Ex-Tigers Play-By-Play Man Matt Shepard's Fiery Rant Resurfaces Amid Detroit's Wild Card Surge

The Detroit Tigers have been on fire since early August and now find themselves tied with the Kansas City Royals for an American League Wild Card spot.

Detroit's magic number to secure a playoff spot now sits at at one heading their final series of the regular season starting tonight against the Chicago White Sox.

This year's Tigers team will finish with a winning record for the first time since 2016, when former Tigers catcher Brad Ausmus managed the team.

On Friday, video resurfaced of former Tigers play-by-play man Matt Shepard calling out the Tigers franchise over its lackluster play and expectations following the team's 66-win 2022 season.

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Shepard stated that he "totally disagreed" with fellow analyst Dan Petry during the rant, imploring Tigers management, players and media to adopt a higher standard of play.

"I think you've got to expect to make the playoffs," Shepard said after the season.

"Okay, this is a franchise, it's a proud franchise, an original American League franchise that has won four World Series, not since these guys suited up in 1984, that's unacceptable," he added, referencing Petry and colleague Jack Morris.

"St. Louis has 11, the Dodgers have won ten straight division titles for crying out loud. The Braves have won six in a row. It's ridiculous. The bar has to be set higher for the Tigers, and AJ Hinch admits it.

"You don't want to cover losing teams any longer, he wants to play meaningful games."

Two years later, the Tigers are on the verge of a their first MLB Playoffs appearance since 2014 while sparking the imaginations and arousing the curiosity of fans across the state of Michigan and beyond.

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