Detroit Tigers: The Franchise All-Time Bracket
No. 3 vs. 6 seed
The 1935 Detroit Tigers were a clone of the 1934 club with one vital exception: they won the World Series.
Greenberg hit .328 in 1935 with 36 homers and 168 RBIs, Gehringer topped out at .330 and 108 RBIs, and Goslin drove in 111. (If you’re wondering, yes, their collective nickname was ‘the G Men.’) Catcher-manager Mickey Cochrane hit .319 and outfielder Pete Fox was good for .321.
Rowe and Bridges combined for 40 more wins across 550 innings, and Elden Auker went 18-7. The Tigers did not have a deep staff, but they didn’t need one: Between them, Bridges, Rowe, Auker, and General Crowder pitched 986 of the team’s 1,364 innings.
The 1909 Tigers were the best of the great early teams led by Cobb. He batted .377 that season, winning the batting title, and Crawford hit .314 in support. Cobb’s 216 hits and 107 RBIs were also league highs.
The Tigers featured five pitchers, with George Mullin (29-8, 2.22 ERA in 35 starts, 304 innings) leading the way. They lost the World Series to Pittsburgh in seven games.
Game 1: the first game goes to the 1909 Tigers based on their 98-54 record, a .645 percentage. The 1935 team was 93-58 during the regular season, .616.
Game 2: The 1935 club won a six-game World Series, while the 1909 Tigers lost in seven.
Game 3: At 110, the 1935 club’s team OPS+ is deeper than the 1909 team’s 106.
Game 4: The 1909 team had the deeper pitching staff, and it showed in their 112 staff ERA+. That was three points better than 1935’s 109.
Game 5: Led by Greenberg, the 1935 team compiled 52.0 WAR. The Cobb-led 1909 team only got to 49.3 WAR.
Game 6: The 1909 Tigers fielded .959, two points better than the league average. The 1935 team was exceptional with the glove, recording a .979 fielding average. That was seven points superior to that season’s American League average.
Result: 1935 in six games