Evan Petzold and Jeff Seidel break down the Detroit Tigers’ 6-1 loss vs Guardians in Game 2 of the AL wild-card series on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025.
The Detroit Tigers have one last chance to exorcise their late-season demons against the Cleveland Guardians.
The Tigers are tied 1-1 with the Guardians in Game 3 of their wild-card series on Thursday, Oct. 2 at Progressive Field in Cleveland. First pitch occured at 3:08 p.m. ET, and the broadcast moved from ESPN to ABC.
We’ll have live updates and analysis from Game 3 right here.
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Tigers Game 3 live updates vs Guardians
End 4th: Tigers 1, Guardians 1
Right fielder George Valera got the first extra-base hit for the Guardians with a sharp double into right field to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning. José Ramírez then tied the game with a 3-2 single that scored Valera from first base.
Ramírez then tried to steal second base, but a strike from catcher Dillon Dingler and a quick tag from shortstop Javier Báez caught Ramírez stealing for the first out of the inning. Flaherty then walked designated hitter Kyle Manzardo with two outs, but forced a double play from center fielder Chase DeLauter to hold the Guardians to one run in the inning. Tie ballgame.
Middle 4th: Tigers 1, Guardians 0
Left fielder Riley Greene smacked a leadoff single to the opposite field to start the fourth inning, marking his third hit of the series. After a Dillon Dingler strikeout, Zach McKinstry worked a one-out walk and Javier Báez struck out swinging.
Center fielder Parker Meadows couldn’t find a two-out RBI, flying out to left field to end the inning scoreless.
End 3rd: Tigers 1, Guardians 0
Flaherty allowed hard-hit balls off the bats of C.J. Kayfus and Brayan Rocchio, the Kayfus line drive landing in the glove of shortstop Javier Báez and Rocchio’s two hard line drives both landing foul. But Flaherty escaped without allowing a baserunner and has pitched efficiently (42 pitches, one hit, no runs) through three innings.
Middle 3rd: Tigers 1, Guardians 0
Designated hitter Kerry Carpenter squeaked a base hit inside the first base line and ended up on second base, in what the scorekeeper ruled a double but what could have easily been called an error.
Parker Meadows scored on the play, with Gleyber Torres and Carpenter ending up in scoring position.
Wenceel Pérez popped up on the infield for the second out, failing to bring the run home, and Spener Torkelson struck out swinging to strand two runners.
Top 3rd: Tigers 0, Guardians 0
Center fielder Parker Meadows, dropped down from the leadoff spot to the No. 9 spot in the order, recorded the Tigers first hit on a one-out single in the third inning. Second baseman Gleyber Torres immeidately got the second with a soft ground ball through the right side of the infield, allowing Meadows to go from first to third.
Left-handed reliever Tim Herrin is coming into the game for starter Slade Cecconi, who pitched 2⅓ innings in his first playoff start.
End 2nd: Tigers 0, Guardians 0
Guardians center fielder Chase DeLauter, who made his MLB debut in yesterday’s Game 2, got his first MLB hit off Flaherty in the second inning on a one-out single.
Flaherty then struck out shortstop Gabriel Arias and got catcher Bo Naylor to pop out to end the inning. We’re still scoreless in Cleveland.
End 1st: Tigers 0, Guardians 0
Flaherty pitched a 1-2-3 first inning that included a strikeout of José Ramírez after going down 3-0. At just 14 pitches, Flaherty kept it efficient against the top of the Guardians lineup, by far the most dangerous part of Cleveland’s office.
Middle 1st: Tigers 0, Guardians 0
The Tigers didn’t score in the first inning, but they did make Cecconi work for his outs.
Leadoff hitter Gleyber Torres worked a 3-2 count on the first at-bat of the game, hitting a hard line drive to left field on Cecconi’s seventh pitch of the at-bat. But Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan descended on the drive and squeezed it for the first out of the game.
Designated hitter Kerry Carpenter worked a one-out walk, also getting Cecconi to throw seven pitches in his plate appearance, but Wenceel Pérez (newly in the No. 3 spot) struck out on a well-placed slide in the next at-bat. First baseman Spencer Torkelson struck out looking to end the inning on a pitch that looked firmly outside the strike zone.
The Detroit Pistons posted photos on social media with forward Tobias Harris and wing Ausar Thompson dressed in Tigers’ gear while practicing.
The Tigers have played 10 win-or-go-home games in franchise history, with both teams facing elimination with a loss. How have they’ve done?
Just average, quite literally. They are 5-5 overall, last playing one in the 2024 ALDS against the Guardians (which they lost, if you needed a reminder).
Before that? A 6-0 win over the Oakland Athletics in Game 5 of the 2013 ALDS. The Tigers will break either above or below .500 in sudden-death games after today.
Recent history is on Detroit’s side today.
After the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Cincinnati Reds 8-4 in Game 2 of their wild-card series on Wednesday, the series record of teams who won the first game of a wild-card series (since the current MLB playoff format began in 2021) is 19-2. That includes teams who have won Game 1 on the road, whose record is 11-2 in such series.
If the Tigers lose today, they would become only the third team to win the first game of a wild-card series and end up losing the series.
As a reminder, because of the results of last night’s wild-card games, Game 3 between the Tigers and the Guardians will take place a 3:08 p.m. ET on ABC, not 1:08 p.m. ET on ESPN as originally listed.
If you’re looking for score updates and surprised not to see any, this is why.
If you’re wondering whether Tigers ace Tarik Skubal is available on short rest to pitch today in Game 3 after his 14-strikeout gem in Game 1, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch has your answer: No.
