Okay, folks, this week's message is for baseball fans. No, it’s for baseball fan-atics, and I’m freaking jazzed about it.  So if “America’s game” ain’t your thing, tune out and go back to what you were doing. It’s also quite a bit longer than usual, so if you’re still reading, strap in and get ready for a fun ride.

I’ve written and talked for years about some of the crucial connections between baseball and business. One of this season’s teams has proven once again some of my most cherished principles and practices about what makes winners in both arenas.

For those of you who don’t know (or don’t care), the MLB playoffs are underway, and something special is happening. The Detroit Tigers are one of the youngest, hottest teams in baseball. Their average age is just 26.7 years old, and their farm system is full of prospects as young as 18.

Midway through the season, it looked like the team was in a “building phase,” and the playoffs weren’t really in the picture. At the All-Star break, their record was 44-49, and they were ​24th out of 30 teams in power rankings (I’ll come back to that later).

They ended the regular season with an 86-76 record, not great, but they had a strong finish, and it got them into the playoffs.  Last week, they took down the mighty Houston Astros in the wild card round, and they’re now in the ALDS round with the Cleveland Guardians.

For Cinderella fans, it would be exciting to see them win that contest and go onto the World Series, but for purposes of this story, it doesn’t matter. Because there’s something more revealing and exciting happening beneath the scoreboard.

Turns out that the team is practicing principles from “The Growth Equation.” They’ve even adopted a phrase from ​The Practice of Groundedness​ as a motto: “Don’t worry about being the best, worry about being the best at getting better.”

There’s a lot more to what they’re doing, but that core concept is what’s driving their stellar performance – and I predict it will make them perennial winners if they stay the course.  One key statistic illustrates why they’re winning, and it’s their complete disregard for the “power game” that often grabs the sports page headlines.  (Told you I’d come back to it 😉)

As I’ve professed many times before, home runs are exciting, and they even win some games in dramatic fashion at times.  But the teams that win seasons are the masters of “small ball.” Base hits, one after the other, a little bit at a time – that’s what it takes to win over the long haul of a 162-game season.

And THAT, my friends, is one of the most compelling connections between baseball and business. When it comes to getting better, too many companies are enamored with the big win, the proverbial “home run.” Instead, they need to concentrate on the “base hits,” one small improvement after another from everyone on the team – not just the muscle men – building into a constant, steady stream of gains bit-by-bit that collectively leads to unbeatable long-term winners.

BTW, the Tigers will host Game 3 of the ALDS at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, October 9. It will be their first home playoff game since October 5, 2014. I don’t know if they’ll win, but their fans will be going crazy, and I’m betting whatever the outcome, the team is going to continue getting better than before.

If you want to learn how to capture the spirit and the substance of their winning ways with YOUR team, click on the link below and discover how we can help you create a culture of systematic continuous improvement.

6-Week Program for Systematic Continuous Improvement

“Great is the enemy of better”

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