Guardians alone atop AL Central after beating Tigers again
The American League Central is deadlocked no more.
For the first time since April 22, the Detroit Tigers don’t have at least a share of first place in the division. And that’s because the Cleveland Guardians beat them again Wednesday, Sept. 24, this time 5-1 at Progressive Field in Cleveland.
Like they did Tuesday, the Guardians fell behind first after the Tigers scored a run in the third inning off starter Tanner Bibee. Cleveland answered in the bottom of the inning when rookie George Valera hit a two-run homer off Detroit starter Jack Flaherty. Steven Kwan gave the Guardians an insurance run with an RBI single in the fifth, and fan favorite Jose Ramirez put the game out of reach with a two-out, two-run double in the seventh.
Guardians vs Tigers highlights
Guardians vs Tigers final score
Cleveland wins 5-1, its fifth consecutive win against the Tigers, to put the Guardians in sole possession of first place in the AL Central.
Tigers ninth inning
Junis stays in for the Guardians, who are looking to close this one out.
- Riley Greene: groundout to second base. 1 out.
- Wenceel Perez: popout to shortstop in shallow center. 2 outs.
- Zach McKinstry: singles to left between short and third. Still two outs, and now Cleveland will turn to closer Cade Smith.
- Dillon Dingler: groundout to second. 3 outs. Ballgame.
Guardians eighth inning
Paul Sewald, who started the season on the Guardians roster, became the fifth pitcher of the night for Detroit. He allowed a leadoff single to Bo Naylor, but then got Gabriel Arias, Daniel Schneemann and Petey Halpin to fly out to get out of the inning. Score: Guardians 5, Tigers 1.
Tigers eighth inning
Jakob Junis came on for Cleveland and set the Tigers down in order with strikeouts of Gleyber Torres and Spencer Torkelson sandwiching a groundout by Kerry Carpenter. Detroit is down to its final three outs. Score: Guardians 5, Tigers 1.
Guardians score two more in seventh inning
Progressive Field is rockin’ after the Guardians adding two more runs to pad their lead over the Tigers, whose stunning late-season collapse appears to be spiraling out of control.
The Guardians loaded the bases with nobody out, and then got a two-out double by José Ramírez to plate two baserunners.
The inning opened with Daniel Schneemann taking first on a bases on balls and then C.J. Kayfus singled to right. A dropped foul ball pop fly by catcher Dillon Dingler opened the door for Brayan Rocchio to load the bases on another walk.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch wasn’t messing around and called on his closer Will Vest to shut down a scoring threat. It didn’t work. After getting Steven Kwan to fly out and striking out George Valera, Vest gave up the double to Ramírez. Score: Guardians 5, Tigers 1.
Tigers seventh inning
The Guardians are counting on their bullpen to close out an 18th win in 21 games.
Left-hander Tim Herrin replaced Tanner Bibee on the bump and it was nervy at first. After hitting Zach McKinstry with a pitch, Herrin went to a full count against Dillon Dingler before registering a strikeout. After Andy Ibáñez grounded into a force out at second base, Herrin was sent to the dugout in favor of right-hander Hunter Gaddis, who promptly struck out Jahmai Jones. Score: Guardians 3, Tigers 1.
Guardians sixth inning
Tyler Holton kept the Tigers’ deficit at two runs with a 1-2-3 inning. After Kyle Manzardo grounded out, Holton struck out Bo Naylor and Gabriel Arias. Score: Guardians 3, Tigers 1.
Tigers sixth inning
Tanner Bibee kept the Tigers at bay, again.
Riley Greene’s single ended a run of seven consecutive batters retired by Bibee, but the hurler had little trouble making sure his team maintained its two-run lead. With 105 pitches through six innings, this was the final inning for Bibee. It was quite an effort for the 26-year-old right-hander in his third big league season. This marks 19 consecutive games that the Guardians’ starting pitcher has given up two or fewer runs. Score: Guardians 3, Tigers 1.
Guardians add to lead in fifth inning
Cleveland made the most of Brayan Rocchio’s second hit of the game. Rocchio swiped second base as Steven Kwan faked a bunt. Moments later, Kwan hit a line drive to left center that drove home Rocchio. Classic manufacturing a run baseball from the Guardians. It’s what good teams do to win ballgames.
Kwan’s hit chased Tigers starter Jack Flaherty from the game. Flaherty, who is tied for the American League lead in losses (14), is on the hook for this one, too. Tyler Holton came on in relief and recorded the final outs of the inning to minimize the damage. Score: Guardians 3, Tigers 1.
Tigers fifth inning
Guardians starter Tanner Bibee is cruising right along, completing a casual 1-2-3 inning. Trey Sweeney popped out, Parker Meadows struck out and Gleyber Torres grounded out to shortstop. Score: Guardians 2, Tigers 1.
Guardians fourth inning
Cleveland was unable to add to its lead, going down in order.
Bo Naylor grounded out to shortshop, Gabriel Arias struck out and Daniel Schneemann grounded out to first base. Score: Guardians 2, Tigers 1.
Tigers fourth inning
Detroit hitters have done a great job of being patient against Tanner Bibee, who’s now at 80 pitches through four.
Spencer Torkelson led off the inning with a single and then, after a Riley Greene strikeout, Wenceel Perez drew a walk. Zach McKinstry followed with a fielder’s choice to second and Dillon Dingler ended the inning with a fielder’s choice to third to end the threat. Score: Guardians 2, Tigers 1.
