Wire to Wire: Inside the 1984 Detroit Tigers Championship Season

Award-winning Detroit columnist George Cantor revisits the 1984 World Series champion Detroit Tigers with unparalleled insight into what the season meant to a reeling city filled with delirious fans. The book delves into the details of a year when fantasy became reality—the Tigers chewed up their opponents, spit them out, and catapulted to the top without looking back—and provides fans with the opportunity to relive a season in history that baseball aficionados won't soon forget.

For one magical season, the 1984 Detroit Tigers distinguished themselves as one of the greatest teams in baseball history. And for the first quarter of that season, they were simply better than anyone else has ever been, before or since. Every player on the roster -- as well as manager Sparky Anderson and his coaching staff, Detroit's legions of fans, the ownership, and even a fair amount of the baseball media -- knew that the Tigers had the potential to do something special in 1984. The '83 team had made a late run at the pennant, finishing in second place but convinced that they were the best team in baseball during the second half of the season. Now the team's core veterans were entering their prime playing years, and a couple of off-season moves appeared to give the Tigers the look of a serious contender. So it wasn't surprising that more than a few onlookers predicted great things for this bunch when spring training finally arrived. But nobody -- not even the Tigers themselves -- could have imagined just how great things would be. The team won their first 9 games to start the season, then followed their only loss with another 10-game winning streak. At 19-1, they were virtually unbeatable after their first 20 games. The players had faith in their invincibility and encountered little resistance when convincing other teams that they stood no chance.

By the time the season's first 40 games had passed, Detroit held an unprecedented 35-5 record, having shattered the old mark for the best start in baseball history and setting the record for most consecutive road wins in the process. They led their division from day one until the end of the regular season, won the most games (104) in franchise history, and went on to win Detroit's fourth -- and, so far, their last -- world championship. One of the most revered teams in the history of the game, the 1984 Tigers had as much personality in their dugout as they had talent. Managed by the legendary Anderson, that unforgettable squad also boasted Hall of Fame double-play tandem Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker; intensely competitive superstar-in-the-making Kirk Gibson in right; fiery starter Jack Morris heading the pitching rotation; slugging catcher Lance Parrish behind the plate; and free agent newcomer Darrell Evans shoring things up at first base. They also received pivotal contributions from players such as Chet Lemon, Tom Brookens, Dave Bergman, Dan Petry, Aurelio Lopez, and an MVP season from newly acquired closer Willie Hernandez. Longtime Detroit columnist George Cantor coaxes each of these players to speak out in Wire to Wire, describing their different roles throughout the season and what it was like to make baseball history. His book looks at each individual player and how their different personalities meshed together to form their perfect, once-in-a-lifetime team chemistry -- and how Anderson was able to get everything he could out of each one of them during one of the most celebrated seasons in team sports.

Library Journal

Wire to Wire provides a spirited look at the 1984 baseball season, which opened with the Detroit Tigers racing to a 35-5 start and concluded with the team amassing 104 regular season victories and capturing the American League Eastern Division title by 15 games. The Tigers did so with a gritty team led by manager Sparky Anderson, sluggers Kirk Gibson and Lance Parrish, starters Jack Morris and Dan Petry, and relief ace Willie Anderson, who captured the AL MVP and Cy Young awards. After a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals in the AL Championship Series, the Tigers bested the San Diego Padres in the World Series, with Gibson belting two mammoth homers at historic Tiger Stadium in the decisive fifth game. Longtime Detroit journalist Cantor captures all the emotions that drove that championship run. This account may be just the thing for Tiger fans to wash away the bad taste of last year's horrific season. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

George Cantor has been a writer for Detroit newspapers for more than 40 years. He was on the baseball beat when the Tigers won the 1968 World Series, chronicled the feats of the 1984 Tigers as a news columnist, and was given the honor of throwing out the first pitch in one of the last games played at historic Tiger Stadium. He has written more than a dozen books on sports, history, and travel, as well as appearing frequently on local radio and television. He lives in West Bloomfield, Michigan. Chet Lemon is a former MLB outfielder, a three-time All-Star, and a member of the World Series champion 1984 Detroit Tigers.