Year of the Pitcher

1968 Detroit TigersHome Field: Tiger Stadium
World ChampionsHit: #1 R; #4 BA
W - 103 L - 59Pitch: #1 OR, #3 ERA
Manager: Mayo SmithDef: #1 FA

In a season that was dominated by pitching and defense, it's appropriate that the league's MVP was a dominating pitcher. Denny McLain posted 31 victories against just 6 defeats. By doing so, he was the first man in over 30 years to reach the 30 victory plateau, and nobody has reached that level since. In spite of McLain's brilliant season, it should be noted that Detroit's march to the title involved a lot more than their star pitcher.

One season earlier, Mayo Smith became Detroit's manager and nearly pulled out the pennant before being eliminated on the season's final day. They would not be denied in 1968. The Tigers won 103 games and captured the pennant by 12 games. Backing McLain on the mound was southpaw Mickey Lolich who went 17-9. Earl Wilson, a year removed from a 22 win season, added 13 wins as a solid #3 starter.

Despite hitting .235 as a team (it should be noted that the league's average was .230), this was not a hitless wonder club. Willie Horton led the Tigers with 36 homers and a .285 average. Catcher Bill Freehan and first sacker Norm Cash added 25 homers apiece, while right fielder Jim Northrup led the squad with 90 RBIs. Setting the table was Dick McAuliffe, a scrappy second baseman who led the loop with 95 runs scored. The club overcame a broken arm by star outfielder Al Kaline, who missed half the season as a result of the injury.

Detroit faced St. Louis, the defending World Series champions, in the fall classic. The much anticipated pitching showdown between McLain and Bob Gibson was one-sided. Gibson won both matchups easily, and St. Louis's 10-1 triumph in Game 4 put the Cardinals one win away from the title. Lolich came through with a win in the fifth game and Detroit's bats came alive with a 10 run third in Game 6 to setup a one game showdown. This time it was Lolich who took the hill against Gibson. He outdueled Gibson 4-1 to win his third start of the series and deliver the World Championship to the Motor City.


1968 Champion Tigers


Pos Player Bats AB H R HR RBI BA    AL Rank
C Bill Freehan R 540 142 73 25 84 .263    #5t HR
1B Norm Cash L 411 108 50 25 63 .263    #5t HR
2B Dick McAuliffe L 570 142 95 16 56 .249    #1 R
SS Ray Oyler R 215 29 13 1 12 .135  
3B Don Wert R 536 107 44 12 37 .200  
LF Willie Horton R 512 146 68 36 85 .285    #4 BA, #2 HR, SA, #4t RBI
CF-1B-SS Mickey Stanley R 583 151 88 11 60 .259  
RF Jim Northrup L 580 153 76 21 90 .264    #3 RBI
                   
OF Al Kaline R 327 94 49 10 53 .287  
SS-2B Tom Matchick L 227 46 18 3 14 .203  
SS-3B-2B Dick Tracewski R 212 33 30 4 15 .156  
C Jim Price R 132 23 12 3 13 .174  
OF Gates Brown L 92 34 15 6 15 .370  
                   
Total: Team   5490 1292 671 185 640 .235    #1 R, #4 BA
  League Average   53709 12359 5532 1104 5126 .230  

Pitcher Throw G IP W L ERA PCT    AL Rank
  Denny McLain R 41 336 31 6 1.96 .838    #1 W, #2 K, #4 ERA
  Mickey Lolich L 39 220 17 9 3.19 .654  
  Earl Wilson R 34 224 13 12 2.85 .520  
  Joe Sparma R 34 182 10 10 3.71 .500  
  John Hiller L 39 128 9 6 2.39 .600  
  Pat Dobson R 47 125 5 8 2.66 .385  
  Darryl Patterson R 38 68 2 3 2.12 .400  
  Fred Lasher R 34 49 5 1 3.33 .400  
                   
Total: Team       103 59 2.71      #1 OR, #3 ERA, #1 FA
  League Average           2.98    

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