The Tigers can't seem to beat the A's.
Tigers' kryptonite is lousy AL West team after brutal sweep originally appeared on The Sporting News
The Detroit Tigers are one of the top teams in baseball this season, but there are still some periods where the team struggles. Across a 162-game season, it's not a surprise for a rough patch or two during the year.
But the Tigers' most recent rough patch is a four-game losing streak, which includes a sweep at the hands of the Athletics. But the Athletics' sweep of the Tigers isn't the only struggle the Tigers have had against them in recent history.
As JD Andress of Sports Illustrated highlighted, the Tigers' kryptonite in recent history has been the Athletics. Even with the directions of each organization going in opposite directions, the Tigers can't seem to beat the Athletics.
The Athletics are Detroit's Kryptonite
Since 2017, the Tigers have a poor 17-39 record against the Athletics. While Detroit wasn't great for a lot of that time, the Athletics weren't very good for a majority of those seasons either.
For Detroit to struggle so much against a team that normally sits at the bottom of the standings is a surprise. While they've beaten the Athletics five times in the last two years, overall, their record since 2017 is stunning.
The Tigers lost game one of the series against the Athletics 8-3, then 7-6 in game two, before getting shut out 7-0 in the series finale. Earlier in the year, when at home instead of in Sacramento, the Tigers went 2-1 against the Athletics.
Fortunately, the Tigers won't face the Athletics again this season. While the Tigers look to cement themselves atop the AL standings, the Athletics are wrapping up a season in which they've traded away Mason Miller and saw the emergence of Nick Kurtz as a superstar.
MORE: One Jack Flaherty statistic that should concern Tigers fans
The Athletics are still rebuilding, while the Tigers are in their window of contention. And yet, the Tigers can't seem to beat the Athletics.
Detroit will have to wait until 2026 to begin chipping away at the recent history between the two teams. While their first series was a good start, they still have a ways to go to get back to .500 against the Athletics since 2017.
This latest series was a bad one for Detroit, and while it put a brief pause to their postseason aspirations, the team is still in good shape to make a deep run. However, the sweep at the hands of the Athletics will never sit well, especially considering how much the Tigers have struggled against the Athletics over the last eight seasons.
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