Guardians bounce back to take the lead
Cleveland wasted no time grabbing the lead, and it came from unexpected source.
No. 9 hitter Brayan Rocchio led off the inning with an opposite-field double to left and moved to third on a groundout by Steven Kwan. That brought up rookie designated hitter George Valera, who teed off on the first pitch and sent it over the center-field fence, over a leaping attempt by Parker Meadows. Valera let out a scream as he rounded the bases to celebrate his second career homer. Score: Guardians 2, Tigers 1.
Tigers get on scoreboard first
Just like in Tuesday’s series opener, Detroit is the first team to score.
Back-to-back one-out singles in the third inning by Dillon Dingler and Trey Sweeney, the Tigers’ 8-9 hitters, put runners at first and third. Parker Meadows followed with a hard line drive to right, where C.J. Kayfus secured the catch with a dive. Dingler easily tagged up and scored from third. Following another single by Gleyber Torres, Bibee got Kerry Carpenter to ground out to first to snuff further damage. Score: Tigers 1, Guardians 0.
Guardians second inning
For the second inning in a row, Cleveland got a two-out runner into scoring position but couldn’t chase him home. Jack Flaherty retired Bo Naylor and Gabriel Arias on strikes to lead off the inning, but then Daniel Schneemann hit a hard grounder to first that Spencer Torkelson couldn’t field and it trickled into right field. Schneemann ended up at second, where he was stranded after C.J. Kayfus lined out to left. Score: Tigers 0, Guardians 0.
Tigers second inning
Tanner Bibee struck out Spencer Torkelson looking to start the second, but then he walked Riley Greene on five pitches. After getting ahead 0-2 against Wenceel Perez, Bibee threw three consecutive balls before getting Perez to hit a smash to second baseman Brayan Rocchio, who gloved and started a 4-6-3 double play to end the top of 2. Score: Tigers 0, Guardians 0.
Guardians first inning
Jack Flaherty worked around a two-out double by Jose Ramirez by striking out Kyle Manzardo on three pitches. Steven Kwan led off Cleveland’s half of the first with a hard groundout to second, and then George Valera struck out before Ramirez’s 32nd double of the year. Score: Tigers 0, Guardians 0.
Tigers first inning
Tanner Bibee set down the Tigers 1-2-3 in the first inning on 14 pitches. After getting Austin Meadows to fly out and Gleyber Torres to ground out, Bibee struck out Kerry Carpenter on a diverse pitch mix. Score: Tigers 0, Guardians coming to bat.
How to watch Tigers vs Guardians
- Date: Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025
- Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
- Where: Progressive Field in Cleveland
- TV: FOX Sports Detroit, CLEGuardians.TV
- Stream: Fubo
Stream Tigers at Guardians with Fubo
Guardians take the field
After a 35-minute weather delay, the Guardians take the field, and the second game of this crucial three-game series is about to begin.
Guardians vs Tigers weather
Dreary Cleveland skies have cause the start of this AL Central showdown to be delayed. First pitch is now scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET.
Guardians starting pitcher
Cleveland will go with right-hander Tanner Bibee, who has allowed just three earned runs over his last 21⅔ innings, which spans three starts. He’s 2-0 during that stretch, and is 11-1 with a 4.34 ERA on the season. He’s faced Detroit twice this year and is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA in 13 innings. He’s racked up 16 strikeouts with just three walks against the Tigers in 2025.
Tigers starting pitcher
Detroit’s starter Wednesday will be Jack Flaherty, who is 8-14 with a 4.60 ERA this season. Flaherty has faced the Guardians twice this season, going 0-2 with a 3.09 ERA. His last game against Cleveland came last week in Detroit when he allowed one earned run over five innings, but took the loss.
Guardians starting lineup
- Steven Kwan, LF
- George Valera, DH
- Jose Ramirez, 3B
- Kyle Mnazardo, 1B
- Bo Naylor, C
- Gabriel Arias, SS
- Daniel Schneemann, CF
- C.J. Kayfus, RF
- Brayan Rocchio, 2B
Tigers starting lineup
- Parker Meadows, CF
- Gleyber Torres, 2B
- Kerry Carpenter, DH
- Spencer Torkelson, 1B
- Riley Greene, LF
- Wenceel Perez, RF
- Zach McKinstry, 3B
- Dillon Dingler, C
- Trey Sweeney, SS
AL Central standings
Heading into games on Wednesday, Sept. 24.
- Cleveland Guardians: 85-72
- Detroit Tigers: 85-72
- Kansas City Royals: 79-78
- Minnesota Twins: 68-89
- Chicago White Sox: 58-99
MLB playoff bracket
Heading into games on Wednesday, Sept. 24. (*-denotes playoff berth has been clinched)
American League playoff bracket
- *Toronto Blue Jays 90-67
- *Seattle Mariners 88-69
- Cleveland Guardians 85-72
- *New York Yankees 89-68
- Boston Red Sox 86-71
- Detroit Tigers 85-72
National League playoff bracket
- *Milwaukee Brewers 95-63
- *Philadelphia Phillies 92-65
- *Los Angeles Dodgers 88-69
- *Chicago Cubs 88-69
- *San Diego Padres 87-71
- New York Mets 81-76
