Pistons, Tigers take the baton in Detroit’s pro sports renaissance

With the Lions, Tigers and Pistons — oh my — the Motor City finally has some winners to cheer for in the pro leagues.

“There’s definitely a buzz,” suddenly slugging first baseman Spencer Torkelson said Thursday after Detroit beat the San Diego Padres 6-0 to win a three-game series. “Winning is contagious, just like hitting is contagious.

“When you see another team in the city doing well and grinding and showing heart and working their butt off to obtain success, that motivates you even more to get the job done because you see how well this city rallies behind guys and teams.”

The Red Wings, historically the most successful franchise in Michigan, are mired in a franchise-record, nine-year playoff drought.

That fact is not spoiling the party this spring in the Motor City.

The Cade Cunningham-led Pistons will host the New York Knicks in Game 3 of their first-round series that is tied at one game apiece on Thursday night, when Little Caesars Arena will be the home of a playoff game for the first time since it opened in 2017.

“Last time I was in the playoffs with Detroit, we were in Auburn Hills,” said forward Tobias Harris, who was drafted by the Pistons in 2011 and chose to return as a free agent last summer in one of the pivotal moments of the team’s unprecedented turnaround.

Before beating the Knicks in Game 1 and ending a league-record, 15-game playoff losing streak, the Pistons had not won a postseason game since the 2008 Eastern Conference finals at the Palace of Auburn Hills, where the franchise won NBA championships in 2004, 1990 and 1989.

The Lions, a league laughingstock for generations, won a franchise-record 15 games last season one year after earning two playoff victories in one postseason for the first time since winning the 1957 NFL title. A year ago, Detroit drew the largest crowd to attend the NFL draft.

The Tigers closed last season with a 31-13 surge to end a decade-long postseason drought and won a series in the playoffs for the first time since 2013.

Picking up where they left off last year, the Tigers are leading the AL Central with a 15-10 record.

The Tigers have the day off Thursday and manager A.J. Hinch, American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal along with Torkelson said they plan to be in the Little Caesars Arena crowd with most of the team for Game 3.

“I love where Detroit sports is at,” Hinch said. “It’s a blast being a part of a number of teams who are bringing thrilling sports moments to this city. The city deserves it. The fan base deserves it.

“These experiences stand out, especially here in Detroit because of how cool a sports town this is.”

When people tune in to watch Games 3 and 4 or visit, they will see a city on the rise.

There are new hotels, high-end restaurants and bars along with a skyscraper that is nearing completion. The long-abandoned Michigan Central Station has undergone a renovation to transform the 18-story, 113-year-old train depot from an eyesore into a gem.

And now, the Pistons are part of the feel-good story.

“The way this city is reacting, it means a lot because all the stuff we do for the community is so much better when you win,” Pistons owner Tom Gores said. “It just really means a lot to see it all — kids, grown adults getting excited.

“We represent a comeback.”

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Follow Larry Lage at https://apnews.com/author/larry-lage

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