When my nearly 90-year-old grandpa, Bill Birkle, was forced to the hospital for pneumonia, it was the Detroit Tigers that kept his mind off things.

The Tigers led the AL Central by seven games on Sept. 6, 2009, and proceeded to finish the year 11-15 while the Twins won 18 of 26. That forced a Game 163, where the Tigers appropriately blew a 10th-inning lead to ultimately lose in 12.

The Tigers limped into the All-Star Break, and they are struggling coming out of it as well. After getting shut out in the first game of the series on Friday night, Detroit had little to show for it on Saturday. Despite scoring a run, thanks to a Riley Greene homer in the ninth inning, the Tigers still came up short, losing 4-1.

Yes, but their typical Sunday afternoon game has been moved to the evening, with the Tigers playing the Rangers on ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball" at 7:10 p.m. ET. Date: Sunday, July 20. Time: 7:10 p.m. ET. Location: Globe Life Field, Arlington, Texas.

Riley Greene homered in the ninth inning to keep the Tigers from being shut out for the second straight game in Texas.

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The Texas Rangers let a sweep of the Detroit Tigers slip through their fingers on Sunday night. But two out of three isn’t bad.

The Detroit Tigers play their first series after the All-Star break against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.