Is Detroit Underachieving?

3 out of 4 from the Sawx. Everyone's gotta love that, right? Not exactly. There seems to be an undercurrent among fans that Detroit is underperforming expectations. Obviously, this is completely subjective, as some people expected a 105-57 season, while others would settle for a repeat of the 2012 regular season. Still, let's take a look and see if Detroit is "underachieving."

The Tigers, through 74 games, are 42-32. This correlates to a .568 winning percentage, or 92 wins over a season. Good, not great. That would rank behind only 2006 and 2011 in regular season wins since 1990. One could argue with a rotation that is historically great and a lethal lineup that this team should be better. Fair point. Will they be better from here on out?

First of all, let's look at the strength of schedule for the team. Through 74 games, Detroit has played a schedule with a winning percentage of .511, good for fifth-highest in baseball. That means they have played the meat of their schedule and come out looking like a solid playoff team. Kudos. (Side note: Lowest SOS in baseball: White Sox, who despite this have a .425 winning percentage and 18 games left against Detroit. LOL WHITE SOX.) 

In the remaining schedule, Detroit has these games to play:

-Anaheim (3)
-Tampa (3)
-Toronto (4)
-Cleveland (11)
-Chicago (18)
-Texas (3)
-Kansas City (14)
-Philadelphia (3)
-Washington (2)
-New York Yankees (3)
-Minnesota (6)
-New York Mets (3)
-Oakland (4)
-Boston (3)
-Seattle (4)
-Miami (3)

If a smart and bored blogger was to multiply those game totals by winning percentages, they'd find that the Tigers' second half SOS is .479. That's a difference of .032, or a win every thirty games. With a little under ninety games left, this means the Tigers pick up 3 wins on their pace by scheduling alone. Now we can chalk them up as a 95-win team.

There are other factors, too. The team plays a lot better with Austin Jackson back in the lineup. Justin Verlander is bound to turn it around at some point. Martinez/Dirks will hit, or Castellanos/Garcia will take their place. Dombrowski will make a deal at some point, and NO MORE PAPA GRANDE OMG.

All in all, this is a second half team that's looking good through the gauntlet. The Tigers are still on pace to win about 96 games this year. Don't call the season an underachievement just yet.