# 2016 Detroit Tigers season

The 2016 Detroit Tigers season was the team's 116th season. The Tigers opened the season on the road against the Miami Marlins on April 5, and their home opener was on April 8 against the New York Yankees. The Tigers finished the season in second place in the American League Central division, with an 86–75 record. They had a chance for a Wild Card berth until the final day of the regular season, but their 1–0 loss to the Atlanta Braves and wins by the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays kept the team out of the playoffs for the second consecutive season. 2016 would be the last time the Tigers would have a winning season until the 2024 season.

## Roster moves
### Coaching staff

* On October 19, Jeff Jones announced his retirement, after spending the last five seasons as the Tigers pitching coach, and nine seasons on the Tigers' coaching staff. On October 29, Rich Dubee was hired as his successor.

### Signings

* On November 30, the Tigers signed pitcher Jordan Zimmermann to a five-year, $110 million contract.
* On December 6, the Tigers signed pitcher Mike Pelfrey to a two-year, $16 million contract.
* Also on December 6, the Tigers signed catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia to a one-year contract for the major league minimum salary. (The Miami Marlins were paying the bulk of Saltalamacchia's existing contract through the end of 2016.)
* On December 8, the Tigers signed pitcher Mark Lowe to a two-year, $11 million contract.
* On December 18, the Tigers signed utility player Mike Avilés to a one-year, $2 million contract.
* On January 13, the Tigers avoided arbitration with newly acquired pitcher Justin Wilson, agreeing on a one-year, $1.525 million contract.
* On January 14, the Tigers avoided arbitration with infielder Andrew Romine, agreeing on a one-year, $900,000 contract.
* On January 15, the Tigers avoided arbitration with shortstop José Iglesias, agreeing on a one-year, $2.1 million contract.
* On January 20, the Tigers signed outfielder Justin Upton to a six-year, $132.75 million contract.
* On February 8, the Tigers avoided arbitration with outfielder J. D. Martinez, agreeing on a two-year, $18.5 million contract extension.

### Releases

* On November 9, relief pitcher Guido Knudson was claimed off waivers by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
* On November 25, free agent catcher Alex Avila left the Tigers and signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Chicago White Sox.
* On December 2, the Tigers announced they would not tender contracts to relief pitchers Al Alburquerque and Neftalí Feliz, making them free agents. On January 6, Feliz signed a one-year, $3.9 million contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates. On January 19, Alburquerque signed a one-year, $1.1 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
* On December 17, free agent outfielder Rajai Davis left the Tigers and signed a one-year, $5.25 million contract with the Cleveland Indians.
* On March 17, free agent pitcher Alfredo Simón left the Tigers and signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Cincinnati Reds.

### Trades

* On November 18, the Tigers acquired closer Francisco Rodríguez from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for infielder Javier Betancourt and a player to be named later. The second player was revealed in December to be minor league catcher Manny Piña.
* On November 20, the Tigers traded relief pitchers Ian Krol and Gabe Speier to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for outfielder Cameron Maybin.
* On December 9, the Tigers traded pitchers Chad Green and Luis Cessa to the New York Yankees in exchange for pitcher Justin Wilson.
* On December 21, the Tigers traded pitcher Kyle Lobstein to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for cash considerations.
* On January 27, the Tigers traded infielder Jefry Marté to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in exchange for infielder Kody Eaves.
* On March 29, the Tigers traded catcher Bryan Holaday to the Texas Rangers in exchange for catcher Bobby Wilson and pitcher Myles Jaye.
* On May 3, the Tigers traded catcher Bobby Wilson to the Texas Rangers in exchange for pitcher Chad Bell.
* On June 7, the Tigers traded pitcher José Valdez to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in exchange for cash considerations.
* On August 16, the Tigers traded utility player Mike Avilés and catcher Kade Scivicque to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for shortstop Erick Aybar.

## Standings
### American League Central

vteAL Central :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Cleveland Indians | 94 | 67 | .584 | — | 53‍–‍28 | 41‍–‍39 |
| Detroit Tigers | 86 | 75 | .534 | 8 | 45‍–‍35 | 41‍–‍40 |
| Kansas City Royals | 81 | 81 | .500 | 13½ | 47‍–‍34 | 34‍–‍47 |
| Chicago White Sox | 78 | 84 | .481 | 16½ | 45‍–‍36 | 33‍–‍48 |
| Minnesota Twins | 59 | 103 | .364 | 35½ | 30‍–‍51 | 29‍–‍52 |

### American League Wild Card

vteDivision Leaders :
| Team | W | L | Pct. |
| Texas Rangers | 95 | 67 | .586 |
| Cleveland Indians | 94 | 67 | .584 |
| Boston Red Sox | 93 | 69 | .574 |
vteWild Card teams (Top 2 teams qualify for postseason) :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 89 | 73 | .549 | — |
| Baltimore Orioles | 89 | 73 | .549 | — |
| Detroit Tigers | 86 | 75 | .534 | 2½ |
| Seattle Mariners | 86 | 76 | .531 | 3 |
| New York Yankees | 84 | 78 | .519 | 5 |
| Houston Astros | 84 | 78 | .519 | 5 |
| Kansas City Royals | 81 | 81 | .500 | 8 |
| Chicago White Sox | 78 | 84 | .481 | 11 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 74 | 88 | .457 | 15 |
| Oakland Athletics | 69 | 93 | .426 | 20 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 68 | 94 | .420 | 21 |
| Minnesota Twins | 59 | 103 | .364 | 30 |

