Guardians pull away with a five-run eighth to beat Detroit 6-1 and even the AL Wild Card series. Detroit’s offense collapses with a franchise postseason-record 15 left on base, going 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position, while Javier Báez provides the Tigers’ lone hit in the fourth. Brayan Rocchio belts a go-ahead homer in the eighth as Steven Kwan and Daniel Schneemann add back-to-back doubles and Bo Naylor caps it with a three-run shot. A video-replay two-base play on McKinstry causes a late delay, and Greene watches a pinch-hit move for Jahmai Jones.

Detroit’s pitchers Casey Mize, Tyler Holton and Kyle Finnegan shut Cleveland down for seven innings before the eighth, but Troy Melton and Brant Hurter faltered in relief. The Tigers’ aggressiveness on the bases keeps the game tight early, but Cleveland's bullpen locks it down late. Hinch’s decision to pinch-hit for Riley Greene in the seventh becomes a talking point as the Guardians seize control and shift momentum into the decisive Game 3.

The Guardians face elimination in Game 2, sending Tanner Bibee to the mound against Detroit after Tarik Skubal’s Game 1 success. Bibee has torched the Tigers in 2025, delivering 21 strikeouts across 19 innings with only a few runs allowed, while Cleveland’s late-life offense shows grit despite two misplays in Game 1.

Two Beacon Journal writers peg Cleveland as the slight favorite, predicting a tight win (4-3 or 3-2) that would push the series to a decisive Game 3, where bullpen depth and timely hits could tilt the outcome.

Tarik Skubal’s 14-strikeout showdown carried Detroit to a 2-1 win in the AL wild-card opener, tying a Tigers postseason record and showing velocity spikes that peaked above 100 mph across 11 pitches. The performance set a throwback tone, even as the Tigers leaned on small-ball when it mattered most.

Detroit stretched a seventh-inning go-ahead moment into victory with Zack McKinstry’s perfectly executed safety squeeze to score Riley Green, and two sacrificed bunts underscored a grind-it-out mindset. Cleveland mounted two unearned runs off miscues, but Skubal and the Tigers’ plan prevailed as the series moves to Game 2 with Casey Mize facing Tanner Bibee, before a potential ALDS rematch with Seattle.