Tigers Timeline

1901

On April 24, 1901, the Tigers prepared to take to the field for their first official American League game. A standing room only crowd was anticipated at Bennett Park, but unpredictable weather postponed the opening by a day.

On that historic afternoon, April 25, 1901, in front of 10,000 fans, the Tigers entered the ninth inning trailing Milwaukee, 13-4. A series of hits and miscues followed, moving the score to 13-12 with two runners on. With two out, Tiger Frank "Pop" Dillon faced reliever Bert Husting, and the lefthanded hitter rapped a two-run double to complete a 14-13 comeback win.

1905

The 1905 season was a remarkable one for the organization in that it marked the first in a Detroit uniform for Tyrus Raymond Cobb, the most famous Tiger of all. Acquired in exchange for pitcher Eddie Cicotte and $700 from Augusta of the Sally League (plus an additional $50 for "immediate delivery"), Cobb played the first of his 3,033 Major League games on August 30, 1905. He would remain with the Tigers for 22 years, and when he retired in 1928, he had collected more records than any player in Major League history.

1907

The 1907 season saw the emergence of two individuals, neither of them players, who would both play significant roles in turning the fortunes of the young Tigers. One was Frank Navin, who began as a bookkeeper with the franchise in 1902 before acquiring a full half interest ownership in the club and becoming team president. After Ban Johnson's retirement in 1927, Navin came to be regarded by many as the most powerful man in the American League. The other was Hughie Jennings, a keen judge of talent who would lead the club to three consecutive league championships as one of the most colorful managers in Major League history.

That same 1907 season, the Tigers won their first pennant, taking the American League by one and one-half games with a mark of 92-58. A disappointing loss to the Cubs in the World Series followed.

1911

In 1911, Cobb finished with a personal-best batting average of .420, finishing just short of the all-time American League single-season record of .422 set by Nap Lajoie in 1901.

1912

In 1912, the club moved into its new ballpark, named after Frank Navin, but the campaign was marked by a one-game players' strike in retaliation for a suspension levied on Cobb for taking a punch at a fan in New York. The May 18 strike forced the Tigers to put together a team of sandlot players for one game, a 24-2 loss at Philadelphia.

1915

In 1915, Jennings and his club posted a regular-season record of 100-54, yet the skipper remembered the campaign as "the biggest disappointment" of his career after Babe Ruth's Red Sox claimed the pennant with 101 wins.

1924

By 1920, the Tigers had plunged to seventh place, Jennings was released and the managerial position fell into the hands of Cobb. The highlight of Cobb's tenure was 1924, the same season that Hall-of-Famer Charlie Gehringer first wore the Tiger uniform, when the club remained in the race until the season's final week with a record of 86-68.

1934

After five seasons with Bucky Harris at the helm, Navin attempted to hire Babe Ruth as manager in 1934. Unable to land him, Navin turned to Mickey Cochrane, purchased from Philadelphia for $100,000. With Cochrane as catcher/manager, the Tigers soared to a 101-53 record in 1934 for the first of two consecutive league pennants. Schoolboy Rowe set a record with 16 consecutive pitching wins, but in the World Series the Tigers once again failed to capture the post-season magic, dropping a seven-game decision to Frankie Frisch's St. Louis Cardinals in a series that featured Commissioner Landis removing St. Louis outfielder Ducky Medwick from Game 7 for his own safety as Detroit fans pelted the field with debris.

1935

In 1935, the long-awaited title dreams came true for Tiger fans and players. After winning the American League by three games, Detroit took six games to mow down the Chicago Cubs in the 1935 World Series, with Cochrane making a daring dash from second in the ninth inning of Game Six to score the winning run on a single by Goose Goslin. For their accomplishments, each player was awarded a share of $6,544.

On November 13, 1935, Frank Navin was stricken by a heart ailment and died at the age of 64. Walter Briggs Sr., already half-owner of the club, purchased the remainder of the team and became president.

