Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Guardians Game 2

Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	R	H	E
DET	0	0	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	3	9	0
CLE	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	0	1	4	6	0

Griffin took the mound for Cleveland riding one of the best value-add trades of the summer — 15-4 with a 3.26 ERA since arriving from Washington in August — while Detroit trotted out Andrew Sears, a rookie lefty making just his second big-league start. On paper it read like a mismatch. In practice, the rain-delayed nightcap turned into exactly the kind of grind doubleheaders produce.

FINAL

Spread

WIN

Total

Tigers

(64-76)

LWLLL

3

+1.5-160+135o8.5+130

Guardians

(71-70)

WLLWW

4

-1.5+156-138u8.5-133

Best BetGuardians -127

Postgame

Cleveland got the win we backed, needing extra innings to finish it off. The rookie-upside case for Sears was real early — Detroit led 3-0 through five — before Cleveland's bullpen depth won out exactly like the case argued, cashing the pick even though it wasn't the laugher the price implied.

Pregame

Cleveland's the better team on paper even in a down stretch, and Detroit is trusting a rookie making one of his first big-league starts to hold up in a hostile building against a club that still has real stakes on the line. The Tigers have shown flashes, including the comeback win to close out their last series, but backing a shorthanded roster on the road with a green arm on the mound is a tough ask.

Both dugouts were feeling the day by the time this one actually got going at 7:15 PM ET. Cleveland had already lost Angel Martinez to a shoulder bruise and watched right-hander Colin Holderman get shipped to the 15-day injured list with wrist inflammation — rough timing for a team about to ask its bullpen to cover two games in one afternoon and evening. Detroit's injury list, meanwhile, remains deep enough to include Justin Verlander, Reese Olson and Trey Sweeney, none of them walking through that clubhouse door anytime soon.

Andrew Sears

(0-1)·4.38 ERA

Foster Griffin

(15-4)·3.26 ERA

Aug 29 vs Royals

ND

5.0IP

2ER

4K

1BB

82P

None of it stopped Detroit from grabbing the early edge. The Tigers scratched across a pair of runs in the third and tacked on another in the fifth to take a 3-0 lead into the sixth, riding exactly the kind of offensive punch that had them putting up 11 runs on Minnesota days earlier.

Detroit Tigers

(13)

• Day-To-DayNewHao-Yu Lee (2B) — Lee was removed from the second game of Friday's doubleheader against the Guardians with a left shin contusion, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.09/05
• 10-Day-ILKerry Carpenter (RF) — Carpenter (foot) was on track to have his walking boot removed this past weekend, MLB.com reports.08/31
• 10-Day-ILMatt Vierling (CF) — Vierling (adductor) encountered a setback recently when he suffered a heel injury, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.08/28
• 15-Day-ILNewJack Flaherty (SP) — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Friday that Flaherty (forearm) could begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo this weekend, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.09/04
• 60-Day-ILBrant Hurter (RP) — Hurter (back) will resume his rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo on Wednesday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.08/26
• 60-Day-ILWenceel Perez (RF) — Perez (orbital) was pulled off his rehab assignment Tuesday, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.08/11
• 60-Day-ILWill Vest (RP) — Vest (elbow) underwent hip surgery Tuesday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.08/11
• 60-Day-ILJustin Verlander (SP) — Verlander (hamstring/hip) threw off the front of the bullpen mound Wednesday, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.08/05
• 60-Day-ILBurch Smith (RP) — Smith is being evaluated after exiting a rehab appearance with Triple-A Toledo on Thursday with right shoulder/lat discomfort, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.07/24
• 60-Day-ILBailey Horn (RP) — Horn (elbow) will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.07/18
• 60-Day-ILParker Meadows (CF) — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Meadows (forearm) has yet to resume hitting and is without a timeline to return from the 60-day injured list, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.06/25
• 60-Day-ILTrey Sweeney (SS) — Sweeney will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery this week, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.06/05
• 60-Day-ILReese Olson (SP) — The Tigers placed Olson on the 60-day injured list Tuesday after he underwent a right shoulder labral repair Feb. 2 that will result in him missing the 2026 season.05/08

Cleveland Guardians

(5)

• Day-To-DayNewChase DeLauter (RF) — DeLauter started in right field and went 4-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and three runs scored in Sunday's 11-1 win over the Royals.09/05
• Day-To-DayNewAngel Martinez (LF) — Martinez was removed from the second game of Friday's doubleheader against the Tigers with a left shoulder bruise, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.09/05
• 10-Day-ILRhys Hoskins (1B) — Hoskins (back) is feeling better but has not yet resumed baseball activity, MLB.com reports.08/30
• 15-Day-ILColin Holderman (RP) — The Guardians placed Holderman on the 15-day injured list Friday with right wrist inflammation, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.09/04
• 60-Day-ILShawn Armstrong (RP) — Armstrong (calf) threw a bullpen session Friday, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.08/28

Cleveland clawed it back an inning at a time — a run in the sixth, two more in the eighth to tie it — before finally putting the Tigers away with a run in the 10th for the 4-3 final. It capped a full doubleheader sweep for the Guardians, who'd already needed a walk-off to take the opener.

Detroit Tigers

(64-76)

09/04L@Guardians6-7

09/02W@Twins11-6

09/01L@Twins2-15

08/31L@Twins1-11

08/30LvsDodgers1-6

Cleveland Guardians

(71-70)

09/04WvsTigers7-6

09/03LvsBlue Jays3-6

09/02LvsBlue Jays0-11

09/01WvsBlue Jays6-1

08/30WvsRoyals11-1

For a Tigers team well under .500 and picking through a rotation that already includes Flaherty on a rehab clock, it's the same story that's defined their September: competitive into the middle innings, undone late. For Cleveland, it's a Griffin start that didn't need to be his best to still be enough — the trade continues to look like exactly what the front office needed down the stretch.