### Record vs. opponents

2016 American League recordvte Source: MLB Standings Grid - 2016 :
| Team | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | HOU | KC | LAA | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL |
| Baltimore | — | 8–11 | 4–3 | 5–1 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 5–1 | 10–9 | 3–4 | 1–6 | 13–6 | 3–4 | 9–10 | 14–6 |
| Boston | 11–8 | — | 3–4 | 4–2 | 2–5 | 5–2 | 2–4 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 11–8 | 5–1 | 4–3 | 12–7 | 3–3 | 9–10 | 14–6 |
| Chicago | 3–4 | 4–3 | — | 8–11 | 7–12 | 3–3 | 5–14 | 2–5 | 12–7 | 3–3 | 5–2 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 4–2 | 5–1 | 9–11 |
| Cleveland | 1–5 | 2–4 | 11–8 | — | 14–4 | 3–4 | 14–5 | 6–1 | 10–9 | 2–5 | 4–2 | 3–4 | 5–1 | 2–5 | 4–3 | 13–7 |
| Detroit | 2–5 | 5–2 | 12–7 | 4–14 | — | 4–2 | 7–12 | 2–4 | 15–4 | 3–3 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 6–1 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 13–7 |
| Houston | 6–1 | 2–5 | 3–3 | 4–3 | 2–4 | — | 3–4 | 13–6 | 5–2 | 2–4 | 13–6 | 11–8 | 3–3 | 4–15 | 2–5 | 11–9 |
| Kansas City | 2–4 | 4–2 | 14–5 | 5–14 | 12–7 | 4–3 | — | 1–5 | 15–4 | 2–5 | 1–6 | 3–4 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 2–4 | 10–10 |
| Los Angeles | 2–4 | 3–4 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 4–2 | 6–13 | 5–1 | — | 2–4 | 1–6 | 12–7 | 8–11 | 3–4 | 9–10 | 4–3 | 9–11 |
| Minnesota | 1–5 | 3–4 | 7–12 | 9–10 | 4–15 | 2–5 | 4–15 | 4–2 | — | 2–5 | 2–4 | 4–2 | 3–4 | 5–2 | 1–6 | 8–12 |
| New York | 9–10 | 8–11 | 3–3 | 5–2 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 5–2 | 6–1 | 5–2 | — | 4–3 | 3–3 | 11–8 | 3–4 | 7–12 | 8–12 |
| Oakland | 4–3 | 1–5 | 2–5 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 6–13 | 6–1 | 7–12 | 4–2 | 3–4 | — | 7–12 | 5–2 | 9–10 | 3–3 | 7–13 |
| Seattle | 6–1 | 3–4 | 3–4 | 4–3 | 3–4 | 8–11 | 4–3 | 11–8 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 12–7 | — | 4–2 | 7–12 | 3–3 | 13–7 |
| Tampa Bay | 6–13 | 7–12 | 3–4 | 1–5 | 1–6 | 3–3 | 2–5 | 4–3 | 4–3 | 8–11 | 2–5 | 2–4 | — | 4–2 | 11–8 | 10–10 |
| Texas | 4–3 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 5–2 | 4–2 | 15–4 | 6–1 | 10–9 | 2–5 | 4–3 | 10–9 | 12–7 | 2–4 | — | 3–4 | 13–7 |
| Toronto | 10–9 | 10–9 | 1–5 | 3–4 | 4–3 | 5–2 | 4–2 | 3–4 | 6–1 | 12–7 | 3–3 | 3–3 | 8–11 | 4–3 | — | 13–7 |

## Season highlights
### Team accomplishments

* On June 30, the Tigers erased a 7–2 deficit against the Tampa Bay Rays by scoring eight runs in the top of the ninth inning, winning the game 10–7. This marked the seventh time since 1913 that Detroit won a game after trailing by five or more runs entering the ninth inning. The eight runs were the most the Tigers have scored in the ninth inning since scoring 13 on August 8, 2001, at Texas.

