Go Tigers Chant

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The franchise was founded as a member of the reorganized Western League in 1894. They originally played at Boulevard Park. In 1895, owner George Vanderbeck decided to build Bennett Park at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull Avenues. The first game at The Corner was an exhibition on April 13, 1896, when the team beat a local semi-pro team, known as the Athletics, by a score of 30–3. The Tigers played their first Western League game at Bennett Park on April 28, 1896. When the Western League renamed itself the American League for 1900, it was still a minor league, but the next year it declared itself a major league. The Tigers were established as a charter member of the now major league American League in 1901. In 1905, the team acquired 18-year-old Ty Cobb. The Tigers won AL pennants in 1907, 1908, and 1909, but lost the World Series each time. In 1915, the Tigers won a then-club record 100 games. On August 19, 1921, Cobb collected his 3,000th career hit; aged 34, he is still the youngest player to reach that milestone, also reaching it in the fewest at-bats (8,093).

In Their Own Story

In 1984, the club achieved a franchise record for most wins in a season with 104 victories, winning 35 of its first 40 games on the way to a World Series championship. The team's overall win–loss record from 1901 to 2025 stands at 9,763–9,642–93 for a .503 winning percentage. Their best winning percentage was .656 in 1934, while their worst was .265 in 2003. The Tigers have secured division titles in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014 as members of the AL Central, adding to earlier titles in 1972, 1984, and 1987 when they were in the AL East. Notable moments include Ty Cobb hitting his .377 average with 9 home runs in 1909, a season where George Mullin posted a record 29–8 mark.

Reader's Guide

Since their establishment as a major league franchise in 1901, the Tigers have won four World Series championships, 11 AL pennants, and four AL Central division championships (2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014). They also won division titles in 1972, 1984, and 1987 as a member of the AL East. Since 2000, the Tigers have played their home games at Comerica Park in Downtown Detroit. The Tigers constructed Bennett Park in 1896, moved into Navin Field in 1912, expanded and renamed Briggs Stadium in 1938, renamed Tiger Stadium in 1961, and played there until 1999. The franchise record for most wins in a season is 104 in 1984.

Did You Know?

• The Tigers are the only Western League team still in its original city.
• The Tigers are the oldest American League team still playing in their original city under their original name.
• The franchise's best winning percentage was in 1934, while its worst was in 2003.
• The 1915 Tigers outfield of Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford, and Bobby Veach is ranked by baseball historian Bill James as the greatest in baseball history.