The Detroit Tigers started their 2024 season in Chicago (White Sox) and New York (Mets), returning home for Opening Day on Friday with a 5-1 record. In those six games, the Tigers outscored their opponents 23-13 over the course of those six games.
Quality starts might have been the headline story of the week. Tarik Skubal pitched a three hit, six inning shutout in the Opener. Similarly, Reese Olson pitched 5.2 innings without a run, on Monday in New York. And on Thursday evening, Matt Manning went 5.2 inning without giving up a run or a hit, despite the 2-1 loss to the Mets in the bottom of the ninth.
While the Tigers did produce an average of nearly four runs per game, there hasn’t been much consistency on offense. It’s been a story of clutch hits in key times to help secure victory in a number of very close games. It was Riley Greene‘s game tying homer in the 11th and Colt Keith‘s go-ahead double the secured victory number five. On Monday, it was Carson Kelly‘s three-run blast that busted the game open in the 10th to allow the Tigers to secure the win.
Getting the Bats Going
The biggest hype coming into the season has been around the potential in the Tigers lineup. Yet despite the expectations, productivity has yet to arrive. The Tigers will need some consistency at the plate soon, as they will welcome both the Twins and World Champion Texas Rangers to Comerica Park starting next week. MLB pundits have their pulse on Tigers hitters, as both Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson were guests on MLB Central earlier this week.
Next up it was Kerry Carpenter, who went on High Heat to talk about his success at the end of last season and his goals and expectations for this Tigers team in 2024.
Kerry Carpenter and the @tigers are off to a 4-0 start! ?
He stopped by #HighHeat to describe the feeling in the Detroit clubhouse and how the team’s chemistry has played a role in early-season success.@alannarizzo | #RepDetroit pic.twitter.com/6Mky6lk2FL
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) April 2, 2024
A 5-1 record puts Detroit in a strong position headed into the weekend series against Oakland. Tigers fans sure hope to see the same kind of quality starts from the pitching staff, as Tarik Skubal takes the mound today at 1:10 pm. However, if the bats got hot this weekend, fans could be in for a real treat.
Happy Opening Day, Detroit!