### Individual accomplishments
#### Hitting

* On April 5, Justin Verlander became the first Tigers pitcher to record a hit on Opening Day since Mickey Lolich in 1971, and the first American League pitcher to do since Milwaukee's Bill Parsons and Oakland's Ken Holtzman both singled on April 15, 1972.
* On April 6, Víctor Martínez became the first player in modern Major League history to hit a pinch-hit home run in his team's first two regular-season games of the season, and the first player to do so since at least 1914.
* On April 13, Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit his 100th career home run, with a grand slam off Arquimedes Caminero of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
* On April 20, Víctor Martínez recorded his 1,000th career RBI, becoming just the fifth Venezuelan-born player in MLB history to reach the milestone.
* On June 12, Miguel Cabrera recorded his 2,400th career hit, becoming the fifth-youngest player in Major League history to reach the milestone, at 33 years, 55 days old.
* On June 16, Víctor Martínez hit three home runs in a single game, and became the first Tigers player to hit a home run from each side of the plate in the same game since Carlos Guillén in 2009.
* On July 3, Ian Kinsler hit his 200th career home run off Danny Farquhar of the Tampa Bay Rays. Kinsler became the third active Major League player, and the 40th overall, with 200 home runs, 1,000 runs scored, 1,600 hits and 200 stolen bases.
* On July 18, Justin Upton hit his 200th career home run off Ricky Nolasco of the Minnesota Twins.
* On July 22, Miguel Cabrera recorded his 1,500th career RBI, becoming the 56th player to reach the milestone.
* On September 5, Miguel Cabrera hit his 30th home run of the season and his 300th home run as a Detroit Tiger. He joins Al Kaline (399), Norm Cash (373) and Hank Greenberg (306) as the only four players to hit 300+ home runs in a Tiger uniform.
* On September 12, Ian Kinsler recorded his seventh lead-off home run of the season, tying the Tigers' franchise record set by Curtis Granderson. Kinsler broke the tie on September 30 with his eighth leadoff homer of the season. This home run also gave Kinsler 28 for the season, tying the franchise record for second basemen set by Lou Whitaker in 1989.
* On September 18, Miguel Cabrera recorded his 2,500th career hit. Cabrera became the 100th player in Major League history to reach the milestone, just the eighth player to do so by his age-33 season, and the youngest since Hank Aaron did so in 1967.
* Miguel Cabrera won his 7th career Silver Slugger Award.

#### Pitching

* On April 20, Jordan Zimmermann became the first pitcher in Tigers history to begin a season with three consecutive outings of six or more scoreless innings. His 19+1⁄3 consecutive shutout innings mark the longest streak to begin a Tigers tenure since Doug Bair threw 19+1⁄3 consecutive scoreless innings after a midseason trade from St. Louis in 1983.
* Jordan Zimmermann became the sixth pitcher to finish April with five-plus wins, zero losses and a sub-1.00 ERA. He joins Fernando Valenzuela (1981), Randy Johnson (2000), Cliff Lee (2008), Zack Greinke (2009), and Ubaldo Jiménez (2010). Zimmermann's 0.55 ERA is the third-best mark for April in Tigers history. He allowed just two earned runs in 33 innings pitched. The only two Detroit pitchers with better ERAs in April were Bernie Boland with a 0.30 ERA in 1915 and John Hiller with a 0.36 ERA in 1974. Zimmermann became the first Detroit pitcher to win each of his first five starts to a season since Frank Tanana in 1988. Zimmermann was named the American League Pitcher of the Month for April.
* On May 8, Justin Verlander recorded his 1,981st strikeout, surpassing Jack Morris for the second-most strikeouts among Tigers pitchers. Verlander only trails Mickey Lolich who had 2,679 strikeouts as a Tiger from 1963 to 1975.
* On May 18, Justin Verlander recorded his 2,000th career strikeout, becoming just the second Tigers pitcher to reach the milestone, following Mickey Lolich.
* On May 24, Francisco Rodríguez recorded his 400th career save, becoming just the sixth pitcher in MLB history to reach the milestone.
* On June 6, Michael Fulmer became the first pitcher in Tigers history to pitch three consecutive scoreless outings of six innings or more while allowing three or fewer hits.
* On June 12, Michael Fulmer became just the second pitcher in Major League history to pitch four consecutive scoreless outings of six innings or more while allowing three or fewer hits, following Jake Arrieta. Fulmer extended his scoreless streak to 28+1⁄3 innings, the second-longest streak in franchise history by a rookie, trailing only John Hiller's 28+2⁄3 scoreless innings in 1967.
* On June 17, Michael Fulmer's consecutive scoreless innings streak ended at 33+1⁄3 innings, a new Tigers rookie record. This was the longest consecutive scoreless innings streak by a rookie pitcher in baseball since Orel Hershiser threw 32 scoreless innings in 1984, and was just short of the all-time rookie record of 35 consecutive scoreless innings set by Fernando Valenzuela in 1981.
* Justin Verlander was named the American League Pitcher of the Month for July. Verlander was 4–0 with a 1.69 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP in six July starts, holding opposing hitters to a .171 average and striking out 48 batters in 42+2⁄3 innings.
* On September 5, Francisco Rodríguez recorded his 425th career save, passing John Franco for fourth place on the all-time saves list.
* Justin Verlander fanned 254 batters in 2016, leading the American League in strikeouts for the fourth time in his career.
* Michael Fulmer was awarded the AL Rookie of the Year Award.

#### Defensive

* On May 31, James McCann committed a throwing error, ending his Major League record of 139 games to start a career at catcher without committing an error.
* On November 8, Ian Kinsler was named the AL Gold Glove Award winner at second base. It was Kinsler's first career Gold Glove Award, and the first Gold Glove won by a Tiger infielder since fellow second baseman Plácido Polanco earned the honor in 2009.