1940

In 1940 under manager Del Baker, Detroit earned its sixth pennant with a 90-64 mark and faced Cincinnati in the Fall Classic. A 21-game winner in the regular season, righthander Bobo Newsom pitched the Tigers to wins in two games of the Series but fell in Game Seven as the Reds won the title.

1945

A strange end to the 1945 season marked the Tigers' successful surge to their eventual second World Series title. With little hope of making it to the post-season, the Washington Senators scheduled their season to close a week early to make their park available for pro football. The Senators, however, played inspired baseball all the way but were forced to sit and watch during the season's final week as the Tigers nosed them out of a pennant. In the ensuing World Series, the Tigers, managed by Steve O'Neill, knocked off the Cubs in seven games, with Hall-of-Famer "Prince Hal" Newhouser winning two times.

1950

After a pair of second-place finishes in 1946 and '47 and the acquisition of Hall-of-Famer George Kell, the Tigers watched as a fresh influx of talent from the minors matured and nearly captured the 1950 pennant, falling just three games short after leading the pack for 119 days and finishing with a 95-59 record.

1955

The 1950s were highlighted by the emergence of young outfielder Al Kaline who, with a .340 batting average in 1955, became the youngest player in league history to win a batting title.

1960

The Tiger front office was also seeing sweeping change after the death of Briggs Sr. in 1952. After a four-year presidency by his son, Walter Briggs Jr., the Briggs stock was sold to a syndicate of 11 radio/television executives led by John Fetzer, Fred Knorr and Kenyon Brown. In 1960, Fetzer purchased the entire team and became entrenched as club president.

1968

After finishing just one game out of first place in 1967, the Tigers were poised and loaded with talent entering the 1968 campaign. Under manager Mayo Smith, the club took the lead on May 10 and never relinquished it, finishing 12 games ahead of second-place Baltimore. Denny McLain was the hero of the campaign with a 31-6 record, becoming the first pitcher since Lefty Grove in 1934 (and remaining the last currently) to win 30 or more in a season. His efforts earned McLain unanimous acclaim as MVP and Cy Young winner in the league.

In a tight World Series, Mickey Lolich pitched the club to three wins, the final win coming on just two days rest as the Tigers captured the crown.

1972

With divisional play starting in 1969, the Tigers next visited the post-season by winning the American League East in 1972 under Billy Martin with a 92-70 mark. The club was unable to capture the pennant, however, as the Oakland A's won the best-of-five series in five games.

1979

The late 1970s featured the first of an American League record 1,918 appearances together by Tiger middle infielders Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker.

The 1979 season saw another significant change in leadership when on June 14, Sparky Anderson took over the club's managerial reigns. For the next 16 seasons, Anderson would lead the Tigers from the dugout, claiming two division titles and a World Championship along the way.

1984

After a second-place finish in 1983, success was expected for a talented Tiger club the following season. With Jack Morris tossing his first no-hitter on April 7 of 1984, the club vaulted into the division lead by winning its first nine games and going 35-5 through May 24, the best 40-game start in Major League history. The Tigers went on to a 104-58 mark, 15 games in front of the pack, and continued by sweeping the Royals in the Championship Series. After defeating the Padres, four-games-to-one, in the World Series, the Tigers became the first Major League team since the 1955 Dodgers to hold first place wire-to-wire and finish by winning the championship. In addition, a club-record 2,704,794 fans passed through the turnstiles.

1987

The Tigers returned to glory in 1987 in dramatic fashion. The club struggled to an 11-19 start but closed strong and looked ready to make a move after first-place Toronto lost four straight entering the final weekend of play. Trailing the Blue Jays by just one game with a three-game set in Motown against Toronto to close the regular season, the Tigers took the first two. With a one-game lead, Detroit's Frank Tanana out-dueled the Jays' Jimmy Key on Sunday as Larry Herndon's solo homer proved the only scoring in a 1-0 triumph. After the dramatic ending to the regular season, Detroit bowed out of the playoffs to Minnesota, losing a best-of-seven series in five contests.

