The Tigers came out a little flat as they kicked off their final regular season home series with a loss.  The hitters were held to just six hits and it was Norm Cash who provided the bulk of the offense.  He finished two for four and he drove in the lone run with his 25th homer of the season.

Joe Sparma pitched just three innings and he gave up a run on two hits with four strikeouts.  Pat Dobson took the loss when he gave up a pair of runs in the seventh inning.  That dropped his record to 5-7 on the season.

The Tigers tied their franchise record in wins with 101st and they did it with their eleventh straight victory.  Mickey Stanley went three for five with a run while Al Kaline went two for five with an RBI.

Earl Wilson didn’t get the decision with a five inning start.  He gave up two runs on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts.  Joe Sparma pitched the final four innings and he gave up one run on four hits and two walks with two strikeouts and he improved to 10-10.

The Tigers clinched their first American League pennant since 1945 with their eighth straight win.  Joe Sparma got it done in a pitcher’s duel in another September complete game and he gave up one run on five hits and one walk with two strikeouts.  The win improved his record to 9-10 on the season.

Don Wert had the big hit with an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth.  Bill Freehan went two for three with a run while Norm Cash went two for three.

The Tigers won their rubber game with the Indians behind a combined shutout by Joe Sparma and Mickey Lolich.  Sparma got into trouble and in the fourth inning and he pitched  3 1/3 shutout innings when Mickey Lolich came in to get the Tigers out of said jam.  He then went on to throw 5 2/3 shutout innings and he improved to 11-7 on the season.

Bill Freehan belted a solo homer, his eighteenth of the season.  Norm Cash went two for four with a triple and an RBI.

Bill Freehan led the Tigers offensive attack as the Tigers edged the Twins in the opener of a road series for Detroit.  Freehan went two for four with a double, three RBIs and a run.  Mickey Stanley went one for three with a walk and a run.

Joe Sparma and Mickey Lolich were both shelled in the early of innings of this game.  Don McMahon saved the day though and he threw four innings of shutout relief to improve to 3-1 while Daryl Patterson struck out the final batter of the game to pick up his fifth save of the season.

The Tigers suffered their second straight defeat as Joe Sparma was roughed up by the Yankees offense.  Sparma gave up five runs on nine hits and a walk with seven strikeouts in just five innings of work.

Norm Cash hit his fourteenth homer of the season, a solo homer in the seventh inning.  Jim Northrup tripled and he drove in the other Tigers run.

Joe Sparma had a career day on the mound as he held the Senators to just a single hit.  He did give up an unearned and he walked six with five strikeouts and the win pushed his record to 8-9.

Jim Northrup provided the bulk of the Tigers offense with a pair of homers.  The two blasts brought his season total up to 15 and he drove in three of the Tigers four runs.

The Tiger continued their struggles out west despite the change of scenery as they dropped their opener to the Athletics by a single run.  All of the scoring in this one came in the first two innings.  Willie Horton hit his 23rd homer of the Tigers and Joe Sparma singled and drove in a run in his lone at bat.

Speaking of Sparma, he had a tough outing.  He gave up three runs on five hits with two strikeouts and he only pitched into the second inning.  Jon Warden was exceptional and he threw five innings of shutout relief but the Tigers hitters could never quite get it going to mount a comeback.

The Tigers lost a tough one as they blew a three run eighth inning lead then lost it in the fourteenth inning.  Joe Sparma gave up two runs in six innings in a solid start but it was John Hiller and Fred Lasher who combined to give up the three runs in the eighth.  Then in the fourteenth, after the Tigers had scored a run in the top of the inning, Dennis Ribant and John Wyatt combined to give up a pair of runs on back to back bases loaded walks to lose it.

Mickey Stanley and Willie Horton both went yard in the loss.  For Horton, it was his 22nd of the season and Stanley belted his eighth.  Dick McAuliffe went two for seven with a double, a run and an RBI.

The Tigers five game winning streak came to an abrupt end as Tommy John shut out the Tigers and Joe Sparma and the Tigers pen were pummelled for twelve runs.  Sparma fell to 6-8 and he gave up six runs in 2 2/3 innings and all four relievers used in the contest gave up at least a run each.

The Tigers scattered five singles and all five were by different hitters.  Nobody drew a walk and even one of those baserunners was negated when Mickey Stanley grounded into a double play.

