Tigers on the cusp of first playoff appearance since 2014

Why it matters: Baseball has a special place in Detroit.

• Fans of all ages have memories of fall baseball — from World Series titles in 1968 and 1984 to the Miguel Cabrera- and Justin Verlander-led teams of the 2010s.

The latest: Detroit won its fifth straight Thursday, beating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 at Comerica Park.

• The Tigers' magic number is down to one, which means they make the playoffs with either one more win or one more loss by the Minnesota Twins.

Between the lines: "Nobody believed in us" may be a clichéd rallying cry, but there is some truth to that mantra for this team of scrappy young players and castoffs.

Flashback: The Tigers were sellers at the midseason trade deadline while contending teams acquired new players to bolster their rosters.

• In mid-August, they had just a 0.2% chance to make the playoffs, per FanGraphs.

What's next: Detroit's final three games are today, tomorrow and Sunday at Comerica Park against the Chicago White Sox, a historically bad team.

• Today's first pitch is at 6:40pm.

📣 What we're watching: Just how loud Comerica Park gets against Chicago.

• The Tigers' fan base is a sleeping giant that's already awoken; more than 32,000 attended Wednesday's game.
• ​​"I know we have to earn it, and we're continuing to chip away at that, but this place can be electrifying if we can bring a postseason game here," manager A.J. Hinch told the Free Press.

Yes, but: Detroit would likely have to advance from the first round of the playoffs to host a playoff game, the Detroit News reports.

• The first wild-card series would be three games at Houston or Baltimore, with none at home.

The bottom line: It's a fun time to be a Detroit sports fan.