DETROIT >> It had been just 48 hours since the Tigers’ season ended in Game 5 of the American League Division Series, so you could forgive team president Scott Harris if his emotions were a little bisected.

“I am still struggling to reconcile the gut punch we felt (in Game 5) with what was a wildly successful season for the whole organization,” he said. “Getting your heart ripped out on one of the biggest stages in our game is both a blessing and a curse.”

It’s a curse, he said, for all the obvious reasons.

“But it’s a blessing because it means you are playing for something,” he said. “It means the last game of the season really matters. It means this is a winning group that had a credible chance to be the last team standing at the end of the year.

“That’s a change for this organization, and it’s something all of our players, coaches and staff should be really proud of. I know I am.”

What this out-of-nowhere dash out of irrelevance and into the postseason for the first time in 10 years means is, finally, the Detroit Tigers baseball organization is headed certifiably in the right direction. It means that what Harris outlined two years ago in his introductory press conference, things that some sniggered at, is happening right before our eyes.

Goal One: Acquire, develop and retain young talent. Check. The Tigers, as Harris pointed out, reached the postseason with the youngest team in baseball. The organization now boasts a top-rated farm system, rich with seven top-100 prospects that posted the best minor-league winning percentage across all levels in the industry.

Goal Two: Create a culture of development. Check. Harris used Parker Meadows as an example, and rightly so after he was sent down to Toledo in April with an OPS-plus of 50 and finished the season making game-saving catches and game-winning hits and posting a final OPS-plus of 109. But you can go up and down the roster citing examples, including the crop of young pitchers who were struggling in Triple A, but turned the season around in Detroit in bulk-reliever roles.

Also included under the development checkmark, veteran players who came to Detroit broken and got fixed, like Jack Flaherty and Carson Kelly, to name just two.

“They helped brand this organization as a place where they can get better,” Harris said. “And now we’ve shown this is a place where you can come and get better and win at the same time. That’s a huge breakthrough.”

Goal Three: Dominate the strike zone on both sides of the ball. Partial check. The Tigers, who ranked in the top five in baseball in most pitching categories, were among the league leaders in throwing first-pitch strikes and working in advantageous counts. They issued the second-fewest walks and had the second-lowest WHIP in the American League behind Seattle in both categories.

The offensive side of that equation is still a work in progress, as painfully evidenced by the 16 strikeouts and 39 swings and misses in the Game 5 loss. But overall, throughout the season and especially from August on, the quality of at-bats improved significantly.

“These guys do a lot better job of staying in the strike zone,” Harris said. “When you watch us play, when you watch our at-bats, we do a way better job of staying disciplined in the zone. We’re doing a way better job of forcing pitchers into the strike zone and we’re doing a better job of challenging our hitters, helping them to produce major league quality at-bats.”

Harris then asked the rhetorical question: What does it all mean?

“It means nothing unless we find a way to keep growing and getting better as an organization,” he said.

That’s why manager AJ Hinch called this season the floor. It’s a heck-of-an exciting floor and you are anxious to see what the ceiling might look like. But the work is only beginning.

Over the next few days, we’ll offer our final player assessments for 2024. Today, it’s the pitching staff.

Starters

• Tarik Skubal (18-4, 2.39): How much joy did this young man bring us this year? The Tigers were 23-11 in his starts including the postseason. A first-time All-Star and a lock to win the American League Cy Young Award, he joins Hal Newhouser and Justin Verlander as the only Tigers to win the pitcher triple crown, leading the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts (228). His 6.3 pitcher WAR (Baseball Reference) was also tops in baseball. And, until the five-run fifth inning and Game 5 of the ALDS, he’d thrown 17 consecutive scoreless innings in the postseason. It had been a long time since we’ve seen this kind of consistent dominance wearing the Old English D.

Mid-term grade: A

Final grade: A

• Reese Olson (4-8, 3.53): A shoulder strain limited him to four regular-season starts after the All-Star break, but he made two strong outings against the Guardians in the ALDS (two runs in nine innings) and established himself as a mainstay in the rotation. He had 51% ground-ball rate this year and a 32% chase rate. His slider, which has an elite plus-8 run value according to Statcast, limited hitters to a .143 average with a 45% whiff rate. He got a 42% whiff rate with his changeup.

Mid-term grade: B

Final grade: B• Keider Montero (6-6, 4.76): It all came together for him on Sept. 10 when he threw a “Maddux,” a complete-game shutout under 100 pitches, facing the minimum 27 Rockies hitters at Comerica Park. But his path to that best-version day was littered with hard lessons, which he took without flinching, without losing an ounce of his self-belief. He had to learn to neutralize left-handed hitters, which he did with a balanced mix of changeups, sliders and knuckle curves off his 95-mph four-seamer. He added a two-seamer in July to combat right-handers and that was effective. He devised a way to stop tipping pitches by turning his back to the plate before starting his delivery. It was, in short, a year of incomparable growth.

