The first game of the 2025 playoffs plays exactly as scripted, plus or subtracting some crazy bounces. In the wildcard series between Tiger and Guardian, the ace looks like ace, and the offense looks boring.
Tarik Skubal will pick up his second consecutive Cy Young in a month or so, carving the Guardian into a (little-no) run that was obtained in 7 2/3 innings. Gavin Williams scored a 3.06 ERA, allowing only six runs at the start of his last five regular seasons, and he returned to that favor, allowing two future runs and changes in six innings. The two starters made a total of 22 strikeouts, 14 of which came from Skubal, who won the victory and gave Detroit a 1-0 lead.
Skubal and Williams got some help from the crime of anemia, but they did have to overcome home plate referee Shane Livensparger, who called a small strike zone from the start. According to Statcast in the first three innings, he played six goals on the court against Williams and three against Skubal. On the bright side, at least he is consistent.
Williams came up with a classic plan: get a passionate interest and then put down the hammer. He led the Tigers with fastballs and knives, then searched for three hits with sweepers and large, curved curves. He looked like he was parading in the first inning, with the least effort. Tigers batsman Parker Meadows lifted the lazy fly ball to the left on the first court of the game, and then Gleyber Torres rolled four shots on the second court of the game. The Guardian had two outs on both courts. Kerry Carpenter did his duty to make sure Williams didn’t escape with a three-pointer. This is a strike called Strike, perfectly placed on the corner where the strike area is high and left. it’s out of the question. For tigers, it looks like a sign of illness.
Then there isn’t. Carpenter waved on the second court, putting a single in the right field and then advanced to second when he got stuck in a glove in Johnathan Rodríguez. Spencer Torkelson waved on the second court he saw, pouring a sweeper into the left field for a single. After four batsmen, there were only six balls, and zero balls, the Tigers led 1-0. Williams eliminated Riley Greene’s swing to finish the game. He looks great. He barely played his role. But he is just leading the most dangerous pitcher in the playoffs.
Whether it was because they thought Skubal might have a fight in the face of hitting David Fry last week or because they had no better idea at all because they were on how to fight him, the Guardians beat the square a few times. They are not wrong with that the light hit is Skubal’s Kkyptonite, but they aren’t necessarily correct either. They only knocked down one, which was unsuccessful, but two of their three hits on him were swings. Skubal allowed two guardians to reach the base in the first three innings, a single from Kyle Manzardo who was quickly knocked out of a final doubles game and walked four feet in All-Austin Hedges.
Things at the fourth bottom get weird. It started with Skubal losing a zone slightly, and then Angel Martínez definitely wiped the camera off with a foul ball. It’s a million shots, and since the camera is in front of the parabolic magnetic field microphone, the breaking sound of the lens guard sounds like Stone Cold Steve Austin is about to charge the tunnel and turn on a can of whoop-ass. Martínez then chopped up a swinging shorts and just passed by Skubal.
After the weakest contact imaginable, Cleveland had José Ramírez take the runners without. It’s exactly what Detroit wants to avoid. Skubal had to strike to the only truly dangerous guardian batsman. Or at least he has to try. He couldn’t do it, Ramírez showed up and left. Cleveland was not out in the first and second place matches.
At the beginning, wildness passed. Skubal defeated Rodríguez and Manzardo on three courts. His seventh straight strike looks set to end the game. Gabriel Arias dug a kitchen knife in the middle, but the second time in the frame it landed on unmanned land around the pitcher’s mound. This time, the ball is directly between the rubber and the second base. Skubal rushed back, but couldn’t be clean and neat. Martínez started contacting, never slowing down for a second, only to beat the high throw home from Skubal (replayed after the first call). The Guardian tied the game with a 1-1 score, one walk and two hits without hitting more than four feet.
This puts the runners first and third in two races, and Brayan Rocchio recalls how the Guardians made two ungained runs against Skubal on his last regular season outing, trying to beat the hit. Skubal stretched out this cleanly, shoveled it up with gloves and threw it to the first base to end the game. He retired the next 10 batsmen and hit eight of them.
