LIVE: Tigers-Guardians AL Division Series Game 1 (TBS)
35 minutes ago
CLEVELAND — It’s an American League Central showdown.
For the first time in MLB history, the Tigers and the Guardians are set to go head to head in the postseason. Welcome to the AL Division Series, where two teams with two similar styles of play are each looking to continue to overcome the odds and make a deep run in October.
It’s the AL Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal and the Tigers against baseball’s best bullpen and the Guardians. It’s a pair of clubs known for producing runs via base hits more often than home runs. It’s Cleveland, which had the second-most comeback victories in the Majors this season, against Detroit, which was tied for the second-most ninth-inning comebacks.
Let’s not forget that no two teams know each other better. The Tigers have played the Guardians more than they have any other team. That’s 2,326 meetings between each of them … and none of them were in the postseason.
“I think those are the little things about baseball that are so beautiful is how you can play in the same league for a hundred something years and never meet up in the postseason, and then you finally do it,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “I just love the game and I love the history of the game, so it’ll be a fun weekend.”
The Tigers, whose late-season surge into the playoffs came after their last matchup against the Guardians on July 30, will approach their division rivals with Skubal and a procession of openers and bulk pitchers. They’ll also arrive in Cleveland with a young club surging in confidence after sweeping the postseason-veteran Astros in the AL Wild Card Series.
“This is what you play for,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “Baseball’s great. It’s going to lead you in so many different — down so many different holes, rabbit holes. And the mental grind of the season and putting it all together with this group for this team and not just being satisfied getting to the playoffs, but winning a playoff series and getting to go play a familiar team.”
The Guardians won the regular-season series, 7-6. Seven of those games were one-run decisions.
When is the game and how can I watch it?Game 1 is set to begin Saturday at 1:08 p.m. ET, with the broadcast airing on TBS, TruTV and Max.
Who are the starting pitchers?Tigers: Tyler HoltonIf you’re new to the Tigers’ ride, welcome to what manager A.J. Hinch called “pitching chaos,” in which openers and bulk relievers muck up pitching probables on days when Skubal isn’t starting. As dangerous as the top of Cleveland’s lineup is, Hinch deployed Holton as the opener for Game 1. Holton pitched in both games of the Wild Card Series, starting one, allowing no hits in 1 1/3 innings.
Guardians: Tanner BibeeBibee has evolved into the Guardians’ ace after the team lost Shane Bieber in the first week of the season and desperately needed someone else to step up. In his last 22 outings of the season, half of them were quality starts. Cleveland needed an innings-eater, and Bibee averaged just about six innings per outing in that span. Most importantly, his last three starts were among his best of the season. He’s faced the Tigers four times this year, pitching to a 4.50 ERA in 22 innings.
What are the starting lineups?Tigers: Left-handed hitters have a much better OPS off Bibee (.780) than righties (.579), including 14 of Bibee’s 22 home runs allowed. That plays into the Tigers’ strength of left-handed hitting, particularly with Kerry Carpenter (2-for-4 with a home run off Bibee), Riley Greene (3-for-12) and Colt Keith (4-for-9 with three RBIs) in the middle of the order. That said, Matt Vierling is 3-for-9 with two homers off Bibee.
Kerry Carpenter, DH
Matt Vierling, RF
Riley Greene, LF
Colt Keith, 2B
Spencer Torkelson, 1B
Zach McKinstry, 3B
Trey Sweeney, SS
Jake Rogers, C
Guardians: It all depends on who the opposing starter is. Guardians manager Stephen Vogt has said all season long that he constructs the lineup to beat the starter every single night. Even though the playoffs are a different animal and starters may only stay in for a few innings, Vogt said his approach isn’t changing.
With a lefty opener in Holton for the Tigers, David Fry is in the lineup instead of Kyle Manzardo in the two-hole, with Jhonkensy Noel in right field instead of Will Brennan.
David Fry, DH
José Ramírez, 3B
Josh Naylor, 1B
Lane Thomas, CF
Andrés Giménez, 2B
Jhonkensy Noel, RF
Bo Naylor, C
Brayan Rocchio, SS
How will the bullpens line up after the starter?Tigers: Detroit doesn’t have as dominant of a late-inning relief corps as Cleveland, but the Tigers have depth. Brieske has emerged as a hard-throwing versatile weapon capable of pitching at any point in the game. Holton provides similar versatility from the left side. Will Vest has been a stabilizing force in the late innings ahead of closer Jason Foley. The wild cards — no pun intended — are lefty Sean Guenther and righty Brenan Hanifee, who arrived from Triple-A Toledo in August to provide different looks after working with the Tigers’ pitching development department.
Guardians: Cleveland is still working through who will fill the final spots in the ‘pen, but honestly, it doesn’t matter. This group has proven that no matter who is called up, they can get the job done. The relief corps ended the season with the fourth-best bullpen ERA by any team since 1995. Rookie Cade Smith will probably be the guy used in the first high-leverage situation of a game. Tim Herrin will tackle the lefties. Hunter Gaddis will have the eighth inning. And everyone knows Emmanuel Clase will handle the ninth. With off-days between Games 1, 2 and 3, expect Vogt to be ultra aggressive turning to his trusty ‘pen.
Any injuries of note?Tigers: Javier Báez is out for the season following right hip surgery in August.
Guardians: Righty starter Alex Cobb was the only player the Guardians were waiting on. He had been dealing with a blister on his throwing hand during the last few weeks of the season, and he hasn’t pitched in a game since Sept. 1. But he recovered just in time to make the ALDS roster and will probably start Game 3.
Who’s hot?Tigers: Jake Rogers went 3-for-8 in the AL Wild Card series win over Houston. Parker Meadows went 2-for-9 with a home run and two runs scored. … Andy Ibáñez, who hit a go-ahead bases-clearing double in Wednesday’s series-clinching win at Houston, went 6-for-18 with three homers and five RBIs against Cleveland in the regular season. … Vierling has a two-game postseason hitting streak, and he batted .250 with two homers and seven RBIs against the Guardians in the regular season.
Guardians: The best news for Cleveland is that its hottest hitter right now is probably its best hitter: José Ramírez. Although he’s already turned the page at the lost opportunity of trying to reach a 40-40 season with the Game 162 rainout on Sunday, his quest to reach the milestone heated his bat up over the final week of the regular season, as he hit .462 with a 1.618 OPS in his last seven games.
Did you know?At 26 years, 169 days, the Tigers finished the season as MLB’s youngest team, and the Guardians were the third youngest (27 years, 26 days). According to Elias, this ALDS marks the first postseason series between two of the five youngest teams in MLB that season.