1992

The 1992 season included the most recent change in ownership for the team as Mike Ilitch purchased sole interest in the team from Tom Monoghan, and other structural changes were not far down the road.

1995

In 1995, Tiger President and CEO John McHale was hired, and the following off-season, Vice President/General Manager Randy Smith was brought on board. The organization began a process of rebuilding the franchise through scouting and player development, and the past four campaigns have seen the emergence of talented homegrown players such as Tony Clark, Brian Moehler and Juan Encarnacion.

1999

September 27, 1999, saw the last Detroit Tiger baseball game played at Tiger Stadium. After an 87 year run, the Corner saw it's 6,783rd-and final-game with a sold-out crowd of 43,356 fans, many standing at their seats and dabbing tears from their eyes as 63 Tiger greats took the field one last time during the closing ceremonies of the park. The Tigers took that historic game, beating the Royals 8-2.

2010

The Tigers' 2010 campaign seemed to be two seasons in one -- a division race with Magglio Ordonez and Miguel Cabrera, then a second-half fade with Ordonez on the disabled list and Cabrera on first base with a team-record 32 intentional walks. It was also a year of transition, replacing some familiar names from Detroit's AL pennant team in 2006 with emerging young prospects. Everything evened out in the standings with an 81-81 record and a third-place finish, but it was a roller-coaster of a year, competitively and emotionally. Fans, friends and colleagues paid their final respects to Hall of Fame broadcaster Ernie Harwell, who passed away in May after an eight-month battle with cancer. Emotions went from tears to disbelief a few weeks later, when a missed call by umpire Jim Joyce denied Armando Galarraga of what would've been the first perfect game in Tigers history. Incredibly, though, the reactions afterwards turned to forgiveness for Joyce and a life lesson about the value of understanding that people make mistakes.

Galarraga's gem didn't make history, but it made for a roll, with Detroit winning 12 out of 17 and seven in a row behind the hot hitting of rookies Brennan Boesch and Austin Jackson. They took over first place for more than a week in early July, but a six-game losing streak out of the All-Star break left the Tigers playing catch-up. They couldn't recover once Ordonez, Carlos Guillen and Brandon Inge all went on the DL in a five-day span. Ordonez's broken right ankle ended his season. Cabrera, an All-Star Game starter and a Home Run Derby participant, went on to lead the Majors with 126 RBIs. Jackson became the fourth rookie ever to post 180 hits, 30 doubles, 10 triples and 25 stolen bases in a season. Justin Verlander posted 18 wins for the third time in four years.

2011

The Tigers went into 2011 as a contender for the American League Central if things went right for them in the division. As shaky as things looked at the start, it turned into one of the franchise's most successful seasons in recent memory, ending just two games shy of the World Series. Miguel Cabrera ended the year with his first batting title, pacing the big leagues with a .344 average. Jose Valverde not only set a franchise record with 49 saves, he didn't blow a save opportunity all year, an efficiency not seen from somebody with that many saves since Eric Gagne in 2003. Victor Martinez, signed to a four-year contract over the winter to support Cabrera in the lineup, drove in 103 runs to go with a .330 average while mentoring young catcher Alex Avila to an All-Star season.

The biggest feats, however, fell to Justin Verlander in one of the best seasons from a Major League pitcher in a quarter-century. The stats tell plenty with 24 wins, a 2.40 ERA and 250 strikeouts for the first pitching Triple Crown by a Tiger since Hal Newhouser. But starting with his May 7 no-hitter at Toronto, an 11-pitch walk shy of a perfect game, Verlander went on a dominant summer run that included two nine-game winning streaks, a few more no-hit bids and simply overpowering, efficient pitching. By year's end, Verlander was not only the AL Cy Young Award winner, but an overwhelming pick as the first starter to win AL MVP honors since Roger Clemens in 1986.

Combine all the individual success, and the Tigers eventually took over a division thought to be contested by the established White Sox and upstart Indians. A 12-game winning streak in September, helped in no small part by Trade Deadline acquisition Doug Fister, sent Detroit running away with its first division title in 24 years. The Tigers upset the top-seeded Yankees in the AL Division Series, winning Game 5 in the Bronx, before falling in six games to the defending AL champion Rangers.