#### Other

* With a game time temperature of 31 °F (−1 °C), the April 9 game in Detroit against the Yankees was the coldest ever at Comerica Park.

## Game log

Legend :
| Tigers win | Tigers loss | Game postponed |
2016 Game Log: 86–75 (Home: 45–35); Away: (41–40) :
April: 13–10 (Home: 5–6; Away: 8–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
1April 5@ Marlins8–7 (11)VerHagen (1–0)Breslow (0–1)Greene (1)36,9111–0W1
2April 6@ Marlins7–3Sánchez (1–0)Fernández (0–1)Rodríguez (1)17,8832–0W2
3April 8Yankees4–0Zimmermann (1–0)Severino (0–1)—45,0493–0W3
4April 9Yankees4–8Sabathia (1–0)Pelfrey (0–1)—32,4193–1L1
—April 10YankeesPostponed (inclement weather). Rescheduled to June 2.
5April 11Pirates4–7Niese (1–0)Verlander (0–1)Melancon (3)26,2713–2L2
6April 12Pirates8–2Sánchez (2–0)Nicasio (1–1)—26,4894–2W1
7April 13@ Pirates7–3Greene (1–0)Caminero (0–2)—21,1755–2W2
8April 14@ Pirates7–4Zimmermann (2–0)Cole (0–2)Rodríguez (2)18,7516–2W3
9April 15@ Astros0–1Keuchel (2–1)Pelfrey (0–2)Gregerson (3)30,0926–3L1
10April 16@ Astros5–3Verlander (1–1)McHugh (1–2)Rodríguez (3)30,0137–3W1
11April 17@ Astros4–5Fiers (1–1)Sánchez (2–1)Gregerson (4)30,6577–4L1
12April 19@ Royals6–8Ventura (1–0)Greene (1–1)Davis (6)26,8897–5L2
13April 20@ Royals3–2Zimmermann (3–0)Kennedy (2–1)Rodríguez (4)28,9288–5W1
14April 21@ Royals0–4Vólquez (3–0)Pelfrey (0–3)—30,7638–6L1
15April 22Indians1–2Tomlin (2–0)Verlander (1–2)Allen (5)25,0868–7L2
16April 23Indians1–10Kluber (1–3)Sánchez (2–2)—31,1638–8L3
17April 24Indians3–6Bauer (1–0)Greene (1–2)Allen (6)31,9478–9L4
18April 25Athletics7–3Zimmermann (4–0)Graveman (1–2)—21,6719–9W1
19April 26Athletics1–5Hill (3–2)Pelfrey (0–4)—22,2569–10L1
20April 27Athletics9–4Verlander (2–2)Gray (3–2—22,63610–10W1
21April 28Athletics7–3Sánchez (3–2)Bassitt (0–2)Rodríguez (5)26,20011–10W2
22April 29@ Twins9–2Fulmer (1–0)Hughes (1–4)—23,04912–10W3
23April 30@ Twins4–1Zimmermann (5–0)Duffey (0–1)Rodríguez (6)31,10913–10W4 :
May: 11–17 (Home: 7–5; Away: 4–12)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
24May 1@ Twins6–5Lowe (1–0)Pressly (1–2)Rodríguez (7)24,74914–10W5
25May 3@ Indians3–7Tomlin (4–0)Verlander (2–3)—11,02214–11L1
26May 4@ Indians0–4Kluber (2–3)Sánchez (3–3)—8,76614–12L2
27May 5@ Indians4–9Bauer (2–0)Fulmer (1–1)—10,35014–13L3
28May 6Rangers1–5Hamels (4–0)Zimmermann (5–1)—28,52214–14L4
29May 7Rangers5–10Ranaudo (1–0)Ryan (0–1)Tolleson (10)35,55114–15L5
30May 8Rangers3–8Wilhelmsen (2–2)Lowe (1–1)—35,40614–16L6
31May 9@ Nationals4–5Kelley (1–0)Lowe (1–2)—27,15314–17L7
32May 10@ Nationals5–4Fulmer (2–1)Ross (3–2)Rodríguez (8)24,47615–17W1
33May 11@ Nationals2–3Scherzer (4–2)Zimmermann (5–2)—35,69515–18L1
34May 12@ Orioles5–7Worley (2–0)J. Wilson (0–1)Britton (9)14,91815–19L2
35May 13@ Orioles0–1Tillman (5–1)Verlander (2–4)Britton (10)30,48815–20L3
36May 14@ Orioles3–9Wright (2–3)Sánchez (3–4)Brach (1)32,17415–21L4
37May 15@ Orioles6–5Saupold (1–0)O'Day (2–1)Rodríguez (9)37,89016–21W1
38May 16Twins10–8Zimmermann (6–2)Dean (0–1)Rodríguez (10)25,92517–21W2
39May 17Twins7–2Ryan (1–1)Tonkin (1–2)—27,65218–21W3
40May 18Twins6–3Verlander (3–4)Nolasco (1–2)Rodríguez (11)29,03519–21W4
41May 20Rays5–7Andriese (3–0)Sánchez (3–5)Colomé (11)30,30419–22L1
42May 21Rays5–4Fulmer (3–1)Smyly (2–5)Rodríguez (12)32,31620–22W1
43May 22Rays9–4Zimmermann (7–2)Archer (3–5)—34,75821–22W2
44May 23Phillies5–4J. Wilson (1–1)Murray (0–1)Rodríguez (13)26,40022–22W3
45May 24Phillies3–1Verlander (4–4)Hellickson (4–3)Rodríguez (14)26,53123–22W4
46May 25Phillies5–8Nola (4–3)Sánchez (3–6)Gómez (17)31,18723–23L1
47May 27@ Athletics4–1Fulmer (4–1)Manaea (1–3)—22,49824–23W1
48May 28@ Athletics3–12Hahn (2–2)Saupold (1–1)—24,15424–24L1
49May 29@ Athletics2–4Hill (8–3)Pelfrey (0–5)Doolittle (3)L2 20,52224–25L2
50May 30@ Angels1–5Chacín (1–1)Verlander (4–5)—38,54124–26L3
51May 31@ Angels9–11Street (2–0)Lowe (1–3)—35,12524–27L4 :
June: 17–11 (Home: 11–5; Away: 6–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
52June 1@ Angels3–0Fulmer (5–1)Shoemaker (3–6)Rodríguez (15)35,05325–27W1