The Tigers suffered their third straight loss and their second straight shutout at the hands of the Indians.  This time, the offense was held to just three hits, two of which were by Don Wert.  He singled and doubled while Tom Matchick had the only other hit with a single.

John Hiller was roughed up and he gave up three runs while he pitched just 1/3 of an inning.  Dennis Ribant did a fine job in relief and he pitched 6 2/3 shutout innings and he also got the Tigers out of their first inning jam, but it wasn’t enough as the hitters could never get going.

June 23, 1968 at Cleveland Stadium
Tigers 4, Indians 1 (44-26)

The Tigers snapped their three game losing streak behind a solid outing by Joe Sparma.  He gave up one run on six hits and four walks with five strikeouts in seven innings.  Pat Dobson threw two no-hit innings to close out the game and he picked up his third save of the season.

Dick Tracewski had a big day at the plate in the win. He went two for five and his three run homer was the difference.  Dick McAuliffe had a pinch hit, RBI single and he later drew a walk.

Joe Sparma took it on the chin again and he fell to 5-7 with a subpar outing.  He gave up five runs on eight hits and four walks with eight strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings.  Daryl Patterson gave up three runs in his 2/3 of an inning, but all three were unearned because Patterson himself made an error in the inning.

Wille Horton and Norm Cash both hit solo homers in the loss.  For Horton, it was his 18th of the season and Dick McAuliffe went one for two with three walks and two runs.

Joe Sparma had a rough outing and he fell to 5-6 as the Tigers five game winning streak came to an end.  He gave up five runs on five hits and three walks with a strikeout in four innings of work.

Bill Freehan went four for five with a solo homer.  Dick McAuliffe and Willie Horton both went yard with solo shots.  For Horton, it was his 17th of the season.

Pat Dobson outdueled Dean Chance as the Tigers took the first game of a series opening doubleheader that saw an over an hour rain delay in the second inning.  Dobson improved to 2-0 and he gave up one run on five hits and five walks with ten strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings. Daryl Patterson gave up a hit in the final 1 1/3 innings and he picked up his second save of the season.

Backup catcher Jim Price was the hitting star in this one and he played a role in all three Tigers runs.  He went two for three with a double, two RBIs and a run.

June 11, 1968 at Tiger Stadium
Tigers 3, Twins 2 (37-20)

The Tigers came from behind to finish their doubleheader sweep over the Twins.  Norm Cash singled home Mickey Stanley in the bottom of the eighth inning to tie it 2-2 and then Tom Matchick scored on a fielders choice by Mickey Stanley in the bottom of the ninth for the game winner.  Stanley finished the game three for five with two runs while Norm Cash singled, doubled and drove in the eighth inning run.

Joe Sparma pitched seven solid innings but he wasn’t given the decision.  He gave up two runs (one earned) on four hits and walk with five strikeouts.  John Hiller improved to 4-1 with two perfect innings to close out the game.

The Tigers took the rubber game in their five game series with the Red Sox in a game that saw all eight runs come in the first three innings.  The Tigers jumped out to a two run lead in the top of the first, lost the lead in the bottom half of the inning when the Red Sox scored three and then retook the lead for good with three in the third.

All five Tiger runs came via the longball.  Jim Northrup put the Tigers on the board with a two run shot in the first while Norm Cash hit the game winner with a three run blast in the third.

Joe Sparma evened out his record at 5-5.  He gave up three runs on seven hits and two walks with a strikeout and he came an out short of a complete game.  Fred Lasher got the final out and he picked up his fifth save of the season.

The Tigers almost came back in this one but they fell a run short in their opener against the Red Sox.  Dick McAuliffe had a fantastic game and he went three for four with a homerun and two runs while Jim Northrup went three for five with a pair of RBIs.

Joe Sparma was crusing in this one until he reached the fifth inning.  He gave up all four runs in the frame and he fell to 4-5 on the season.

Bill Freehan had a big day at the plate as the Tigers won their third straight game against the Angels.  He went three for three with two walks, a homerun, two RBIs and three runs.  Jim Northrup drove in three runs on two hits while Dick McAuliffe went two for four with a walk and two runs.

Joe Sparma evened his record to 4-4 on the season.  He gave up three runs on seven hits and three walks with three strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings.  Fred Lasher pitched 1 2/3 innings of shutout ball to close out the game and he picked up his fourth save of the season.