The Tiger hit again in the seventh inning. Greene led the lead with only extra hits, sending a Gapper to the wall with the right center. The guardian put Hunter Gaddis in the bullpen, but it wasn’t enough. Wencel Pérez crashed the low-line drive to the first base. It stood out from the gloves of diving Jhonkensy Noel and bounced towards second baseman Rocchio, who alertly extended it out and fired it to Noel. The ball beat Perez and had enough time to waste time, but he hurriedly raised his head back and forth to the first, Noel had too much motivation, which caused his feet to slide off the bag. Noel could reconnect with the base before Pérez got there, while the Tigers were ranked first and third without being out. Manager Stephen Vogt has seen enough. He brought Gadis.
Gaddis did everything he could, but that wasn’t enough. He beat receiver Dillon Dingler to swing on the fastball, then Zach McKinstry dropped the perfect safety and squeezed out from the first baseline. Noel had no choice but to take it out from the start, let Green score and lead the Tigers 2-1. Gaddis lured Javier Báez into a tough show ending the inning and shutting down Williams’ book. He pitched six innings, eight strikeouts, six hits, and one walk to finish, and after Noel’s foot fell first base, he was retroactively dominated late in the game with a mistake – two not getting a run. It’s hard to imagine Williams getting more, with a 25-year-old pitcher playing against Skubal at the start of his second playoffs in his career. Gaddis is also great, retiring all the batsmen he faces. But one of the sacrificed Banter is Skubal.
Skubal kept cruising, at least until his enemies returned to the plate. In the bottom of the eighth place, a game was the worst hitter on the worst playoff team ever – and did it again. He came up with a way to defeat Skubal: Don’t swing. He walked for the second time, and the guardian almost took action on their game plan again. Steven Kwan hit a routine comeback that could have been an easy double match, but it barely popped out of Skubal’s gloves. The pitcher first recovered Kwan, putting the hedge in second place, with two outs and Martínez on the plate. That was the end of Skubal’s beginning, and if it weren’t for that bounce, he would have been in the ninth place. Detroit manager AJ Hinch brought Will Will Singer to finish eighth and throw in ninth.
Skubal finished with 107 pitches in 7 2/3 innings. He scored a career-best 14 points. His fastball entered the seventh inning 101 mph. He gave up only three walks and three strikes, two of which were swinging sprints. He surrendered two tough balls. He allowed only three balls to travel over 56 feet in the air. None of them traveled 300 feet. This is a real dominant performance.
The ninth time, the situation became strange again, proving that not all bad bounces can be attributed to Skubal. Ramírez leads the ground ball on the ground ball in the middle vest. Báez is excellent at the excellent dive behind the second base and throws first place in a lot of times. It wasn’t a bad throw, but it did put Torkelson in between a less coping prom. The ball pops out of his glove until Ramírez, who kicks it down the first baseline and then charges all the way to the third base. All the guardians need is to keep the game forward and finish third, without being eliminated. Vogt brought left-handed George Valera, a rookie who had only 48 major league cards on his belt, but the 113 WRC+ hit Rodríguez, who had hit twice. This is a bold move. The vest made him sway.
This puts Manzardo onto the plate, who performed Cleveland’s signature move: Tapper returns to the mound. Unfortunately for the Guardian, the play has exhausted its magic. The vest stretched it out cleanly and grabbed Ramirez between the third and the family. Wisely, he forged a throw and marked the runner-up himself.
Vogt tried the rookie card again, bringing CJ Kayfus to Arias’ strike. It tells you everything you need for the Guardians to attack, and they are stuck for their negation. 2 batsmen were at the bottom of the eighth inning and then at the bottom of the ninth inning, their cleanup and the sixth time batsmen both pinched the two players with less than 200 big league cricket matches. Kayfus flew from the first court in the vest to the left, and the Tigers stood out.
In the world behind Guardians, the Tigers got exactly what they needed. Without their ace win, it’s hard to imagine they took two in Cleveland twice in six of their last seven games against Guardians. Now, they only need one victory for the next two days. If neither team’s offense is won, the Tigers will also need more bounce to drive.
