The Detroit Tigers were able to have an incredible season in 2024, and arguably the most impressive feat for them was the performance of their ace all season long. 

It was an incredible 2024 campaign for the Tigers, as they snapped a lengthy playoff drought and won the American League Wild Card Series against the Houston Astros. 

In the middle of the summer, it didn’t look like either of those things were going to happen. At the trade deadline, Detroit traded away most of their talented impending free agents as most teams who are out of contention generally do. 

However, the Tigers went on to be one of the best teams in baseball in the second half of the season, and rode that momentum right into the playoffs. 

One of the main reasons for the success down the stretch was the performance of Tarik Skubal. The American League Cy Young award winner was simply phenomenal every time he got the ball to start a game, and he was the clear choice for the award. 

Recently, the southpaw spoke about how the team playing better in the second half of the year helped him win the award. Also, he spoke the unconventional way Detroit went about managing their pitching staff around him.

“That was a blessing. When I was given the ball every fifth day, I think everyone expected to win,” Skubal said to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. “and that’s something I take a ton of pride in. I’m trying to be the same guy and put my team in a position to win every fifth day, and we’ll figure out the other three, four days in between. I think it speaks to what we did. We were able to do those things and probably gave A.J. (Hinch, manager) some long nights, but he was good for it.”

Skubal finished up the season with a 18-4 record, 2.36 ERA, and 228 strikeouts, which led the league. 

From start to finish, it was a great campaign, as in his worst month of the season, he only posted a 3.05 ERA. 

The southpaw is very much a team player and really passes all the credit along to those around him. Now, after a great run into the playoffs, the Tigers will be hoping to do that again and get even further in 2025. 

With their talented lefty leading the way, they know that they will be a favorite to win against pretty much anyone when he is on the mound. 

The Detroit Lions’ Week 11 52-6 dismantling of the Jacksonville Jaguars, combined with the Kansas City Chiefs’ 30-21 loss to the Buffalo Bills, vaulted the Lions into a unique position. For one of the few times in the history of the franchise, they became the consensus Super Bowl favorite at around +325 odds. In fact, by the account of several oddsmakers, it’s likely the first time the team has been favored to win the Super Bowl in 70 years. After all, the Lions have only made the playoffs 18 times since 1935.

That status has also positioned the Lions as the team most likely to keep those oddsmakers up at night after roaring to a 9-1 start this season. After last season’s inspiring run to the NFC Championship Game, the money has poured in on Detroit, which could cost sportsbooks significantly in payouts to bettors if the Lions were to win Super Bowl LIX.

“They’re by far our biggest Super Bowl liability and pretty much our only one at this point,” BetMGM trader Christian Cipollini told The Athletic. “Anything inside of 10-1 [odds] we don’t tend to build crazy liability that we’re worried about, but everybody has been on them. At this point, the Lions winning the Super Bowl would be a huge problem for us. If I could remove them from futures, I would.”

Adding to the growing liability on Detroit, fans tend to favor their home team with their wagers, and Michigan is one of the 38 states with legal sports betting (and the 10th-largest by population). The Lions opened the offseason in the 12-1 range to win the Super Bowl, but those odds have dropped significantly to just over 3-1 since. The betting money has followed that success.

“The betting momentum in favor of Detroit started prior to the season as they attracted a large number of Super Bowl future wagers,” said Brad Bryant, general manager at Mohegan Sun FanDuel Sportsbook, noting the Lions have been one of the Mohegan Sun’s “top-wagered teams on a weekly basis.”

At DraftKings Sportsbook, 31 percent of bets (No. 1 among NFL teams) and 31 percent of total dollars wagered (also No. 1) were on Detroit to win the Super Bowl earlier this week. The Lions are third in ticket count for Super Bowl futures at The Borgata in Atlantic City, where sportsbook director Thomas Gable noted Detroit has the most total dollars wagered to win the Super Bowl “by a pretty good stretch.”

“We hate the Lions,” Cipollini said, adding that the number of bets on the Lions is the first thing that he looks at every week. “I haven’t seen something like this in my time at BetMGM. Every single week, they’re our worst team. I think something like 95 percent of the bets last week [vs. the Jaguars] were on Detroit.”

With an NFC-best 9-1 record and winners of eight straight games, the Lions have vaulted from a top-five preseason power rating among oddsmakers to the consensus No. 1 team in the league. Out of 10 oddsmakers The Athletic polled, nine of them had the Lions as their highest power-rated team. (One had the Baltimore Ravens slightly above Detroit.)

