Avila On AL Central Race, Tigers-Royals Series: 'The Best Team Will Come Out'
By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak
COMERICA PARK (CBS DETROIT) - Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus stated the obvious when he called the team's upcoming series against the first-place Kansas City Royals the biggest of the season to date.
"It's huge," outfielder Torii Hunter said. "[The Royals are] playing really good baseball, I think they shut out the Yankees again today, so they're playing good ball. They're coming in hot, and we're coming in off a win, so it's going to be some good baseball. I just hope the fans come out, give us that energy that we need. We get that adrenaline from that. It'll be a lot of fun if we get those fans to come out."
The Royals have not made the playoffs since 1985, before many of the players on current major league rosters were born, and Kansas City has reeled off wins at such a dramatic pace during the second half of the season that many believed it would be just a matter of time before the Royals cooled off.
Hunter has not been shocked by Kansas City sticking around, however.
"They don't surprise me anymore," Hunter said. "Early, maybe, in May and June, playing well, but right now, they're doing what they're capable of doing. These guys have been around for three or four years now, and it's about that time for those guys to start winning because they're actually a pretty athletic team. You talk about a Gold Glover at short, one at first, one in left, these guys, a Gold Glover at third with [Mike] Moustakas, great bullpen, probably one of the best in the game, so they're playing pretty well, so it's not a surprise to anybody."
Tigers catcher Alex Avila talked more about the Kansas City pitching, which has been impressive throughout games but particularly at the end of games with shutdown relievers in Wade Davis (0.71 ERA) and Greg Holland (1.60 ERA).
"They've always had great pitching," Avila said. "Their bullpen is the best in baseball. Their starters are pitching really well, going deep in games, and they're getting timely hits. I've said that a million times since I've been here - you do those three things, you pitch, you play defense, you get timely hits, you'll win."
Over the 13 games the Tigers and Royals have already played each other this season, Detroit has a 9-4 edge, but Avila said the Tigers do not take any confidence from that earlier success.
"It doesn't matter in September," Avila said.
As the Royals have run wild in the second half, the Tigers have been largely powerless to stop them, only in control of winning their own games. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, Detroit has a chance to do both, and whether they do will ultimately make all the difference.
"That's what I said it was going to come down to anyways, whether we're in first place or they're in first place," Avila said. "At any point in the season, when people would ask me about the Royals or the Indians or anybody else, it's just a matter of us playing each other at the end of the season. It was going to be close, and the best team will come out."
