Detroit Tigers: The Season Is on the Line Tonight

Unless the Detroit Tigers are the type of team that enjoys trying to accomplish the most difficult of tasks, then tonight's tilt against the Rangers in Detroit is one from which they simply must emerge victorious. 

As if baseball fans needed a reminder. Being down 0-3 in a best-of-seven series is a tough hole to dig out of. Tough as in, " It's only happened once in major-league history." That means that the Tigers need to receive another big-game performance from Doug Fister. 

That's the same Doug Fister who gave the Tigers a big start in the decisive Game 5 against the New York Yankees in the ALDS. The same Doug Fister who as a member of the Seattle Mariners took a no-hitter into the seventh inning against the Baltimore Orioles back in April 2010. 

The Mariners dealt Fister to the Tigers on July 30. He was part of trade that involved numerous Detroit prospects. Since his arrival in Detroit, Fister has been about as good as anyone could have possibly envisioned, going 8-1 with a 1.79 ERA and 0.84 WHIP. 

Fister takes the mound tonight and, with the exception of a man named Justin Verlander, there's probably no one the Tigers would rather have pitching in this all-important showdown.

It will take more than just a great performance by Fister, though. The Tigers hitters must produce. Unlike the Rangers, who have a lethal mix of both power and contact hitters throughout their lineup, the Tigers lean heavily on the men in the middle.

Those men—Delmon Young, Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez—are a combined 2 for 19 so far this series. Should that continue, then Doug Fister may need to throw a no-hitter to win tonight, because as a team the Tigers are also 2-19 with runners in scoring position this series.

Put simply, the Tigers need to start hitting. They don't need to emerge with a 12-run outburst, but they need to start placing pressure on the Rangers' pitchers and their hitters as well.

It wasn't difficult to see that the Tigers' hitters were pressing to get that big hit in yesterday's loss to Texas. The result was good hitters swinging at bad pitches and making ill-timed outs.

The Rangers have not been a lethal offensive force in this series, but they've been good enough to win Games 1 and 2. The timely hits have all been made by the Rangers. Nelson Cruz's grand slam last night was somewhat of a formality. Even if the ball had stayed in the park, it's result would have been a game-winning, walk-off sacrifice fly.

A 4-3 win might not have the dramatic impact of the 7-3 win fueled by a grand slam, but it would still be 2-0 Texas in the series.

These games have been close. The difference has been that the Rangers have gotten the hits when they needed them, while the Tigers have left too many men on base.

Tonight there's ample reason to expect Fister to keep this game close. Can the Tigers middle of the order hitters respond with a few big hits? That's going to be the key to tonight's game, as well as the eventual destiny of the Tigers' season.