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Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Costly Mistakes Doom Tigers in Game 2 to Set Up Wild Card Finale Against Guardians

Originally posted on Detroit Tigers on SI | By Brad Wakai | Last updated Oct 1, 2025 4:38 PM ET

The Detroit Tigers left some meat on the bone in Game 1 of the Wild Card matchup against the Cleveland Guardians, but thankfully their superstar ace Tarik Skubal made up for it with his historic outing.

Heading into Game 2, the Tigers knew they had to be much better on offense if they were going to take down their division rivals and set up a showdown with the Seattle Mariners in the American League Division Series.

With Casey Mize pitching opposite of Tanner Bibee, Detroit had their hands full. While Mize has shown flashes of his past No. 1 overall pick self, he's also been inconsistent. And considering this lineup has had issues producing against Bibee, the entire pitching staff needed to show up with their best stuff.

They did that until the latter stages of the game when the dam broke open, as Cleveland won Game 2 by a score of 6-1 with a charge in the bottom of the eighth inning to set up a do-or-die Game 3 that will be the final time these rivals meet in 2025.

Casey Mize Battled Tanner Bibee in Latest Pitcher's Duel

It wasn't a long outing for Mize, but he did the role that was asked of him.

While he gave up a home run in the bottom of the first inning to George Valera, the right-hander was able to settle in after that and get through three innings where that lone hit resulted in the only run. The decision to pull Mize was an interesting one considering he had pitched a three up, three down inning in the bottom of the third. But that's the strategy manager A.J. Hinch has gone with in the past.

On the other side, Bibee was chased after 4 2/3 innings. The Tigers had multiple chances to blow the game open, but they couldn't break through. And perhaps the turning point in the game came in the top of the fourth inning, when Detroit tied things up.

Zach McKinstry Costs Tigers One Run With Baserunning Error

With the bases loaded and two outs, Javier Baez delivered for the Tigers. He ripped a single up the middle of the field that looked like it was going to score two runs to give Detroit the lead. But instead of being satisfied with that and keeping the momentum going, Zach McKinstry tried to go from first to third.

Initially he was ruled safe. But upon replay review, it was determined that he was actually thrown out at third to end the inning. And to make matters worse, it took place before the second run crossed the plate, which took the second run off the board for the Tigers and kept the game tied at one.

After review, Zach Mckinstry was ruled out and the game remains tied at 1 because the runner did not score in time pic.twitter.com/TCkmIxuuZi
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) October 1, 2025

The mistake proved to be costly, as the relievers Hinch turned to after pulling Mize were lights out. Tyler Holton got things started with 2 1/3 scoreless innings where he gave up just one hit. Kyle Finnegan continued his excellence since coming to Detroit by pitching 1 2/3 shutout innings where he didn't allow a single hit.

All of that should have given the Tigers plenty of chances to put one on the board against the Guardians to give themselves the lead since they had traffic on the basepaths virtually the entire day. But once again, the offense's inability to come through cost them dearly.

Guardians Break Through in Bottom of the Eighth Inning

After a while, it felt like only a matter of time before Cleveland was going to deliver for their home fans. And that's exactly what happened in the bottom of the eighth inning against Troy Melton. With the right-hander coming on and getting the first batter he faced out, he gave up a solo home run to nine-hole hitter Brayan Rocchio.

Then, the floodgates opened. Steven Kwan hit a double that was followed by pinch hitter Daniel Schneemann driving Kwan home with a double of his own. Three batters later, after Jose Ramirez was intentionally walked and Kyle Manzardo grounded out, Bo Naylor blasted a three-run homer to give the Guardians a 6-1 lead they ultimately secured.

Now, it's back to the drawing board for the Tigers as they try to figure out ways they can actually produce offense in a must-win game on Thursday.