2012

Another MVP, another batting champion, another Triple Crown winner, another AL Central title, another postseason run. The Tigers matched so many accomplishments from the previous season, then topped it with a berth in the World Series. It was a dramatic finish for a season that nearly looked lost in mid-September.

The Tigers spent much of the summer in second place and stood three games behind the White Sox with 15 games to play before finally taking over the division lead for good. Detroit won eight of 10 games to close out the regular season behind the hitting of Miguel Cabrera, who became baseball's first batting Triple Crown winner since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967.

The Tigers took a 2-0 lead in the best-of-5 AL Division Series. It took a complete-game shutout from Justin Verlander in a winner-take-all Game 5 to seal it, but it sent Detroit on a roll. The Tigers swept the Yankees in the ALCS to advance to their second World Series in seven years, but just as in 2006, a long rest between series left their bats rusty as the Giants swept them out of the Fall Classic.

2013

The Tigers carried World Series expectations on their backs from the day they opened Spring Training, with manager Jim Leyland saying near the end that they were almost set up to fail. However, they led the American League Central for all but 21 games en route to their third consecutive division title.

Miguel Cabrera, seemingly set up to fail bigger than anyone, managed to better his Triple Crown season statistically, even though he finished second in home runs and RBIs. He played through second half injuries to become the first right-handed hitter with three-straight batting crowns since Rogers Hornsby in the 1920s.

While Justin Verlander had to work through early-season struggles, Max Scherzer got out to a 13-0 start, nearly making modern history before finishing with a 21-3 record and 2.90 ERA to go with an All-Star Game starting assignment. All five Tigers starters won at least 13 games, while Detroit's pitching staff as a whole set a Major League record for strikeouts in a season.

In the end, Cabrera's late-season groin injury had an impact on the entire team, sapping Detroit's offense of its best power source and leaving the Tigers in an abundance of low-scoring playoff games. They pitched their way past Oakland to make their third consecutive ALCS, but paid for a makeshift bullpen and offensive struggles in a loss to the Red Sox. It turned out to be Leyland's final season managing in Detroit, as he retired a couple days later and was replaced by former catcher Brad Ausmus.

2014

While the Tigers ushered in a new era with first-year manager Brad Ausmus, they continued their division dynasty by winning their fourth consecutive American League Central title in 2014. However, it wasn't easy. Detroit went four weeks in August and into September either trailing or tied with upstart Kansas City and never really pulled away. In the end, it took a stellar performance from trade deadline acquisition David Price on the final day of the regular season to seal it. A week later, their season ended unceremoniously, swept out of the postseason by the Baltimore Orioles. While Miguel Cabrera played through bone spurs in his ankle and a stress fracture in his foot, Victor Martinez finished runner-up to Mike Trout for AL MVP thanks to a career highs of a .335 batting average and 32 home runs to go with a league-best .974 OPS.

2015

The Tigers' run atop the division finally ended, and with very little suspense, en route to their first losing season and last-place finish since 2008. Detroit won 11 of its first 13 games, but lingered around .500 for much of the summer while injuries piled up and the Royals pulled away. The combination left the Tigers in the rare position of sellers at the July non-waiver trade deadline, trading away David Price, Yoenis Cespedes and Joakim Soria. It also set up the end of the 14-year partnership between owner Mike Ilitch and president/general manager Dave Dombrowski, who was dismissed Aug. 4 and replaced by longtime assistant Al Avila. Miguel Cabrera won his fourth batting title in five years, becoming the ninth player in Major League history to do so.

