Tigers blanked by Guardians; AL Central lead cut to 4 1/2 games

Chris McCosky, The Detroit News on Sep 17, 2025

Published in Baseball

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DETROIT — Things just keep getting tighter and tighter.

For the second night in a row, the Cleveland Guardians made the biggest plays defensively and got the biggest hits.

Three two-out RBI singles provided the margin of victory Wednesday night as the Guardians beat the Detroit Tigers 4-0 in front of 34,415 at Comerica Park.

The loss cut the Tigers’ lead in the Central Division to 4 1/2 games, as thin as their lead has been since May 20.

George Valera in the third and pinch-hitter Angel Martinez in the sixth delivered the early RBI knocks. Then, with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth, Bo Naylor lined an 0-2 changeup from Jose Urquidy into right field to score two more.

The Guardians drew eight walks, three scored.

The Tigers, meanwhile, were 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position. They only managed to get three runners into scoring position.

Left fielder Steven Kwan saved two runs with long running catches in deep left-center. He took extra bases away from Zach McKinstry with a runner on in the second inning and did the same to Dillon Dingler in the fourth.

Cleveland right-hander Gavin Williams continued his mastery over the Tigers, blanking them on three hits over five innings with nine strikeouts. He hasn’t allowed the Tigers to score in 20 straight innings dating to July 25, 2024.

They did make him work, though. Riley Greene saw 22 pitches in his first two at-bats, striking out in 12 pitches and walking in 10. Williams needed 49 pitches to complete two innings.

Thus, the short outing.

The Tigers produced just one hit against a quintet of Guardians relievers, though they created two scoring chances.

Kerry Carpenter singled to lead off the sixth against lefty Tim Herrin and when center fielder Martinez muffed the ball, he hustled into second. But that’s where he stayed.

Right-fielder Nolan Jones made a diving catch of a sinking liner by Greene to save a run.

The Tigers worked a pair of walks in the seventh, but lefty Erik Sabrowski quelled the threat getting pinch-hitter Andy Ibanez and Gleyber Torres.

Before the game, Hinch was asked about what unlocks the good version of Jack Flaherty.

“He needs a certain amount of emotion to pitch and a certain among of edge,” he said. “When he finds that perfect blend, the compete button is really good.”

He wore that compete button out Wednesday.

He started the game with six straight outs, including getting a called third strike on Jose Ramirez with a 95-mph heater. But the next three innings were fraught as his command grew less precise.

A pair of walks in the third set up a two-out RBI single by Valera. And that was the only run on the board for five innings.

Flaherty stranded a leadoff double in the fourth. And in the fifth, he struck out Kyle Manzardo with the bases loaded, after he fell behind in the count 3-1.

He beat with him with a pair of challenge fastballs, 94 mph.

He ended up throwing 95 pitches in five innings, 53 strikes and 42 balls. He threw first-pitch strikes to just 10 of 21 hitters. Labor-intensive, for sure, but the Guardians mustered only three hits off him.

The Tigers are 26-29 since the All-Star break and have lost 14 of their last 21 games.

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