For the first time in 184 days, the Detroit Tigers no longer have first place in the American League Central to themselves, and now they are playing for their postseason lives.
The Tigers, who held a 9 1/2-game division lead just two weeks ago — on Sept. 10 — are now tied with the Cleveland Guardians with 85-72 records and five games to play after Detroit’s 5-2 loss to Cleveland on Tuesday.
The division foes will meet again Wednesday night in Cleveland in a must-win game for Detroit. Cleveland already has clinched the tiebreaker between the clubs for the division title.
What was shaping up to be a summer stroll for Detroit to the AL Central championship has turned into a fall sprint, and Cleveland is gaining ground with every step. The Guardians are 17-5 this month, 11-1 in the past two weeks.
The Tigers are 5-14 in September, 1-10 since Sept. 11. Their lead over the Guardians stood at 15 1/2 games entering play on July 9.
“It felt like a playoff game,” Tigers outfielder Riley Greene said of the opener of the three-game series. “At the end of the day, we’ve got to show up [Wednesday] and win. So that’s what it is.”
Detroit will need perform better than it did Tuesday in order to beat the Guardians. The Tigers struck out 19 times and were 1-for-6 batting with runners in scoring position.
In the sixth inning, with reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal on the mound, the Tigers gave up a 2-0 lead, with the Guardians scoring three. The normally unflappable Skubal committed a throwing error, threw a wild pitch and balked. He appeared especially rattled after his 99-mph pitch struck the bat of designated hitter David Fry, who had squared to bunt but was hit in the face by the foul ball and fell to the ground.
Fry is unlikely to be in the lineup on Wednesday. He was taken to the Cleveland Clinic for testing and observation on Tuesday.
Of the Tigers’ slide, manager A.J. Hinch said: “We are doing a lot of uncharacteristic things. It’s hurting us.”
“We have to get to (Wednesday) and get to a better result. Everybody knows, there’s no hiding behind anything other than showing up ready to play. So right now, we want just good outcomes. And a good outcome would be a complete game for us.”
The Tigers will send out right-hander Jack Flaherty (8-14, 4.60 ERA), who has a 2-4 record and a 2.21 ERA in nine career appearances against the Guardians. He was the losing pitcher last Wednesday when the clubs met in Detroit, with the Guardians winning 4-0. Flaherty gave up one run on three hits and four walks in five innings.
“The team across the way doesn’t feel bad for us,” Skubal said. “So there’s no reason we should feel bad for ourselves. We’ve still got an opportunity to come out and win [Wednesday] and win the series, and that’s what really matters.”
Cleveland has shown in recent weeks that it has plenty of weapons and stellar pitching.
“Oh, we’re having a lot of fun, just trying to keep the momentum going,” said Daniel Schneemann, who drove in two runs Tuesday.
Right-hander Tanner Bibee (11-11, 4.34 ERA) will start for the Guardians on Wednesday. He allowed one run on four hits over six innings while striking out eight in a 3-1 Cleveland win over Detroit on Thursday. He has a 1.25 ERA in three starts this month.
In his career, Bibee is 3-3 with a 3.92 ERA in eight starts against the Tigers.
With the Guardians now tied atop the division, the team’s attitude remains the same.
“Nothing’s changed in the locker room,” said pitcher Gavin Williams, who picked up the win Tuesday. “We’ve all been laughing, joking about everything, taking everything day by day.”
–Field Level Media
