal and watched him blow up for 10 home runs in 17 games at Triple-A Toledo. Martinez, 27, got the call on April 21, and though he didn’t carve out a regular role until June, he’s been incredibly productive hitting 23 homers and driving in 76 runs. If he had enough plate appearances to qualify, his .319 would tie for fifth in MLB, and his .912 OPS would rank seventh. That’s a monster season from a guy who wasn’t in the plans as late as mid-March. 

Danced around a disappointing bullpen

For stretches this season, Detroit’s toughest competition may have been its own bullpen. It’s not a new problem for Detroit. Since 2006, they haven’t had a bullpen ERA below league average, but it’s one they hoped was adequately addressed by adding veteran closer Joe Nathan and Joba Chamberlain in the offseason. It didn’t work out that way initially. Nathan, in particular, has struggled to nail down the ninth inning on consistent basis, accumulating seven blown saves in 42 opportunities 

The good news is, Detroit was able to overcome the struggles to win another division crown. And the better news might be that all key members of the bullpen are currently healthy and for the most part trending the right way down the stretch. That includes Joakim Soria, who was acquired at the trade deadline.

Miguel Cabrera is still special

Cabrera’s seven-year streak of at least 30 home runs ended. A second triple crown wasn’t in the cards this season, either, nor will he win a fourth straight batting title. To be perfectly honest, Cabrera had a down season as he worked his way through numerous ailments, most notably the bone spurs in his ankle. That said, Cabrera’s down season is essentially J.D. Martinez’s breakout season, which means he’s still a big part of the Tigers attack.

He’ll finish up with a .313 average, 25 home runs and 109 RBIs. Numbers you’ll always take, and in Cabrera’s case you’ll feel good knowing he could heat up in the ALDS and carry the team all the way through the postseason.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813