Contender.

V Mart goes 4XL as the Tigers beat the Indians 8-6, sweeping the three-game series.

The Tigers have floored the accelerator the past two weeks, branding tire tracks on the backs of their closest divisional competitors.

But the irony of this surge is that it weakens the argument that Verlander should be the American League's most valuable player, while strengthening the argument that the Tigers should be a genuine World Series contender. They suddenly have a virulent offense and a contagious knack for making the right play at the right time. They have a nine-game lead on the second-place White Sox, 9 1/2 on the Indians.

Read the rest at The Freep.