53June 2Yankees4–5Betances (2–2)Boyd (0–1)Chapman (8)28,21325–28L1
54June 3White Sox10–3Zimmermann (8–2)Rodon (2–5)—31,18426–28W1
55June 4White Sox7–4Pelfrey (1–5)Sale (9–2)Rodríguez (16)32,91627–28W2
56June 5White Sox5–2Verlander (5–5)Quintana (5–6)Rodríguez (17)29,08628–28W3
57June 6Blue Jays11–0Fulmer (6–1)Happ (6–3)—29,77129–28W4
58June 7Blue Jays3–2 (10)J. Wilson (2–1)Biagini (3–2)—30,74530–28W5
59June 8Blue Jays2–7Dickey (4–6)Zimmermann (8–3)—36,03630–29L1
60June 10@ Yankees0–4Sabathia (4–4)Pelfrey (1–6)—40,01130–30L2
61June 11@ Yankees6–1Verlander (6–5)Tanaka (3–2)Rodríguez (18)38,05031–30W1
62June 12@ Yankees4–1Fulmer (7–1)Pineda (3–7)Rodríguez (19)47,47432–30W2
63June 13@ White Sox9–10 (12)Duke (1–0)Sánchez (3–7)—16,31432–31L1
64June 14@ White Sox11–8Zimmermann (9–3)González (1–2)—17,40333–31W1
65June 15@ White Sox3–5Sale (11–2)Pelfrey (1–7)Robertson (16)20,29233–32L1
66June 16@ Royals10–4Verlander (7–5)Hochevar (1–1)—33,56834–32W1
67June 17@ Royals3–10Ventura (6–4)Fulmer (7–2)—37,74634–33L1
68June 18@ Royals5–16Vólquez (7–6)Boyd (0–2)—38,48034–34L2
69June 19@ Royals1–2 (13)Wang (4–0)Ryan (1–2)—34,65934–35L3
70June 20Mariners8–7 (12)Sánchez (4–7)Nuño (0–1)—27,67035–35W1
71June 21Mariners4–2Rondón (1–0)Paxton (1–3)Rodríguez (20)30,15036–35W2
72June 22Mariners5–1Ryan (2–2)Iwakuma (6–6)—31,49737–35W3
73June 23Mariners5–4 (10)Ryan (3–2)Cishek (2–4)—35,76738–35W4
74June 24Indians5–7Salazar (9–3)Zimmermann (9–4)—37,88638–36L1
75June 25Indians0–6Carrasco (3–2)Sánchez (4–8)—39,02838–37L2
76June 26Indians3–9Tomlin (9–1)Verlander (7–6)—36,50238–38L3
77June 28Marlins7–5Pelfrey (2–7)Conley (4–5)Rodríguez (21)30,80839–38W1
78June 29Marlins10–3Norris (1–0)Koehler (6–7)—31,76040–38W2
79June 30@ Rays10–7Sánchez (5–8)Ramírez (7–7)Rodríguez (22)10,72941–38W3 :
July: 16–10 (Home: 6–3; Away: 10–7)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
80July 1@ Rays10–2Fulmer (8–2)Smyly (2–9)—13,53742–38W4
81July 2@ Rays3–2Verlander (8–6)Snell (1–3)Rodríguez (23)17,86143–38W5
82July 3@ Rays5–1Rondón (2–0)Andriese (6–2)—13,12644–38W6
83July 4@ Indians3–5Manship (1–1)Rondón (2–1)Allen (18)34,16344–39L1
84July 5@ Indians1–12Carrasco (5–2)Sánchez (5–9)—19,44844–40L2
85July 6@ Indians12–2Fulmer (9–2)Tomlin (9–2)—24,09845–40W1
86July 7@ Blue Jays4–5Grilli (2–0)J. Wilson (2–2)Osuna (18)46,28345–41L1
87July 8@ Blue Jays0–6Happ (12–3)Pelfrey (2–8)—43,22845–42L2
88July 9@ Blue Jays3–2Rondón (3–1)Grilli (2–1)Rodríguez (24)47,68446–42W1
89July 10@ Blue Jays1–6Dickey (7–9)Sánchez (5–10)—47,74746–43L1
2016 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
90July 15Royals4–2Verlander (9–6)Hochevar (1–2)Rodríguez (25)37,44747–43W1
91July 16Royals4–8Duffy (5–1)Pelfrey (2–9)—39,59447–44L1
92July 17Royals4–2Rodríguez (1–0)Soria (3–4)—37,36348–44W1
93July 18Twins1–0Boyd (1–2)Nolasco (4–8)Rodríguez (26)29,29049–44W2
94July 19Twins2–6Milone (3–2)Sánchez (5–11)—32,03049–45L1
95July 20Twins1–4Pressly (3–5)Rodríguez (1–1)Kintzler (6)35,02049–46L2
96July 21@ White Sox2–1 (7)Pelfrey (3–9)Shields (2–5)Greene (2)24,93850–46W1
97July 22@ White Sox7–5Ryan (4–2)Fulmer (0–1)Rodríguez (27)22,61151–46W2
98July 24@ White Sox3–4Robertson (1–2)J. Wilson (2–3)—32,52751–47L1
99July 24@ White Sox4–5Robertson (2–2)Rondón (3–2)—30,28151–48L2
100July 25@ Red Sox4–2Verlander (10–6)Pomeranz (0–1)Rodríguez (28)37,47952–48W1
101July 26@ Red Sox9–8A. Wilson (1–0)Ross (1–2)Rodríguez (29)38,37853–48W2
102July 27@ Red Sox4–3Rondón (4–2)Ziegler (0–1)J. Wilson (1)37,84254–48W3
103July 29Astros14–6Boyd (2–2)McHugh (7–7)—31,77155–48W4
104July 30Astros3–2Verlander (11–6)Harris (1–2)—34,67356–48W5
105July 31Astros11–0Pelfrey (4–9)Keuchel (6–11)—31,04557–48W6 :
August: 15–13 (Home: 10–9; Away: 5–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
106August 2White Sox11–5Sánchez (6–11)Shields (3–6)—30,31658–48W7
107August 3White Sox2–1Greene (2–2)Sale (14–5)Rodríguez (30)32,52659–48W8
108August 4White Sox3–6Quintana (9–8)Zimmermann (9–5)Robertson (26)33,02359–49L1
109August 5Mets4–3Verlander (12–6)Syndergaard (9–6)Rodríguez (31)33,03260–49W1