The Lions also have the NFL’s best record at 8-2 against the spread, and bettors placing a moneyline wager or standard six-point teaser on Detroit have cashed that ticket in nine of 10 weeks.

And the action isn’t only in Michigan. Bookmakers noted the increased interest in betting the Lions at several sportsbooks from Mississippi to Las Vegas.

“That’s 100 percent true,” Ed Salmons, vice president of risk at The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, said. “Weekly bets on Lions point spread, moneyline, teasers and game over and Lions team total over.”

Several other oddsmakers agreed, noting they’d seen an increase in betting on the Lions compared to previous seasons and that the public was regularly tossing Detroit in moneyline parlays and teasers. In the upcoming Week 12, Lions at -7.5 is currently the most-bet Week 12 side by both total money and tickets at BetMGM and DraftKings.

“[The public] will include Detroit in parlays and tease the spread down,” The Borgata’s Gable noted. “We opened [with] the Lions -8 against the Colts [in Week 12] and took respected money right away against the Colts. Now it’s 7.5.”

It’s easy to see why the public is in love: The Lions are a ridiculous 41-16 ATS (72 percent) in their past 57 games since the middle of the 2021 season. That includes a 22-8 ATS mark in the first half since the start of last season. Double-digit favorites in the NFL are 5-0 ATS this season, and the Lions are responsible for two of those covers — the 52-6 laugher vs. Jacksonville as a 14-point favorite and a 52-14 demolition of the Tennessee Titans as a 13-point favorite. It’s one thing to cover a 14-point spread; it’s another to have it be a rocking-chair win.

Looking ahead to a potential title matchup, when six oddsmakers were asked to make a spread on a Chiefs-Lions matchup on a neutral field, their responses were:

Lions -4.5
Lions -2.5
Lions -2
Lions -1.5
Lions -1
And one pick-em

The oddsmaker framing the matchup as a pick-em explained, “One concern I have is the coach. When you talk about Detroit vs. the Chiefs and Andy Reid, there’s a big difference there. And the Lions haven’t gotten [to the Super Bowl] yet. The Chiefs have been there.”

As the Lions keep steamrolling through teams, oddsmakers are certainly rooting against a Detroit Super Bowl victory. And history might be on their side.

Several of the oddsmakers contacted by The Athletic, who have worked in sports betting since the 1970s, could not recall a time when Detroit had been favored to win pro football’s championship. Per Pro Football Reference, however, the Lions were favored by three points 70 years ago in the 1954 championship game against the Cleveland Browns … who obliterated the favorites by a score of 56-10.

(Top Photo: Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)

(CBS DETROIT) – Downtown Detroit will begin to be a lot brighter just in time for the Christmas season. The city will host its 21st annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony on Friday.

“A lot of what we’re focused on is making sure is not only is it a great family event for all ages, but truly a safe event,” said Eric Larson, CEO of Downtown Detroit Partnership.

The countdown is on, and the final decorations are being staged. The city expects at least 50,000 people to travel downtown to witness the spectacle.

“Pack your patience because, as you see, streets are blocked off now, they’ll be blocked off then, so you’re going to park out a little way,” Wayne County Sheriff Raphael Washington said.

Safety is a big priority and over 100 officers will be out and about. In past years, city leaders say minors have had habits of attending, and this year, they plan to crack down and even ticket parents who aren’t supervising their kids.

“Minors that are 15 and under. They need supervision at 8 p.m.; if you are 16 or 17 years old, your supervision starts at 11 pm,” Interim Police Chief Todd Bettison said.

This will mark Bettision’s first time hosting a major event since becoming interim chief. He says he’s ready, and although many officers will be downtown, other parts of the city won’t be neglected.

“We ensure that the neighborhoods are covered and that its adequate officers are still in the neighborhood of the city so that those runs are being answered. I’m not neglecting anything we have it all covered,” Bettison said.

Campus Martius and all surrounding areas will be packed. With an event of such size. CBS News Detroit learned that DPD, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office and Michigan State Police partnered to keep the area safe.

“Everyone in law enforcement agencies are short in manpower. It’s important that we come together as one band,” Washington said.

Authorities say it’s a gun-free zone, and metal detectors will be out checking people. By the night’s end, Downtown Detroit will be lit up with nearly 1 million Christmas lights.