Mid-term grade: C

Final grade: C-plus

• Casey Mize (2-6, 4.49): To his credit, he never sagged mentally, never gave in to the frustration. No jury would’ve convicted if he had. He grinded for two years to make it back after back and elbow surgeries, and other than a new and improved four-seam fastball, nothing much went right for him. He struggled to maintain consistent command on all his pitches, struggled to miss bats (22% whiff) and put away hitters, even with two strikes (.608 OPS after two strikes). Ultimately, after missing two months with a hamstring strain, he was moved to a bulk-reliever role and was left off the roster for the ALDS. But, as Harris said after the season, all the ingredients, all the talent, that made him a first overall pick are still there. His mission this offseason is the find a slider he can locate to both sides of the plate and fine-tune his splitter command to facilitate more consistent chase and swing and miss.

Mid-term grade: C

Final grade: C

Bulk relievers

• Kenta Maeda (3-7, 6.09): Whether it was coincidence or cause-and-effect, Maeda pitched his baseball this season after he was sent to the bullpen. His ERA in 12 relief outings was 3.86, down from 7.42 as a starter. His WHIP dropped from 1.564 to 1.071. It took until mid-July before his arm was strong enough and moving fast enough to produce 90-92 mph fastball velocity consistently. Once that happened, his elite array of secondary pitches seemed to tick up with it. He has one year and $10 million left on his two-year deal in Detroit. The Tigers are going to give him every opportunity to come to camp built up and ready to regain his spot in the rotation.

Mid-term grade: D

Final grade: C-minus

• Brant Hurter (6-1, 2.58): He was the poster boy for the Tigers’ creative opener-bulk reliever success in the final two months of the season. Having scuffled in 18 traditional starts at Triple-A Toledo, he thrived entering games after an opener. In 10 outings in the regular season, he limited hitters to a .204 average with a 0.88 WHIP and a 55% ground ball rate. He featured a sweeper and changeup combo off his power sinker. The sweeper limited hitters to a .184 average with a 37% whiff rate. The changeup helped neutralize right-handed hitters (.188). He also contributed five scoreless innings in the postseason. The expectation is that he will compete for a spot in the rotation next spring.

Mid-term grade: N/A

• Ty Madden (1-1, 4.30): He made just six appearances, one traditional start and five bulk outings. He didn’t miss many bats (16.8% strikeout rate) nor did he get hit especially hard (37% hard-hit rate). Often he created his own mess with spotty command and walks. His newly developed split-change is real, though. Hitters were 3 for 15 with six strikeouts against it. His 94-mph four-seamer is lively, too. But his cutter and slider were inconsistent pitches for him. Makes you wonder if the Tigers will coax him to consolidate his mix. Does he really need a slider, cutter and knuckle curve?

Mid-term grade: N/A

Final grade: Inc.

• Bryan Sammons (1-1, 3.62): He was the first bulk reliever summoned out of Toledo’s starting rotation, and his success fueled the faith in the plan. In his six outings, he limited hitters to a .170 average, though he was inclined to give up the homer ball (six in 27.1 innings). The lefty was sent out on Aug. 25 with the thought that he’d be brought back in September. But the success of lefty Sean Guenther nixed Sammons’ return trip. He will be in the fight for a rotation spot next spring.

Mid-term grade: N/A

Final grade: Inc.

• Jackson Jobe (0-0, 0.00): The Tigers decided to give Jobe his big-league baptism at the end of September and into the postseason. He showed the high-velocity heater (though he sat at 97 mph and didn’t flash the 102 we saw in spring) and the high-rpm sweeper (though he threw more cutters than sweepers). More importantly, he showed no fear of the level. It will end up just a footnote in what the Tigers hope will be a long and distinguished career, but his four regular-season innings and 1.2 postseason innings should provide an important springboard into this offseason. He will be given every chance to win a rotation spot next spring.

Mid-term grade: N/A

Final grade: Inc.

Bullpen

• Jason Foley (3-6, 3.15, 28 saves): What a wild ride. From being almost overused early, to underused in May and June and losing some leverage innings while he struggled, to being the back-end beast he was supposed to be down the stretch. Through it all, it felt like he lost his identity a bit. In his quest to be the unnamed closer, he seemed to chase strikeouts and swing-and-miss and ended up with no sustained gain in strikeouts (18.4%) and a sharp decrease in ground balls (from 56.6% to 46.7%). He seemed to find a happy medium in September, and his second-half numbers overall were good (2.70 ERA, .179 opponent average, .284 opponent slug). He vastly improved against left-handed hitters (.188 average, .641 OPS), but still wasn’t an option against the lefty-heavy Guardians in the postseason. Confusing year.

