The Detroit Tigers reach the playoffs with a 4-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox

The Detroit Tigers are heading to the postseason for the first time since 2014.

Needing one more win to secure the victory, the Tigers took the lead in the fifth inning and never looked forward to a 4-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Friday night in the opener of a three-game series at Comerica Park.

They did it in front of a sellout crowd of 44,435.

“Here they will support you when you’re feeling down,” said manager AJ Hinch. “The last few years have been tough. Thanks to their patience, faith and support, it exceeded expectations. I can’t imagine it getting better, but I bet it will because this city responds to teams like ours.”

Now that the Tigers have secured one of three wild card spots in the American League, the last two games of the regular season only count toward the seeding list.

The postseason begins Tuesday, where the Tigers will play in a best-of-three wild-card series against either the third-seeded Houston Astros or the fourth-seeded Baltimore Orioles (who clinched the first wild-card spot with a win on Friday). .

All wild card games are hosted by the higher seeded player.

Not only did the Tigers (86-74) snap a nine-year postseason drought – tied with the Los Angeles Angels for the longest active streak – but the White Sox also tied the MLB with 121 losses (in 160 games). record and became the most losing team in modern baseball history, surpassing the 1962 New York Mets.

Meanwhile, the Tigers have an MLB-best record of 31-11 in 42 games since August 11th. The decisive postseason win over the White Sox extended the Tigers' winning streak to six games, as part of 10 wins in their last 11.

“We’ve been doing well for a while,” Hinch said. “This is not just a hot September. This is a disrespect to what we did in August. … Our ability to bounce back after tough losses and after heroic victories made me feel like we understand that it's every day.”

REMOTE REPLAY:Detroit Tigers reach 17th postseason in franchise history: Here's their playoff history

The game ended when midfielder Parker Meadows and right fielder Wenceel Pérez collided in right center field chasing a high flying ball from Andrew Vaughn. Luckily, Pérez managed to catch the ball and held onto it as it fell to the ground.

Everyone celebrated in the middle of the infield.

“It's kind of beautiful how we can punch our ticket to October with an imperfect game,” Hinch said. “We’ll go through the movie tomorrow and give ourselves something to make fun of.”

Take the lead

The Tigers took a 2-0 lead in the fifth inning.

The offense was virtually lifeless against White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet, but when left-handed reliever Jared Shuster replaced him, everything changed.

The Tigers immediately loaded the bases with Jake Rogers (walk), Meadows (single) and Andy Ibáñez (walk). The situation led to runs: Rogers scored on a wild pitch for a 1-0 lead and Meadows scored on Matt Vierling's sacrifice fly for a 2-0 lead.

Vierling is the only position player on the Tigers' active roster with postseason experience, including three games with the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2022 World Series.

Expand your lead

The Tigers scored two runs in the seventh inning to take a 4-1 lead.

Ibáñez – who has had trouble even against lefties lately – ripped a one-out double to left-center field from left-hander Fraser Ellard. Due to a fielding error by center fielder Dominic Fletcher, he moved to third base as the game progressed.

The White Sox intentionally went four-of-a-kind to put Riley Greene on the corners, who fired Ellard's first-pitch cutter off the wall right up the middle.

Greene's RBI double scored Ibáñez and gave the Tigers a 3-1 lead. Another wild pitch from the White Sox allowed Vierling to score from third base, making it 4-1.

More:Magic for the Detroit Tigers? Sure, but manager AJ Hinch is the magician who casts a spell

On the hill

Right-hander Brenan Hanifee, a traditional reliever, served as the opener in Friday's crucial playoff game. He pitched two scoreless innings before giving way to left-hander Brant Hurter.

Hurter acted as the main assistant.

The former Triple-A starter needed 53 pitches to go four innings, allowing one run on two hits and zero walks with one strikeout. His first-pitch sweeper was launched for a solo home run by Zach DeLoach – the first of his MLB career – with two outs in the sixth inning.

Aside from one hit, Hurter shut out the White Sox in his four innings.

From there, the Tigers used three relievers to reach the finish line: right-hander Will Vest for the seventh inning and the first two outs of the eighth inning, followed by left-hander Tyler Holton for the third out of the eighth inning and the first two outs of the ninth innings.

The Detroit Tigers reach the playoffs with a 4-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox

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