Highlights

There were many memorable moments during the regular season. Some of the highlights:

• On April 16, Chris Shelton became the fastest player to eight home runs in American League history, and the Tigers won a 1–0 game behind a sparkling three-hitter by Mike Maroth and one-hit relief by Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney.^[13]
• On April 20, the Tigers came into the ninth down 3–1, but clutch hits tied the game, and Brandon Inge's resolute 15-pitch walk (Jim Leyland called it a "1½ Marlboro" at-bat, in reference to his noted chain-smoking when in the dugout) forced in the winning run.^[14]
• On May 3, in the eighth inning of a tense pitching duel, Brandon Inge beat a throw to second to avoid a double play, then Alexis Gómez singled him in for a 2–1 comeback victory.^[15]
• Oy May 14, the Tigers swept the Indians in a three-game series with a 3–2 victory, the first time Detroit swept a series from the Indians in Cleveland since 1990.^[16]
• On May 20, Cincinnati's Ken Griffey Jr. hit a grand slam that put the Reds up, 6–5, but with two outs in the ninth inning, Curtis Granderson hit a home run that tied the game, and the Tigers won in extra innings.^[17]
• On June 1, hits by Ivan Rodríguez and Magglio Ordóñez (and gum-chewing by Nate Robertson) set up Carlos Guillén's game-winning ("walk-off") single, completing a five-run comeback and defeating the Yankees.^[18]
• On June 18, Kenny Rogers won his 200th game, becoming only the 26th left-hander in baseball history to do so; Detroit hit eight home runs to set a club record.^[19]
• On June 27, Roger Clemens hurled a three-hitter, but Nate Robertson outpitched him and the Tigers won, 4–0.^[20]
• On July 11, the 2006 All-Star Game featured three Tigers—Rodríguez, Kenny Rogers and Ordóñez—for the first time since 1987. Rodríguez was voted as a starter, while Rogers was named the starting pitcher.^[21] The battery combination of Rogers and Rodríguez was the first time a Tigers pitcher threw to a Tigers catcher to start the Mid-Summer Classic since Denny McLain threw to Bill Freehan in 1966.
• On July 14, in a tie game, with two out and two on in the top of the ninth, reliever Todd Jones faced dangerous slugger Mark Teahen, who had already hit two home runs in the game. Jones threw Teahen every pitch he could, and Teahen repeatedly fouled each pitch off. Finally Jim Leyland walked to the mound—where he told Jones his visit was a ruse, designed to fool Teahen into thinking Jones would be throwing anything but a fastball. Leyland walked off the field, Jones threw a fastball, and Teahen swung and missed for strike three. Then, in the bottom of the ninth, Carlos Guillén hit the Tigers' first walk-off home run of the season for the victory. After the game, Jones said of Leyland's visit to the mound: "I thought, 'Wow, you're a really good manager.^[22]'"
• On July 19, Craig Monroe hit a grand slam in a Tigers victory over the Chicago White Sox.^[23]
• On July 20 (see above), the Tigers essentially beat the White Sox on a Marcus Thames slide into second. The slide broke up a seemingly sure double play, which allowed the winning run to score later that inning.^[24]
• On July 24, the Tigers became the first team since the 1891 St. Louis Cardinals to score 5 runs or more in the first inning in three consecutive games.^[25]
• On July 28, the Tigers weathered 12 strikeouts by rookie Twins phenom Francisco Liriano, and won another tight game with a 10th-inning single by Craig Monroe.^[26]
• On August 1, Carlos Guillén hit for the cycle, becoming the first Tiger since Damion Easley did it in 2001, and the third since 1950, to do so.^[27]
• On August 5, Iván Rodríguez hit a walk-off home run with two outs in the ninth inning to complete a comeback against the Cleveland Indians.^[28]
• On August 27, a 7–1 victory over the Cleveland Indians secured the Tigers an 82nd victory—and their first winning season since 1993.
• On August 30, with two outs in the top of the ninth, Craig Monroe hit a dramatic three-run home run, erasing a one-run deficit, stunning the crowd at Yankee Stadium, and giving the Tigers a 5–3 come-from-behind victory over the Yankees.^[29]
• On September 12, Craig Monroe tied a club record with three outfield assists, including throwing two runners out at the plate, and Carlos Guillén hit two home runs, one from each side of the plate, the second being a walk-off in the bottom of the ninth that won the game, 3–2, over the Texas Rangers.^[30]
• On September 23, the Tigers scored ten runs in the first inning in a 15–4 victory over the Kansas City Royals. The game marked Plácido Polanco's return from the disabled list; he had three hits.^[31]
• On September 24, the Tigers scored nine runs in the second inning en route to an 11–4 victory. The win secured their first playoff appearance since 1987.^[32]

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Roster

Game log

Batting

Note: Pos = Position, G = Games played, AB = At bats, H = Hits, Avg. = Batting average, HR = Home runs, RBI = Runs batted in

Note: Individual pitchers' batting statistics not included

Pitching

American League Division Series

The New York Yankees were heavy favorites over the Tigers to win the series because of their "modern-day Murderers' Row" lineup. All nine batters were current or former All-Stars. The Yankees won the first game, 8–4.

