Leyland won't let Tigers rest on laurels

DETROIT -- The Tigers are 10 games above .500 and guaranteed to be in first place through the All-Star break, but after a trip to the World Series, that doesn't cut it for everybody.

"We've done pretty good," manager Jim Leyland said, "though we haven't lived up to the unrealistic expectation of some people. Some people thought we were supposed to run away with the [American League] Central and be in the playoffs and be in the World Series. It doesn't work like that."

The Tigers were 48-44 after 92 games last season, compared with 51-41 this year.

"It's 'grind it out until the end and see who's standing,'" Leyland said. "That's kind of what we did last year, and that's what you do in this business."

Despite Detroit's 15-11 record against the AL East and 12-12 mark against the AL West, some critics say the AL Central is weaker competition than the other divisions.

"I've been hearing that about the division for a while now," Leyland said. "We were in the Central division last year, and we went to the World Series."