The Tigers lost a bizare one as Joe Sparma was pummelled for six runs total in the second, third and fourth innings.  The Tigers then scored two in the fifth and four in the sixth to tie it before the game settled down and the final three regulation innings were scoreless on both sides.  Then John Hiller was touched up for a run in the bottom of the tenth as the Tigers dropped their fourth game in their last five.

Mickey Stanley had a nice day at the plate.  He went two for five with a triple, an RBI and two runs.  Don Wert singled, doubled and scored a run in the loss.

The Tigers three game winning streak came to an end with a pretty pathetic day at the plate.  Tigers’ hitters managed just four hits and their lone run of the game came in the second inning when Bill Freehan singled home Willie Horton.

A solid start by Joe Sparma went to waste.  He fell to 3-4 and he gave up three runs on eight hits and three walks with seven strikeouts in eight innings.

Joe Sparma gave up just three hits in a solid start as the Tigers got back on track with a win against the Senators.  Sparma improved to 3-3 and he gave up three runs on the three hits with two walks and five strikeouts.  Two of three hits he gave up were long balls.

Jim Northrup had the big hit of the game with a grand slam in the ninth inning that broke a 3-3 tie.  He finished three for five and the homer was his sixth of the season.  Dick McAuliffe singled, drew a walk and scored twice in the win.

One of the Senators homers was a two run shot by Frank Howard.  It was his eighth homerun in five games, a mark that set a new major league record.

For the second straight game, an impressive offensive performance by the Tigers overshadowed a solid outing by the team’s starter.  Bill Freehan, Willie Horton and Don Wert all went yard in the contest and both Horton and Freehan finished with three RBIs a piece.  Mickey Stanley and Al Kaline also pitched in and they both scored a team high three runs.

Joe Sparma improved to 2-3 on the season.  He gave up two runs on four hits with three walks and six strikeouts in the complete game.

Orioles starter Leohnard completely shutout down the Tigers as they managed just a single hit the entire game.  Jim Northrup singled with two outs in the seventh inning and that was it for the Tigers.

Joe Sparma fell to 1-3 with a subpar outing.  He gave up three runs on seven hits and a walk with three strikeouts in five innings of work.

The Tigers lost a tough one in a low scoring pitchers duel.  Joe Sparma took a shutout into the eighth inning but both he and Jon Warden combined to give up two runs in the eighth to blow a 1-0 lead.  Sparma dropped to 1-2 on the season and while one of the runs scored off of Warden, both were credited to Sparma.

The Tigers lone run came in the fourth inning when Roy Oyler drove in Jim Northrup with a sac. fly.  No Tiger reached base more the once in the loss.

April 28, 1968 at Yankee Stadium
Tigers 3, Yankees 2  (11-4)

The Tigers salvaged both a split in their doubleheader with the Yankees as well as their four game series at Yankee Stadium.  The Tigers were down 2-1 heading into the ninth when Bill Freehan belted a solo shot to tie the game and then just two batters later, Jim Northrup drove in the winning run with a solo shot of his own.  Don Wert singled twice and drove in a run to account for the other Tigers run.

Les Cain made his major league debut and while he didn’t get the win, he definitely kept the Tigers in this one.  He gave up just a single run on six hits and four walks with two strikeouts in seven innings.  John Hiller threw 1 2/3 shutout innings and he picked up the win while Fred Lasher got the final batter out to earn his second save of the season.

The Tigers were held to just a single hit in series opening loss against the Indians.  The loss also snapped their impressive nine game winning streak.  The lone hit came in the third inning when Jim Northrup led things off with a single.

A solid start by Joe Sparma went to waste.  He gave up two runs (one earned) on seven hits and three walks with three strikeouts in the complete game loss.

The Tigers made it six straight wins behind an exceptional start by Joe Sparma.  He gave up seven hits and a walk with four strikeouts in the complete game shutout and it was his first win of the season.

Three of the Tigers’ runs came via the long ball.  Willie Horton, Dick McAuliffe and Al Kaline all went yard with solo shots in the win.  Horton finished the game with two RBIs while McAuliffe drew two walks in addition to the homerun and he scored twice.

Daryl Patterson threw some exceptional relief pitching after Joe Sparma ran into problems in the fifth inning.  Like Jon Warden two days before, Patterson picked up his first career win and he gave up four hits and three walks with three strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings.  Fred Lasher got the final out of the game and he picked up his first save of the season.

Mickey Stanley was the hitting star.  He went two for five with a double, two RBIs and a run.  Willie Horton doubled, drove in a run and scored in the win.