In Game 2, the Tigers took an early 1–0 lead before Johnny Damon hit a three-run homer for New York in the 4th inning. The Tigers came back with single runs in the 5th, 6th, and 7th, including a game-tying home run by Carlos Guillén and a go-ahead RBI triple by Curtis Granderson, to come from behind to win, 4–3.

In Game 3, which was the first postseason game played in Detroit since 1987 (and the first ever at Comerica Park), the Tigers shut out the Yankees, 6–0. Kenny Rogers pitched 7+2⁄3 scoreless innings and struck out eight in winning for the first time in his postseason career^[33] and defeated the Yankees for the first time since 1993.

In Game 4, the Tigers defeated the Yankees 8–3 to win the American League Division Series, 3 games to 1. Jeremy Bonderman threw a perfect game through five innings, and allowed just one run on five singles over his 8+1⁄3 innings in giving the Tigers a second straight dominating starting pitching performance. It gave the Tigers their first Postseason series victory since 1984

The final out kicked off a joyous celebration of players and fans throughout Comerica Park and Downtown Detroit. The celebration even included Kenny Rogers pouring champagne over a Detroit Police officer's head. In the process of winning the final three games, the Tigers held the fearsome Yankees lineup scoreless for 20+2⁄3 consecutive innings (from the 4th inning of Game 2 until the 7th inning of Game 4) while scoring 17 runs in that span.

American League Championship Series

The Tigers faced the Oakland Athletics, winners of the American League Western Division, marking their first postseason matchup since 1972.

The A's had defeated the Twins in a three-game sweep in the ALDS.

The Tigers won Game 1, 5–1, as Nate Robertson scattered six hits and three walks over his five shutout innings. In the fourth inning, with men on second and third and nobody out, Robertson memorably struck out the side to preserve his own victory.^[34]

Detroit won Game 2, 8–5. Oakland had an early two-run lead before the Tigers' four-run fourth inning gave them the lead for good. Seldom-used outfielder Alexis Gómez got the surprise start as the designated hitter. Gómez hit a homer and drove in four runs, providing another example of Jim Leyland pushing all the right buttons this season.^[35]

Returning to Comerica Park for Game 3, the Tigers shut out the A's, 3–0 behind Rogers who allowed only two singles and ran his scoreless streak to 15 innings. The A's did not get a hit off relievers Fernando Rodney and Todd Jones. The two hits were the fewest allowed in a postseason game in franchise history.^[36]

In Game 4, with Detroit looking for the sweep, Oakland jumped out to an early 3–0 lead. The Tigers fought back with two runs in the fifth inning, on RBI doubles by Granderson and Monroe, before Magglio Ordóñez tied it with a solo home run in the sixth.

In the bottom of the ninth with the game still tied, two outs and Polanco and Monroe on first and second base respectively, Ordóñez hit his second home run of the night, a three-run walk-off home run off of A's closer Huston Street that sent the Tigers to their first World Series since 1984. The Pennant was the 10th in Tigers history, and the ALCS was won on a walk-off home run for only the third time ever.^[37]

Both prior instances were by the Yankees: in 1976 when Chris Chambliss homered to defeat Kansas City and in 2003 when Aaron Boone hit a 10th inning home run to beat the Boston Red Sox.

World Series

Regardless of the outcome for the 2006 World Series, one manager would join Sparky Anderson as the only skippers in history to manage teams from both the AL and NL to a title. Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, who considers Anderson his mentor, won the 1989 World Series with the Athletics, while Tigers manager Jim Leyland had won the 1997 World Series with the Marlins.

The Cardinals won the first game of the World Series in Detroit 7–2, behind excellent pitching from unheralded Cardinals starter Anthony Reyes.

In Game Two, Kenny Rogers continued his astounding postseason, allowing two hits and no runs through eight innings, as the Tigers triumphed 3–1.

But the Tigers lost the next three games. They were shut out 5–0 in game three by Cardinals starter Chris Carpenter; they lost a 5–4 heartbreaker in game four; and in game 5, the Tigers committed two costly errors, lost a 2–1 lead, and fell 4–2. In the first inning rookie pitcher Justin Verlander threw two wild pitches, tying the Series record (AP); this was in sharp contrast to the five total that he had thrown in all of his previous games. Verlander would go on to commit a throwing error in the fourth inning, allowing the tying run to score.^[38]

In the series, the Tigers committed eight errors, five by the pitching staff alone, the most in World Series history.

The Tigers would not return to the postseason until 2011 and they would not appear in the Fall Classic again until 2012

Postseason player stats