Mid-term grade: C-plus

Final grade: C

• Tyler Holton (7-2, 2.19): A portrait of consistency and versatile brilliance for two years. He opened, he closed, he did everything in between and did it expertly. He led all Major League pitchers (minimum 90 innings) with a 0.78 WHIP, a .173 opponent average and a .500 opponent OPS. He threw five different pitches that held hitters under .200. Per Statcast, his overall run value of 23 ranks in the top 4 percentile in baseball, his run value of 21 on his fastball ranks in the top 2 percentile and his 32.8% hard-hit rate ranks in the top 9 percentile. He threw 100 innings, counting the playoffs this season. And that’s really the only worry going forward. We won’t know until next year if that heavy workload took any kind of toll on his arm.

Final grade: A-minus

• Will Vest (3-4, 2.82): Such a valuable matchup weapon for manager AJ Hinch, especially with his ability to neutralize left-handed hitters (.206, two extra base hits in 116 plate appearances). Nobody was more central to the Tigers’ late run than Vest. From Aug. 18 on he allowed three earned runs with 16 strikeouts and one walk in 17.2 innings and pitched another six innings (one run) in the postseason. Opponents hit .183 with a .236 slug against his high-ride four-seam fastball and they were 2 for 21 against his changeup. Telling stat: Opponents put 205 balls in play against him and only six were scored as barrels by Statcast. That 2.9% barrel rate ranks in the top 1 percentile in baseball.

Mid-term grade: B-minus

• Beau Brieske (4-5, 3.59): His powerful performance down the stretch and into the postseason won’t soon be forgotten. Bailing the Tigers out of one critical jam after another, with his fastball ringing triple digits in September, brought back memories of when Joel Zumaya burst upon the scene. Hopefully Brieske won’t be as much of a comet as Zumaya was. In the month of September, he opened five games and closed three. He allowed two earned runs in 17.2 innings with 15 strikeouts, holding hitters to a .113 average and a sub-.500 OPS. His only issues were self-inflicted (11 walks). He pitched six innings in the postseason and allowed one it — the pivotal homer by David Fry in Game 4. The slider always has been his iffy pitch, and when that came around for him down the stretch, it was a difference-maker.

Mid-term grade: C

Final grade: B-minus

• Brenan Hanifee (1-1, 1.84): He finally got the call in August and became another useful matchup tool in the bullpen, another right-handed reliever who could neutralize left-handed hitters (.182/.270/.364). His power sinker (95 mph) and changeup did the heavy lifting against lefties, but he also brought an effective slider and four-seamer to the party. Hinch often effectively used Hanifee as a bridge between an opener and a bulk reliever, enabling him to find the most advantageous pocket for whoever the bulk guy was.

Mid-term grade: N/A

Final grade: B-minus

• Sean Guenther (3-0, 0.86): What a pleasant surprise this left-hander turned out to be. Called back up on Aug. 22, he allowed just one earned run 19.2 innings the rest of the way, and then pitched three innings (one run) in the postseason. With a precise array of sinkers, splitters and sliders, he induced an incredible 63% ground ball rate. He entered a mess in Baltimore and got out of it with a one-pitch double-play ball. Next outing in Kansas City, he did the same thing, only it took him two pitches. His left-handed consistency allowed the Tigers to use Holton to open games and not worry about getting big left-handed hitters out in the later innings. Lefties were 4 for 32 against him, righties 5 for 37. He gave up just three extra base hits in 21 innings.

Mid-term grade: N/A

• Alex Faedo (5-3, 3.61): A season that started out so promising was derailed first with a hip injury that cost him most of June, then he was shut down in August with shoulder soreness. He was limited to nine outings after the All-Star break. When he was healthy, though, he was one of the few relievers who could miss bats (31% whiff rate) and, with his four-seam, changeup and slider mix, he was toughest on lefties (.181/.261/.305).

Mid-term grade: B-minus

Final grade: B-minus

• Shelby Miller (6-8, 4.53): Strange ending to a rollercoaster ride of a season. Miller bailed the Tigers out of a jam in the second game of a road trip in Kansas City on Sept. 17 and then didn’t pitch in any of the other five games on the trip. He was informed when the team landed back in Detroit that he’d been designated for assignment. There were stretches when he was lights-out and there stretches where he struggled to get outs. Ultimately, the Tigers wanted to let Jobe get his feet wet and Miller had fallen to the back of Hinch’s trust tree in the bullpen.

Mid-term grade: C

Final grade: C