110August 6Mets6–5Boyd (3–2)Verrett (3–7)Rodríguez (32)41,05361–49W2
111August 7Mets1–3Reed (3–2)Rodríguez (1–2)Familia (39)32,07461–50L1
112August 8@ Mariners0–3Iwakuma (13–7)Fulmer (9–3)Diaz (5)20,00261–51L2
113August 9@ Mariners5–6 (15)Miranda (1–0)Rodríguez (1–3)—19,71361–52L3
114August 10@ Mariners1–3Caminero (1–0)J. Wilson (2–4)Vincent (2)28,74261–53L4
115August 12@ Rangers5–8Darvish (3–3)Sánchez (6–12)Dyson (26)31,19061–54L5
116August 13@ Rangers2–0Boyd (4–2)Hamels (12–4)Rodríguez (33)37,79262–54W1
117August 14@ Rangers7–0Fulmer (10–3)Griffin (5–2)—35,45863–54W2
118August 15Royals1–3Kennedy (7–9)Norris (1–1)Herrera (5)29,80363–55L1
119August 16Royals1–6Duffy (10–1)Verlander (12–7)—28,66363–56L2
120August 17Royals1–4Strahm (1–0)Greene (2–3)Herrera (6)28,79063–57L3
121August 18Red Sox4–3J. Wilson (3–4)Tazawa (2–2)Rodríguez (34)34,64964–57W1
122August 19Red Sox2–10Porcello (17–3)Fulmer (10–4)—36,10864–58L1
123August 20Red Sox2–3Pomeranz (2–2)Norris (1–2)Kimbrel (22)37,88664–59L2
124August 21Red Sox10–5Verlander (13–7)Owens (0–1)—31,03265–59W1
125August 23@ Twins8–3Sánchez (7–12)Gibson (5–8)—24,37966–59W2
126August 24@ Twins9–4Boyd (5–2)Duffey (8–10)—24,30967–59W3
127August 25@ Twins8–5Norris (2–2)Berríos (2–4)Rodríguez (35)26,43768–59W4
128August 26Angels4–2Verlander (14–7)Nolasco (4–12)Rodríguez (36)31,35769–59W5
129August 27Angels2–3Chacín (4–6)Fulmer (10–5)Salas (5)33,11569–60L1
130August 28Angels0–5Skaggs (2–3)Sánchez (7–13)—28,22069–61L2
131August 29White Sox4–3J. Wilson (4–4)Jones (5–3)Rodríguez (37)27,20170–61W1
132August 30White Sox8–4Rondón (5–2)Albers (2–6)—27,12171–61W2
133August 31White Sox4–3Rodríguez (2–3)Robertson (4–3)—32,46572–61W3 :
September: 14–12 (Home: 6–7; Away: 8–5)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
134September 2@ Royals7–6Rodríguez (3–3)Davis (1–1)—25,00873–61W4
135September 3@ Royals2–5Ventura (10–9)Fulmer (10–6)Davis (22)39,75773–62L1
136September 4@ Royals6–5Greene (3–3)Soria (4–7)Rodríguez (38)34,61674–62W1
137September 5@ White Sox5–3 (11)A. Wilson (2–0)Beck (1–1)Rodríguez (39)18,65375–62W2
138September 6@ White Sox0–2González (3–6)Boyd (5–3)Robertson (34)15,15575–63L1
139September 7@ White Sox4–7Beck (2–1)Greene (3–4)Robertson (35)13,07875–64L2
140September 9Orioles4–3A. Wilson (3–0)Brach (8–3)Rodríguez (40)32,14076–64W1
141September 10Orioles3–11Jiménez (7–11)Zimmermann (9–6)—36,63476–65L1
142September 11Orioles1–3Tillman (16–5)Verlander (14–8)Britton (41)33,06976–66L2
143September 12Twins4–2Greene (4–4)Wimmers (1–2)Rodríguez (41)28,09377–66W1
144September 13Twins1–8Gibson (6–9)Boyd (5–4)—26,39377–67L1
145September 14Twins9–6Greene (5–4)Pressly (6–7)Rodríguez (42)27,95378–67W1
146September 15Twins1–5Santiago (12–8)Pelfrey (4–10)—26,93278–68L1
147September 16@ Indians4–11Kluber (17–9)Fulmer (10–7)—29,13778–69L2
148September 17@ Indians0–1 (10)Miller (8–1)J. Wilson (4–5)—26,65478–70L3
149September 18@ Indians9–5Norris (3–2)Bauer (11–8)Rodríguez (43)21,38279–70W1
150September 20@ Twins8–1Boyd (6–4)Santiago (12–9)—23,39580–70W2
—September 21@ TwinsPostponed (rain). Rescheduled to September 22.
151September 22@ Twins9–2A. Wilson (4–0)Wimmers (1–3)—18,37481–70W3
152September 22@ Twins4–2Verlander (15–8)Santana (7–11)Rodríguez (44)21,59982–70W4
153September 23Royals8–3Fulmer (11–7)Duffy (12–3)—29,48083–70W5
154September 24Royals4–7Davis (2–1)Rodríguez (3–4)Herrera (12)31,72183–71L1
155September 25Royals9–12Gee (8–9)Boyd (6–5)Davis (26)33,37583–72L2
156September 26Indians4–7Miller (10–1)Farmer (0–1)Allen (30)24,98483–73L3
157September 27Indians12–0Verlander (16–8)Clevinger (2–3)—25,69684–73W1
158September 28Indians6–3 (5)Hardy (1–0)Colón (1–3)—26,93485–73W2
—September 29IndiansCancelled (rain). Due to the Tigers being eliminated from playoff contention.
159September 30@ Braves6–2Norris (4–2)Wisler (7–13)—41,50086–73W3 :
October: 0–2 (Home: 0–0; Away: 0–2)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
160October 1@ Braves3–5Blair (2–7)Zimmermann (9–7)Johnson (19)40,12486–74L1
161October 2@ Braves0–1Teherán (7–10)Verlander (16–9)Johnson (20)51,22086–75L2 :

