TABLE OF CONTENTS Tigers Rule the Central Division 4 Miggy Supplies the Power 6 Comerica Park Is Detroit’s Happy Place 8 Verlander Blows Hitters Away 10 The D Stands for Detroit 12 Fiery Cobb Hits and Hits and Hits 14 Greenberg Homers against Hitler 16 Tigers Are Great in 68 18 Kaline Beloved as Mr Tiger 20 We Want the Bird 22 Tigers Roar in 84 24 Tigers Stir Up Magic in 2006 26 12 Key Dates 28 Glossary 30 For More Information 31 Index 32 About the Author 32
1 TIGERS RULE THE CENTRAL DIVISION Catcher Alex Avila threw off his mask He looked up at the sky When the pop-up landed in his mitt his Detroit Tigers had beaten the Minnesota Twins on the last day of the 2014 regular season Tigers players ran onto the field The crowd went wild With the victory the Tigers won the American League AL Central Division title for the fourth consecutive season From 2011 to 2014 the Tigers had plenty of star power Miguel Cabrera led the league in batting average three times and blasted 143 home runs Pitcher Justin Verlander went 24 5 in 2011 Fireballer Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander delivers a pitch in the 2012 World Series 4
Max Scherzer was 21 3 in 2013 Designated hitter Victor Martinez batted 335 in 2014 The Tigers made it to the World Series in only one of those years 2012 In that year’s Fall Classic the San Francisco Giants defeated the Tigers in four straight games Still winning four straight division titles is special Victor Martinez follows through on a home run during a 2014 game 91 5 Average wins per season for the Tigers from 2011 to 2014 The Tigers won the AL Central Division every year from 2011 to 2014 They won the AL Division Series in 2011 2012 and 2013 They won the AL Championship Series ALCS in 2012 THINK ABOUT IT The Tigers were one of baseball’s best teams during the regular season from 2011 to 2014 However they didn’t win a World Series during that time Would you still consider those to be successful seasons Explain why or why not 5
