It has been a brutal stretch for the Detroit Tigers, going from holding the bottom wild card spot in the American League to almost out of the race in the last week after being swept by the Chicago White Sox, dropping two of three to the Pittsburgh Pirates.Then, the losing skid continued as the Tigers dropped the opener against the Kansas City Royals on the road. If there is a now-or-never time for Detroit, it is now, as the wild-card race is too close and they cannot afford to drop games anymore. That being said, the Tigers' offense has reached a point where both Spencer Torkelson and Eduardo Valencia are on a hitless streak over the last week, which does not complement Baez's .067 hitting average and Dillon Dingler's .105 batting averageWhen Kevin McGonigle and Dillon Dingler combine for 1 hit or fewer, the Tigers are: 14-40 (.259)When they combine for 4+ hits:14-3 (.824) pic.twitter.com/wn282N0Gm6— Tigers Data (@TigersData) August 20, 2026There isn't a person with access to the internet who doesn't know of the embarrassment that the bullpen has been for Detroit, so as the offense slumps, it isn't necessarily all on them. However, if they have a chance to make it to the playoffs, then the bats have to be hot consistently and scoring a lot of runs is a necessity. This team clearly needs as much reassurance as possible.Tigers Starting Lineup As They Look To Split the SeriesTigers third baseman Kevin McGonigle (7) throws to first base for an out. Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectThe Tigers' defense is going to be taking the mound behind Drew Anderson, who might have an ERA over 4.00 for the year, but he is trending in a better direction as it has lowered to 3.50 over his last seven appearances. SS Kevin McGonigle2B Gleyber TorresDH Colt KeithC Dillon DinglerRF Zach McKinstryLF Brett Callahan1B Spencer TorklesonCF Max Clark3B Hao-Yu LeeIt is somewhat shocking to see that Dillon Dingler is still hitting cleanup, as his offensive struggles are impossible to ignore, and he is clearly fighting his head at the plate. Slumps happen, but maybe he should be working it out at the bottom of the order. There is a clear issue going on inside the Tigers' clubhouse, as they are seemingly not working cohesively. When the offense finds a groove, the pitching staff turns into a home run machine for the other team. Detroit leads the majors in blown saves, by a lot. Their year would be completely different had the bullpen been even just average. They won't make it to the playoffs without the offense gaining some confidence, and time is running out for them to do so. Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow