Detroit – The Detroit Tigers went into the final weekend of the regular season needing to win at least two of three against the lowly Braves to steal a wild-card spot. After winning the first game of the series Friday, the Tigers proceeded to lose the next two – striking out a flabbergasting 27 times in the final two games.
Unheralded Aaron Blair struck out 10 Tigers in six innings on Saturday, and in the 1-0 season-ending loss Sunday, Julio Teheran struck out 12 in seven innings.
This was the last image of the 2016 season: With the tying run on first base in the top of the ninth, former Tigers reliever Jim Johnson struck out J.