Tigers potentially seal ALDS appearance with clutch eighth inning

The second half of Game 2 in the AL Wild Card was an emotional rollercoaster for the Detroit Tigers, but a clutch push might have just given them an upset series victory over the Houston Astros.

After rookie Jackson Jobe gave up the lead in the bottom half of the seventh inning, the Tigers' offense stormed back into the lead early in the eighth inning.

After a wild pitch by Ryan Pressly tied the game back at 2-2, he walked another batter, resulting in the Astros going to Josh Hader.

Hader then continued to walk the bases, which were spread over four pitches.

AJ Hinch turned to utility man Andy Ibanez off the bench, who faced southpaw in place of Zach McKinstry.

Ibanez had a nice game with a brace on Tuesday, going 1-2 at the plate. He kept that momentum going and had one of the biggest hits in modern Detroit baseball history.

He hit a sinker to left field and three Tigers players came in to score as Detroit took a 5-2 lead.

Ibanez as a hero fits the underdog narrative the Tigers have had all year. He only had a slash line of .241/.295/.357 in the regular season.

Given the shakiness of the Houston offense early in this series, this could well have given the Tigers a series win that few would have expected.

Winning the Wild Card in just two games would provide a little more peace in preparation for the upcoming Division Series against the Cleveland Guardians.