Celebrate first! The Tigers have advanced to the playoffs, while the Guardians remain hot on their heels. Skubal will not pitch tomorrow.

The Detroit Tigers beat the White Sox 2-1 today, clinching a place in the American League postseason and still having a shot at winning the Central Division for the first time in 11 years. The Tigers boast ace pitcher Tarik Skubal, who is competing for a consecutive Cy Young Award. Although they faced an unusual slump in September, losing a 10-game lead and being caught by the Cleveland Guardians, they ultimately secured a playoff berth.

Looking at the standings, even if the Tigers win the division, they will only be the third seed in the AL, behind the West Division champion Mariners and the East Division champion Blue Jays; if the Guardians overtake them, the Tigers would drop to the sixth seed. Regardless, the first round of the playoffs will see the third seed face the sixth seed, so the Tigers’ Wild Card Series opponent will almost certainly be the Guardians, with the only difference being who has home-field advantage.

The Tigers’ final ranking depends on the remaining regular season results of the Guardians and the Houston Astros. From 2015 to 2023, the Tigers missed the playoffs for nine straight seasons, tied with the Angels for the longest drought in the AL. Last year, the Tigers finally secured a Wild Card spot, while the Angels suffered through their 11th consecutive season without a playoff appearance, making them the league’s most unfortunate team.

This victory allowed the Tigers to clinch a playoff spot with two regular season games remaining. Although tomorrow’s game might still affect the division title, the Tigers have decided to rest their scheduled starting pitcher Skubal and will not have him pitch.

The Tigers and Guardians still have a chance to compete for the AL Central title, but no matter who wins the division or earns a Wild Card, both teams must start the playoffs in the Wild Card Series. Therefore, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch stated before today’s game that if the team had not clinched by now, Skubal would start tomorrow; but since they qualified early, the ace pitcher will be saved to start the first game of the Wild Card Series.