DETROIT – Another pitiful offensive performance doomed the Detroit Tigers in a Game 2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians.
Now, the teams face a winner-take-all Game 3 on Thursday, and the Tigers don’t have Tarik Skubal to save them.
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An offense that has floundered for the better part of a month failed to come through again and again, most notably in the seventh inning, after the first two runners reached base and the Tigers failed to cash in on the first-and-third, no-outs opportunity.
Zach McKinstry also made a critical base running error on Javier Baez’s RBI single in the fourth, getting thrown out at third base to erase the second run from scoring and end the rally.
The Tigers left 15 runners on base and went 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position -- a massive number of missed opportunities for a single game.
Despite those offensive struggles, the game was tied 1-1 heading into the eighth inning, thanks in large part to strong showings by Tyler Holton and Kyle Finnegan in relief of Casey Mize.
But that’s when Troy Melton came in and allowed four earned runs in just a third of an inning, sealing the Tigers’ fate.
Now, the season comes down to one last game in Cleveland -- which has been a house of horrors for Detroit. And the Tigers will start with Jack Flaherty on the mound, a starter who’s been very hit-or-miss throughout 2025.
Cleveland will send out Slade Cecconi, who posted quality starts in both outings against the Tigers this season.