## Roster
### Player stats
#### Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases
| Player | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | AVG | SB |
| Mike Avilés+ | 68 | 167 | 17 | 35 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 6 | .210 | 2 |
| Erick Aybar+ | 29 | 80 | 7 | 20 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 8 | .250 | 0 |
| Miguel Cabrera | 158 | 595 | 92 | 188 | 31 | 1 | 38 | 108 | .316 | 0 |
| Nick Castellanos | 110 | 411 | 54 | 117 | 25 | 4 | 18 | 58 | .285 | 1 |
| Tyler Collins | 56 | 136 | 14 | 32 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 15 | .235 | 1 |
| Anthony Gose | 30 | 91 | 11 | 19 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | .209 | 0 |
| John Hicks | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .500 | 0 |
| José Iglesias | 137 | 467 | 57 | 119 | 26 | 0 | 4 | 32 | .255 | 7 |
| JaCoby Jones | 13 | 28 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .214 | 0 |
| Ian Kinsler | 153 | 618 | 117 | 178 | 29 | 4 | 28 | 83 | .288 | 14 |
| Dixon Machado | 8 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .100 | 0 |
| J. D. Martinez | 120 | 460 | 69 | 141 | 35 | 2 | 22 | 68 | .307 | 1 |
| Víctor Martínez | 154 | 553 | 65 | 160 | 22 | 0 | 27 | 86 | .289 | 0 |
| Cameron Maybin | 94 | 349 | 65 | 110 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 43 | .315 | 15 |
| James McCann | 105 | 344 | 31 | 76 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 48 | .221 | 0 |
| Casey McGehee | 30 | 92 | 4 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .228 | 0 |
| Steven Moya | 31 | 94 | 9 | 24 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 11 | .255 | 0 |
| Alex Presley+ | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .200 | 0 |
| Andrew Romine | 108 | 174 | 21 | 41 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 16 | .236 | 8 |
| Jarrod Saltalamacchia | 92 | 246 | 30 | 42 | 5 | 1 | 12 | 38 | .171 | 0 |
| Justin Upton | 153 | 570 | 81 | 140 | 28 | 2 | 31 | 87 | .246 | 9 |
| Bobby Wilson+ | 5 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .154 | 0 |
| Pitcher Totals | 161 | 21 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .095 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 161 | 5526 | 750 | 1476 | 252 | 30 | 211 | 719 | .267 | 58 |
+Totals with Tigers only.

