The Erie SeaWolves, the Double-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, are in the playoffs for the fifth straight season. Game 1 of a best-of-three Southwest Division Series against the Richmond Flying Squirrels starts Tuesday night. First pitch is 6:35 p.m. ET at UPMC Park in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Erie won the second-half title in the Southwest Division at 43-26. Richmond took the first half and went 31-36 after the break. The SeaWolves clinched the berth on Sept. 6. The series shifts to Richmond for Game 2 on Thursday and, if necessary, Game 3 on Friday.
Erie SeaWolves Chase a Fifth Straight Championship Series
The SeaWolves have reached the Eastern League Championship Series in each of the last four seasons. Erie won the title in 2023 against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies and in 2024 against the Somerset Patriots. The SeaWolves lost to Somerset in 2022 and to Binghamton in 2025.
A fifth straight trip to the finals would send Erie against the winner of the Northeast Division Series between the Reading Fightin Phils, the Double-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, and the Hartford Yard Goats, the Colorado Rockies affiliate. A title would be Erieβs third in five seasons and third in franchise history.
Zyhir Hope Headlines the Tigers Prospects in Erie
Outfielder Zyhir Hope is the No. 1 prospect in Detroitβs system and is playing in Erie. The Tigers acquired him from the Los Angeles Dodgers organization at the trade deadline as the headliner of the Tarik Skubal trade. Hope played for the Tulsa Drillers, the Dodgersβ Double-A club, before joining the SeaWolves.
In 30 games with Erie, Hope is batting .269 with six home runs, 24 RBIs and eight stolen bases. He has a .360 on-base percentage, a .462 slugging percentage and an .822 OPS. MLB Pipeline lists his ETA in Detroit as 2027.
Thayron Liranzo Brings Championship Series Experience
The other prospect to keep an eye on is catcher and first baseman Thayron Liranzo, who has ranked among MLB Pipelineβs top 10 Tigers prospects this season. Liranzo is batting .199 with 19 home runs, 61 RBIs and two stolen bases. He has a .314 on-base percentage, a .447 slugging percentage and a .761 OPS.
Liranzo is 23 years old and also carries a 2027 ETA. He was on the Erie roster that lost to the Rumble Ponies in last seasonβs championship series.
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