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Detroit Tigers tied for final AL wild-card spot with 9 games to play
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- Detroit Tigers tied for final AL wild-card spot with 9 games to play
The Detroit Tigers and Minnesota Twins are in a dead heat for the final wild-card spot in the American League with nine games to play.
The Minnesota Twins lost to the Cleveland Guardians in extra innings on Thursday for the second day in a row, wiping out the Twins' half-game lead on the Tigers, who were off Thursday. Both teams are 80-73, two games behind the Kansas City Royals (82-71) and five games behind the wild-card-leading Baltimore Orioles (85-68).
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The Guardians won Thursday on a walk-off single by Andrés Giménez in the 10th inning that scored free runner Jose Ramirez , giving Cleveland its third win in four games against the Twins.
Sep 19, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt (12) relives starting pitcher Joey Cantillo (54) during the fifth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
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The victory over the Twins officially clinched a playoff spot for the Guardians, but probably made Tigers fans even happier. The Tigers have been on the Twins' trail for weeks now and made up the final ground in the standings with a sweep over the Kansas City Royals on Monday-Wednesday .
The work is not done for the Tigers, however. Although the Tigers and Twin have the same record, the Twins hold the tiebreaker over the Tigers on head-to-head record, with a 7-6 win in the season series. That means the Tigers would have to finish at least one game ahead of the Twins to earn a playoff berth.
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The Tigers will be back in action Friday night against the Baltimore Orioles, which is the toughest remaining series on their schedule. After that, the Tigers finish at home with two easier opponents: the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday-Thursday and the historically bad Chicago White Sox on Sept. 27-29. The Twins, meanwhile, visit the Boston Red Sox this weekend, then close at home with the Miami Marlins (Tuesday-Thursday) and the Orioles (Sept. 27-29).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers tied for AL wild-card berth with 9 games to play
