Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch gathered his thoughts and offered a reminder to everyone after his team's American League Central lead dropped to 1½ games over the Cleveland Guardians — down from 9½ games just 10 days ago.

"Guess who controls our own destiny?"

He paused.

"We do."

Of course, the same is true for the Guardians in the AL Central. Expert MLB daily picks: Unique MLB betting insights only at USA TODAY

The Tigers were stunned in a 6-5 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Saturday, Sept. 20, at Comerica Park, giving up three runs in the final two innings. Meanwhile, the Guardians won Game 1 of their doubleheader Saturday against the Minnesota Twins ; a win in Game 2 would trim the Tigers' lead to just one game.

The collapsing Tigers (85-70) have seven games remaining, i

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