Most important series of season?

With 60-plus games to go, it is a bit difficult to say such a thing. But in the case of the Tigers, it probably is the most crucial series of the season. With Minnesota losing three at NY this week, and the Tigers taking 5 of 7 on a road trip, the Central race tightened up a bit. Just think if the Tigers could have won that one game in Baltimore, in which they blew a 6-0 lead and lost a 10-9 lead in the ninth? They'd be 4.5 games out of first and two games back of second-place Minnesota.
Even if they take two of three this weekend from the ChiSox, the Tigers will still be stuck in third and still chasing two teams. The only way they make the playoffs, unfortunately, is having a huge, huge second half. And that blown game in Baltimore is something they MUST avoid.
Game 1 of this series is in the hands of Nate Robertson, and, quite frankly, he's been a tad better than awful this season. He's the pitcher who failed to hold onto the 6-0 lead in Baltimore, and it seems for every good outing he's had this season he's had about four terrible ones.
The Tigers need their pitchers to round into shape, especially the starters. Verlander and Galarraga look fine, and they seem to go deeper into games to take the pressure of the bullpen. But everyone else just milks the pen; and an overused pen is not the way to come from behind in a pennant race.
Robertson is a key figure in this second half. He's blown one sure victory; let's see if he can get the Tigers off to a good start tonight.