The Cubs could have, and possibly should have, won this game.

DETROIT — If you can’t quite place the song I took this recap’s headline from, here it is:

The Cubs lost the series opener to the Tigers 3-1 in front of a raucous crowd that made Friday evening feel like a postseason game. (And wouldn’t it be great to see these two teams in this year’s World Series?)

Ben Brown pitched an outstanding game. Good defensive plays were made. And yet, the Cubs made some baserunning mistakes and errors that might have cost them the chance to defeat Tarik Skubal, who’s got a chance to win a second straight Cy Young Award, and who also had himself a terrific outing.

Neither team scored over the first four innings. Here’s Brown striking out Kerry Carpenter to end the first with a nasty knuckle curve [

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