2016

The Tigers, led by Avila, licked their wounds from 2015 and regrouped, signing Jordan Zimmermann, Mike Pelfrey, Mark Lowe and finally Justin Upton to free-agent deals while rebuilding their bullpens. The makeover helped Detroit pull itself out of the division cellar and eventually into the thick of the race, albeit after early-season doldrums. A 1-11 funk in May left the Tigers six games under .500 and 8 ½ games out after just 36 games with Upton, Pelfrey and Lowe slumping and Justin Verlander out of sync. Detroit didn't cross over .500 for good until the end of June, but heated up from there, using an eight-game winning streak in early August to vault back into contention. The Tigers spent September jockeying for a Wild Card spot and had a chance as late as the final day of the regular season, but fell short with back-to-back losses in Atlanta to end the year with an 86-75 record and second-place finish. Verlander dominated over the final three months, going 9-3 with a 1.98 ERA over his final 18 starts to re-establish himself among the game's aces. Just as important, Verlander mentored a trio of young starters that included AL Rookie of the Year Michael Fulmer, whose 33-inning scoreless streak was historic for a first-year hurler on his way to 11 wins and nearly an AL ERA title. Miguel Cabrera lost his batting title but regained his younger power, slugging 38 home runs to go with a .316 batting average and 108 RBIs.

2017

With a rebuilding effort in sight, the Tigers kept their veteran core together for one more run, bringing back catcher Alex Avila but doing little else. From the start, however, they struggled to keep pace with the reigning Indians and upstart Twins while struggling to keep their own stars on the field. A back injury to Miguel Cabrera, suffered during the World Baseball Classic, bothered him for the entire season, resulting in a hampered swing and his worst offensive numbers as a Major Leaguer. A sliding catch attempt in Spring Training sidelined J.D. Martinez until mid-May with a midfoot sprain. Ian Kinsler played through a tight hamstring from early in the season until he went on the disabled list in May, suffering a deep slump at the plate. Veteran closer Francisco Rodriguez never found his younger form and was released in June.

Justin Upton helped keep the Tigers on the fringe of contention with a torrid start, earning an All-Star selection in the process along with sophomore starter Michael Fulmer. But by mid-July, with the Tigers fading from the race, Al Avila began the rebuild, trading Martinez, Alex Avila and Justin Wilson for prospects. The tougher decisions and bigger trades came at the end of August, when Detroit parted with Upton and franchise icon Justin Verlander. While Verlander went on to help the Astros to a World Series, the Tigers began reforming their core behind a career-best season from Nicholas Castellanos, a near no-hitter from Matthew Boyd and an impressive September from Jeimer Candelario. The Tigers punctuated their new direction in October with a manager change, replacing Brad Ausmus with Ron Gardenhire.

2018

Ron Gardenhire's first season as Tigers manager also marked the first full season of the Tigers rebuilding effort. Detroit picked up a potential cornerstone for the future, selecting Auburn University right-hander Casey Mize with the first pick in the MLB Draft, and added hopeful impact hitters with high-school slugger Parker Meadows and University of Texas second baseman Kody Clemens. While the present-day Tigers lost Miguel Cabrera to a season-ending biceps surgery on their way to a second consecutive 64-98 record, they saw the emergence of Joe Jimenez as an All-Star reliever and Christin Stewart as a Major League hitter. With Cabrera sidelined for most of the season, Nicholas Castellanos emerged as Detroit's offensive leader, batting .298 with 23 home runs, 89 RBIs and an .854 OPS. Matthew Boyd paced the pitching staff with nine wins, a 4.39 ERA and 159 strikeouts over 170 1/3 innings in his first full season in the Tigers rotation.

2019

While the Tigers' rebuilding effort continued in their farm system, supplemented by slugging outfielder Riley Greene with the fifth pick in the MLB Draft, Detroit struggled with injuries and growing pains on the way to a 47-114 record. The Tigers actually got off to a surprisingly solid start, winning seven of their first 10 games and sitting within a game of .500 as late as May 8. By then, however, injuries to starters Michael Fulmer, Tyson Ross, Matt Moore and Jordan Zimmermann were already taking their toll on a taxed pitching staff, before a chronic knee injury forced Miguel Cabrera to change his swing. Closer Shane Greene was the club's lone All-Star before being traded to Atlanta at the end of July, shortly before Nicholas Castellanos was traded to the Cubs.

