"There's no question as I was coming up the stairs [to the clubhouse], it was different," said manager Brad Ausmus. "In my mind, I was thinking back a year ago, when we were coming up the stairs and getting ready to dump champagne on each other. That's a much better feeling."
Whereas left-hander David Price and second baseman Ian Kinsler led the Tigers to a shutout victory in the final regular-season home game last season, the 2015 home campaign ended more quietly -- with midseason acquisition Randy Wolf on the mound and stars Kinsler, Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez pinch-hit for in the late innings.