#### Pitching

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts

#### Starters

| Player | W | L | ERA | G | GS | SV | IP | R | ER | BB | K |
| Matt Boyd | 6 | 5 | 4.53 | 20 | 18 | 0 | 97+1⁄3 | 51 | 49 | 29 | 82 |
| Michael Fulmer | 11 | 7 | 3.06 | 26 | 26 | 0 | 159 | 57 | 54 | 42 | 132 |
| Daniel Norris | 4 | 2 | 3.38 | 14 | 13 | 0 | 69+1⁄3 | 30 | 26 | 22 | 71 |
| Mike Pelfrey | 4 | 10 | 5.07 | 24 | 22 | 0 | 119 | 76 | 67 | 46 | 56 |
| Aníbal Sánchez | 7 | 13 | 5.87 | 35 | 26 | 0 | 153+1⁄3 | 108 | 100 | 53 | 135 |
| Justin Verlander | 16 | 9 | 3.04 | 34 | 34 | 0 | 227+2⁄3 | 81 | 77 | 57 | 254 |
| Jordan Zimmermann | 9 | 7 | 4.87 | 19 | 18 | 0 | 105+1⁄3 | 63 | 57 | 26 | 66 |

#### Bullpen

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts
| Player | W | L | ERA | G | GS | SV | IP | R | ER | BB | K |
| Buck Farmer | 0 | 1 | 4.60 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 29+1⁄3 | 15 | 15 | 20 | 27 |
| Shane Greene | 5 | 4 | 5.82 | 50 | 3 | 2 | 60+1⁄3 | 39 | 39 | 22 | 59 |
| Blaine Hardy | 1 | 0 | 3.51 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 25+2⁄3 | 11 | 10 | 12 | 20 |
| Logan Kensing | 0 | 0 | 1.93 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4+2⁄3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Mark Lowe | 1 | 3 | 7.11 | 54 | 0 | 0 | 49+1⁄3 | 41 | 39 | 21 | 49 |
| Joe Mantiply | 0 | 0 | 16.88 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2+2⁄3 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| Dustin Molleken | 0 | 0 | 4.32 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8+1⁄3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 8 |
| Bobby Parnell | 0 | 0 | 6.75 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 5+1⁄3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Francisco Rodríguez | 3 | 4 | 3.24 | 61 | 0 | 44 | 58+1⁄3 | 24 | 21 | 21 | 52 |
| Andrew Romine | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2⁄3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Bruce Rondón | 5 | 2 | 2.97 | 37 | 0 | 0 | 36+1⁄3 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 45 |
| Kyle Ryan | 4 | 2 | 3.07 | 56 | 0 | 0 | 55+2⁄3 | 21 | 19 | 15 | 35 |
| Warwick Saupold | 1 | 1 | 7.45 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 9+2⁄3 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 10 |
| Drew VerHagen | 1 | 0 | 7.11 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 15 | 15 | 7 | 10 |
| Alex Wilson | 4 | 0 | 2.96 | 62 | 0 | 0 | 73 | 26 | 24 | 21 | 49 |
| Justin Wilson | 4 | 5 | 4.14 | 66 | 0 | 0 | 58+2⁄3 | 29 | 27 | 17 | 65 |
| Team Pitching Totals | 86 | 75 | 4.24 | 161 | 161 | 47 | 1428 | 721 | 672 | 462 | 1232 |

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Toledo Mud Hens | International League | Lloyd McClendon |
| AA | Erie SeaWolves | Eastern League | Lance Parrish |
| A-Advanced | Lakeland Flying Tigers | Florida State League | Dave Huppert |
| A | West Michigan Whitecaps | Midwest League | Andrew Graham |
| A-Short Season | Connecticut Tigers | New York–Penn League | Mike Rabelo |
| Rookie | GCL Tigers East | Gulf Coast League | Rafael Gil |
| Rookie | GCL Tigers West | Gulf Coast League | Rafael Martínez |