Matthew Boyd's emergence as a front-line starter provided a badly-needed bright spot. His 238 strikeouts were the most by a Tigers left-hander since Mickey Lolich in 1972. He also recorded nine of the team's 47 wins. Brandon Dixon, a waiver pickup the previous fall, led the team with 15 home runs.

2020

The Tigers' abbreviated 2020 season marked what general manager Al Avila called the end of their rebuilding phase and the start of their buildup. They signed free-agent sluggers C.J. Cron and Jonathan Schoop to help rejuvenate a dormant offense. They began to call up the core of top prospects that are expected to lead Detroit back to contention. And in the end, manager Ron Gardenhire gave Tigers fans a glimpse of the good times in his final season as manager. Detroit won nine of its first 14 games, including back-to-back ninth-inning rallies in Cincinnati and a series sweep in Pittsburgh. A nine-game skid halted the momentum, but a six-game winning streak brought the Tigers back over .500 on Sept. 1. Eventually, injuries to Cron, Schoop, center fielder JaCoby Jones and others caught up with them down the stretch, and Detroit finished with a 23-35 record.

Schoop brought much-needed balance to Detroit's lineup and quiet leadership to the clubhouse, batting .278 with eight homers and 23 RBIs in 44 games before a wrist injury ended his season. Cron hit four home runs in Detroit's first 12 games before suffering a season-ending knee injury. But Jeimer Candelario stepped into the void with a breakout season, batting .279 with eight homers, 23 RBIs and an .872 OPS. Miguel Cabrera slugged 10 homers in 57 games in a bounceback season. But hope for the future came from pitching prospects Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize; Skubal earned his first MLB win by beating the defending division champion Twins and struck out 37 batters over 32 innings. Mize fanned seven batters in his debut and took a no-hit bid into the sixth inning against the White Sox.

2021

What looked like another rebuilding season in Detroit after a 9-24 start took a sudden turn. As the weather warmed up, so did the young Tigers, who took to new manager A.J. Hinch's direction and began to progress. Their 14-13 record in May marked their first winning record for a month in three years. Then they rolled two more months just like it. Detroit went 68-61 after that miserable start, and their 77-win season marked their best record since 2016.

The Tigers didn't have a star carry them to that next step. In fact, they didn't have a finalist for any major award. But the collective effort of their youth movement began to pay dividends. Tarik Skubal led the team with eight wins and 164 strikeouts, the latter marking the most ever by a Tigers rookie. Casey Mize overcame a rough opening stretch to become a frontline starter, leading the team with 150 1/3 innings. Matt Manning made his MLB debut and made 18 starts. Offensively, Rule 5 Draft pick Akil Baddoo was an early-season sensation for his home-run power before settling into a role as an athletic catalyst atop the Tigers lineup. Former first-round pick Derek Hill became a defensive highlight reel in center field.

A pair of historic feats furthered the season of progress. Spencer Turnbull became the first Tiger to throw a no-hitter in 14 years when he blanked the Mariners on May 18 in Seattle. A few months later, Miguel Cabrera became the 28th member of baseball's 500-homer club when he went deep at Toronto.

2022

A Tigers season that began with perhaps Detroit’s greatest hope for contention in almost a decade, fueled by the arrival of young talent along with the signings of Javier Baez and Eduardo Rodriguez, quickly turned into a demonstration of Murphy’s Law: Everything that could go wrong, seemingly did.

Center-field prospect Riley Greene tore up Spring Training until a fractured foot delayed his Detroit debut until late June. Former top prospect Casey Mize made just two starts before an elbow injury led to Tommy John surgery. Matt Manning suffered a shoulder injury around the same time that cost him half the season. Tarik Skubal was an All-Star candidate, then a trade candidate, then another injury victim, in his case a forearm injury.

The Tigers used 17 starting pitchers during the season, most in franchise history. Their offense ranked last in the American League in runs scored and home runs. On the bright side, Greene looked like a long-term fixture in center once he finally arrived, and Miguel Cabrera joined the 3,000-hit club.