Both Skubal and Mize will be unavailable, though every other pitcher on the team’s playoff roster will be available to pitch.
Guardians Game 3 starter Slade Cecconi made two starts against the Tigers in the 2025 regular season and pitched effectively, with a 2.25 ERA over 12 innings pitched and a 1-1 record. However, he has not faced the Tigers since a July 4 loss in Cleveland.
Here’s how today’s Tigers lineup has done against Cecconi this season.
- 2B Gleyber Torres: 0-for-5.
- DH Kerry Carpenter: 1-for-2, 2B, BB.
- RF Wenceel Pérez: 1-for-3, HR.
- 1B Spencer Torkelson: 2-for-6, HR.
- LF Riley Greene: 0-for-2, BB.
- C Dillon Dingler: 2-for-5.
- 3B Zach McKinstry: 1-for-3, HR.
- SS Javier Báez: 0-for-2.
- CF Parker Meadows: 1-for-3.
Tigers Game 3 starter Jack Flaherty made three starts against the Guardians in the 2025 regular season and pitched pretty well, with a 3.94 ERA over 16 innings pitched. He lost all three games, however, getting only one run of combined support in all three starts.
Here’s how today’s Guardians lineup has done against Flaherty this season.
- LF Steven Kwan: 1-for-7, BB.
- RF George Valera: 2-for-5, HR, 3 RBIs.
- 3B José Ramírez: 2-for-7, 2B, BB.
- DH Kyle Manzardo: 1-for-7, 4 Ks.
- CF Chase DeLauter: not faced.
- SS Gabriel Arias: 0-for-4, 2 Ks.
- C Bo Naylor: 0-for-6, 2 Ks.
- 1B C.J. Kayfus: 1-for-3, BB.
- 2B Brayan Rocchio: 2-for-3, 2B, BB.
The Guardians have shaken up the middle of their lineup a little bit, but are going with the same guys that helped get a Game 2 victory on Wednesday.
The Tigers have released their lineup for their must-win Game 3 showdown, and it includes some changes throughout.
Notably, center fielder Parker Meadows has moved from the leadoff position to the No. 9 position in the order, with second baseman Gleyber Torres moving to the leadoff spot, Kerry Carpenter moving to the No. 2 spot and right fielder Wenceel Pérez moving to the No. 3 spot.
Per our Jeff Seidel, there didn’t seem to be much panic in Detroit’s clubhouse followin the team’s Game 2 loss on Wednesday.
Many key players, including Riley Greene, Kerry Carpenter and Dillon Dingler, pointed to the simplicity of today’s assignment: just show up and win.
That might be easier said than done on the road against a team that has won six of eight games agaisnt the Tigers since the beginning of December. But if Detroit can make it six of nine with a win today, that’s all it will take for the Tigers to knock the Guardians out of the playoffs.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch made an unusual move in the seventh inning of his team’s Game 2 loss on Wednesday: pinch-hitting for lefty slugger Riley Greene with one out and runners on the corners and left-handed ptcher Tim Herrin on the mound.
It ended up not working out, with pinch-hitter Jahmai Jones striking out to end the inning. But it’s a decision Greene said he had full trust in, calling Jones a “lefty killer.”
As for Hinch’s decision to go with Troy Melton in the eighth inning, that one backfired even more, with Melton giving up the go-ahead home run to Brayan Rocchio to start a five-run inning for the Guardians.
What time is Tigers vs Guardians Game 3 today?
The Tigers will continue their best-of-three wild-card series against the Guardians on Thursday, with first pitch scheduled for 3:08 p.m. ET.
Date: Thursday, Oct. 2.
Time: 3:08 p.m. ET.
Location: Progressive Field, Cleveland.
What channel is Tigers vs Guardians game today?
Game 3 of the Tigers-Guardians wild-card series will air on ABC in the early slot of the day’s playoff action.
First pitch: 3:08 p.m. ET.
Channel: ABC.
Streaming: Fubo.
Radio: WXYT-FM, 97.1.
Wednesday’s game can also be streamed on Fubo, which carries ABC and the ESPN platform of channels.
Tigers vs Guardians playoff series 2025
Tigers vs Guardians betting odds for Game 2
Cleveland is a small favorite in Game 3.
Over/under: 7½ runs.
Moneyline: Tigers (+105), Guardians (-125).
All odds are courtesy of BetMGM as of Wednesday evening.
MLB wild-card series schedule 2025
Thursday’s game schedule
AL: Tigers at Guardians, 3:08 p.m. ET (ABC).
NL: San Diego Padres at Chicago Cubs, 5:08 p.m. ET (ESPN).
AL: Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees, 8:08 p.m. ET (ESPN).
Tigers vs Guardians playoff history
The Tigers and Guardians did not meet in the MLB playoffs in the first 123 years of their shared history as charter members of the American League.
The clubs will now meet for the second consecutive season in the playoffs.
Here are the results from the Tigers-Guardians playoff series in the 2024 ALDS:
- Game 1, Oct. 5: Guardians, 7, Tigers 0 in Cleveland.
- Game 2, Oct. 7: Tigers 3, Guardians 0 in Cleveland.
- Game 3, Oct. 9: Tigers 3, Guardians 0 in Detroit.
- Game 4, Oct. 10: Guardians 5, Tigers 4 in Detroit.
- Game 5, Oct. 12: Guardians 7, Tigers 3 in Cleveland.
You can reach Christian Romo at cromo@freepress.com.
