Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez. Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Guardians star makes a big blunder in Game 1 loss to Tigers

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated Sep 30, 2025 4:31 PM ET

Jose Ramirez made a baserunning error that hurt his Cleveland Guardians during Game 1 of their wild-card game against the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday.

The Guardians lost Game 1 in the best-of-three series at Progressive Field in Cleveland. Cleveland was down 2-1 in the bottom of the ninth and got Ramirez to third as its leadoff batter in the inning. He had delivered an infield single and advanced to third on a throwing error. Since there were no outs, the Guardians had a golden chance to tie the game. But George Valera struck out, and then Ramirez made a mistake.

Kyle Manzardo hit a chopper back to pitcher Will Vest, and Ramirez had started to go home. Vest got Ramirez in a rundown and tagged him out for the second out.

The Guardians hit a tapper that the Tigers contained. Will Vest chased down Jose Ramirez. Huge. pic.twitter.com/8IqU6mOUXB
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) September 30, 2025

With the threat of a runner on third erased, the Tigers could breath a little easier. They got C.J. Kayfus to fly out to end the game, giving them a 1-0 series lead.

Would Kayfus’ at-bat have gone differently had Ramirez still been on third base? We’ll never know, but getting tagged out on that play certainly did not help their efforts.

Game 2 of the series is on Wednesday in Cleveland. The Tigers can move on to the ALDS with a win.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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