The 1981

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

season was the team's 81st season as a member of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

. Games were suspended for 50 days due to the

1981 Major League Baseball strike The 1981 Major League Baseball strike was the first work stoppage in Major League Baseball since the 1972 Major League Baseball strike that resulted in regular season games being cancelled. Overall, it was the fourth work stoppage since 1972, bu ...

, causing a

split season A split season is a schedule format implemented in a variety of sports leagues. The season is divided into two parts, with the winners of both halves playing each other at the end for the overall championship. Split seasons are usually found in sp ...

. The Tigers finished the first half of the season in fourth place in the

American League East The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (NL). This division was created before ...

, and the second half of the season tied for second place. Their overall record was 60 wins and 49 losses, and they outscored their opponents 427 to 404. The Tigers drew 1,149,144 fans to their home games at Tiger Stadium, ranking fifth of the 14 teams in the American League.

Offseason

* December 12, 1980:

Dave Stegman David William Stegman (born January 30, 1954) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He played all or part of six seasons in the majors for the Detroit Tigers (1978–1980), New York Yankees (1982) and Chicago White Sox (1983–1984). Duri ...

was traded by the Tigers to the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

for

Dennis Kinney Dennis Paul Kinney (born February 26, 1952) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played all or parts of five seasons in the majors, from until . Kinney was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 10th round of the 1970 Major League B ...

. * January 13, 1981:

Mike Sharperson Michael Tyrone Sharperson (October 4, 1961 – May 26, 1996) was an infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Toronto Blue Jays (1987), Los Angeles Dodgers (1987–1993) and Atlanta Braves (1995). Sharperson batted and threw right ...

was drafted by the Tigers in the 4th round of the

1981 Major League Baseball draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1981 Major League Baseball draft. Compensation Picks Other notable players *Darrin Jackson, 2nd round, 28th overall by the Chicago Cubs *Mike Gallego, 2nd round, 33r ...

, but did not sign. * March 29, 1981:

Jim Lentine James Matthew Lentine is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) outfielder. He played all or part of three seasons in the major leagues, from to , for the St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers. He is based in San Clemente, California, and working ...

was released by the Tigers.

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions

* April 3, 1981:

Chris Codiroli Christopher Allen Codiroli (born March 26, 1958) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues in 1982–1988 and 1990. In 144 career games, he had 38 wins, 47 losses, 312 strikeouts, and a 4.87 earned run average ...

was released by the Tigers. * April 3, 1981:

Chuck Hensley Charles Floyd Hensley (born March 11, 1959) is an American former professional relief pitcher who played for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the olde ...

was released by the Tigers. * August 23, 1981: The Tigers traded a player to be named later to the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

for

Ron Jackson Ronnie Damien Jackson (born May 9, 1953 in Birmingham, Alabama) is a coach and a former player in Major League Baseball. He was the hitting coach for the Boston Red Sox in 2004 when they won their first World Series in 86 seasons. From 1975 thr ...

. The Tigers completed the deal by sending Tim Corcoran to the Twins on September 4.Ron Jackson
at ''Baseball Reference''

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

''Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in'' ''Note: pitchers' batting statistics not included''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Relief pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; W= Wins; L= Losses; SV = Saves; GF = Games finished; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Awards and honors

Kirk Gibson Kirk Harold Gibson (born May 28, 1957) is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He is currently a color commentator for the Detroit Tigers on Bally Sports Detroit and a special assistant for the Tigers. As a player, Gibson ...

, Tiger of the Year Award, from Detroit baseball writers *

Alan Trammell Alan Stuart Trammell ( ; born February 21, 1958) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, manager and coach and member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame as a player. His entire 20-year playing career in Major League Baseball ( ...

, AL Gold Glove Award, shortstop

1981 Major League Baseball All-Star Game The 1981 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 52nd playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on Sunday, ...

Jack Morris John Scott Morris (born May 16, 1955) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career. Armed ...

, starter, pitcher

League top ten finishers

* #3 in AL in batting average (.328) * #4 in AL in Power/Speed Number (11.8)

Steve Kemp Steven F. Kemp (born August 7, 1954) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Texas Rangers. Profession ...

* #4 in AL in on-base percentage (.389) * #3 in AL in bases on balls (70) * #3 in AL in times on base (174)

* MLB leader in wins (14) (tied with four others) * MLB leader in bases on balls allowed (78) * #2 in MLB in innings pitched (198) * #2 in MLB in games started (25) * #3 in AL in hits allowed per 9 innings pitched (6.95) * #3 in MLB in complete games (15) * #3 in MLB in batters faced (798) * #6 in AL in home runs allowed (14) * #9 in AL in earned runs allowed (67)

Lance Parrish Lance Michael Parrish (born June 15, 1956), nicknamed "Big Wheel", is an American former baseball catcher who played Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1977 through 1995. Born in Pennsylvania, Parrish grew up in Southern California and excelled in ...

* #3 in AL in times grounded into double plays (16)

Kevin Saucier Kevin Andrew Saucier (born August 9, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher from 1978 to 1982 for the Philadelphia Phillies and Detroit Tigers. Nicknamed "Hot Sauce", Saucier (whose name is pronounced "So-Shay"), was an energetic pitch ...

* #5 in AL in saves (13)

* AL leader in sacrifice hits (16)

Lou Whitaker Louis Rodman Whitaker Jr. (born May 12, 1957), nicknamed "Sweet Lou", is an American former professional baseball second baseman. Whitaker spent his entire career with the Detroit Tigers. From 1977 to 1995, he appeared in 2,390 games for the ...

* AL leader in games played (109) * AL leader in games at second base (108) * AL leader in innings at second base (918-1/3) * AL leader in assists by a second baseman (354)

Milt Wilcox Milton Edward Wilcox (born April 20, 1950) is an American former baseball pitcher. He pitched for 16 years in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Reds (1970–1971), Cleveland Indians (1972–1974), Chicago Cubs (1975), Detroit Tigers (1977� ...

* #5 in AL in games started (24) * #5 in AL in hit batsmen (6)

Players ranking among top 100 all time at position

The following members of the 1981 Detroit Tigers are among the Top 100 of all time at their position, as ranked by

The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract ''The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract'' is a reference book written by Bill James featuring an overview of professional baseball decade by decade, along with rankings of the top 100 players at each position. The original edition was publi ...

: *

: 19th best catcher of all time *

: 13th best second baseman of all time *

: 9th best shortstop of all time *

: 36th best left fielder of all time

Farm system

Notes

References

*
1981 Detroit Tigers Regular Season Statistics at Baseball Reference
{{Detroit Tigers Detroit Tigers seasons Detroit Tigers season Detroit Tiger 1981 in Detroit