Get your caffeinated beverages ready, friends. The Tigers will be heading out on the road this week, starting with a three-game series in Oakland Sacramento against the A’s, the last Late Night Tigers of the season. They’re coming off an excellent week of play against the Astros and Royals (and will be seeing the Royals against in Kansas City this coming weekend). With only one loss on Sunday, the Tigers really seemed to be back in their groove again, and it was just a lot of really well-played, fun baseball. Let’s see what is to come this week (and how much of it we stay awake for).
There are a lot of fun tidbits in today’s news, including the 2026 Field of Dreams game (on that note, the 2026 MLB schedule will be coming out on Tuesday, those who like to plan trips!) There’s also a new pitching award that will debut next season, and a look at which Tigers’ player is the most under-the-radar contributor.
Let’s get right into it.
After signing a one-year, $15 million contract in the offseason, Torres has delivered for the Tigers exactly as they hoped, getting on base, hitting for power and moving the chains. He’s posted a 110 OPS+ and been worth 2.1 WAR, according to Baseball Reference. He doesn’t chase out of the strike zone, ranking in the 98th percentile in that category. He’s also in the 90th percentile or better in xwOBA, xBA, squared-up percentage and walk rate. The Tigers needed to increase the traffic for the middle of their order; Torres and his team-leading .359 on-base percentage have helped with that.