The View From Here: Tigers, Yankees & Schadenfreude

By Ken DeLaat

We’re on the cusp of September (What? I’m still emotionally stuck in mid July!) and if you predicted we would hit the final month of the season with the Tigers just 7 games back, I’d call you a typical optimistic Detroit sports fan who is already thinking about booking a February  trip to Vegas to see the Lions in Super Bowl LVII. 
Of course the Tiger’s  standing in the Central Division is a bit different than it would be in the West (14 games behind) or the East (22 games back), but who cares? After too many years fighting to stay out of the cellar a third or even second place finish looks ok to me. 

Besides the recent surge of power in the Bengal bats gives one hope for some good times ahead. Spence Torkelson has been on fire as has current N3WH favorite Kerry Carpenter. Riley Greene has become the hitter we thought he’d be and man oh man, Parker Meadows looks like the real deal. I like the bullpen (especially Tyler Holton) and while inconsistent, the starters have had flashes of brilliance and overall have improved. 

They stumbled out of the box going 2-9 then came an ugly late May, early June when, after sitting one game under the break even mark,  they went 2-13 to fall 12 games under .500. Since those  rough patches they are 31-31 after getting absolutely shelled by the Astros and losing to Tiger alumnus Justin Verlander today. Not great but not bad.

Look, I’m a diehard. To me, BFF means Bengal Fan Forever. Others may have switched allegiances to and perhaps rightfully so having suffered through a dismal decade or so of futility. But these are the Tigers. Our Tigers. While playing Magnum Tom Selleck didn’t wear the hat bearing the olde English D because they were a dominant dynasty team like the Yanks of old or more recently the Stro’s and Dodgers . He wore it because it was his team. He grew up in Detroit and the legacy of this team has a hold on you. 

The Tigers may continue to scuffle when it comes to competing against the elite teams. They are scrappy and young and they will be coming into their own soon I suspect. In the meantime they remind me of when I was following the team in the mid 60’s and early 80’s. They were young and pretty good, but not quite good enough.

Then in ‘68 and ‘84 they caught that lightning in a jar that smaller market teams seem to occasionally be blessed with and brought their fans the Big One.
Ah yes, a mere 40 years since the last title.

Who knows, it might not happen as soon as I would like and being a member of the septuagenarian society the sooner the better.
But win or lose the Tig’s will always be my team. 
I just rant, curse and argue with the radio less often when they win. 

And while I'm on baseball, I am certain there are those out there who feel sad about the dynastic desiring Yankees tanking so badly of late, losing 16 of 23 games going into Sunday and falling out of contention.
I’m not one.

​In fact,it would absolutely make the season for me if the Tigers finished with a better record than those long despised Bronx Bombers. Their current freefall brings out the tendency toward schadenfreude in me to be sure and while I should maybe feel at least a smidge of shame about this…
Yeah, I don’t.