CLEVELAND -- The Tigers were on the verge of a healthy rotation heading into a critical midseason run, with the returns of Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize during a critical weekend series against the Guardians. Instead of getting a spark, they got insult added to injury.
Not only did Friday’s series opener end up much the same as recent matchups with the Guardians, a 3-2 loss in which the Tigers fell just a swing short against their division rivals, they ended up losing another starter. Jack Flaherty lasted just three innings before leaving with a lower left leg injury.
On Saturday, Flaherty went on the 15-day injured list with a strain of the peroneal tendons along the outside of his left ankle and foot.
The injury seemed to originate with a first-inning slip off the mound. His left cleat seemed to slip following through on his 2-2 pitch to Chase DeLauter, causing him to fall on the mound. He finished the inning and came back out for the second, but TV cameras caught him checking his cleat and foot between innings.
“Kind of tightened up between the first and second,” Flaherty said Saturday. “Didn’t feel great. When I went over to cover first, it tightened up on me even more. … I wasn’t finishing the same way after the first. My mechanics weren’t the same. There was a lot of discomfort.”
By the third inning, Flaherty had changed footwear, swapping out his bright orange cleats for white ones. Athletic trainer Kelly Rhoades was spotted talking with pitching coach Chris Fetter in the dugout during the inning, which ended with Flaherty lunging for a comebacker for the final out.
“He slipped on the mound. We all saw that,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “And then he was able to recover and tolerate it. He talked a little bit about it in the second inning, and then the [comebacker in the third] really irritated him. We're going to get tests and get him worked up and looked at and all that.”
As soon as the third inning ended, Jacob Waguespack -- who just joined the Tigers after being acquired from the Brewers earlier in the week -- began warming in the bullpen. He pitched the fourth inning, making his first MLB appearance since 2024, as the Tigers mixed and matched relievers for the final six innings.
Detroit’s four relievers held Cleveland to one run, a sixth-inning tally against Drew Anderson. It ended up being the difference on a night when Tanner Bibee and two relievers held the Tigers to solo home runs from new Tiger James Outman in the third inning and Spencer Torkelson in the eighth.
Not only were those the lone Tigers runs, they were Detroit’s only hits.
“We play these close games with these guys, and guys come in and step up,” Hinch said. “We need the guys to kind of hold it down. This isn’t an easy bullpen to get runs off of, but in a close game like that, you are one swing away -- or two swings away when we got down 3-1. Tork provided one of them. We just couldn’t find another run.”
On Saturday, Flaherty played light catch before having a lengthy conversation on the field with Fetter and members of the Tigers’ athletic training staff. He went on the injured list afterwards, with infielder Hao-Yu Lee recalled from Triple-A Toledo as an extra position player for the day, likely until Mize returns from the injured list on Sunday.
Though Flaherty has had an up-and-down season, his health has been fairly consistent since last year, a nice development after he battled back issues a couple of years ago. If Flaherty’s issue is serious, the Tigers are probably better equipped to deal with it than at any other point this season. Hinch was already weighing a potential six-man rotation with Skubal and Mize returning, plus Justin Verlander on a rehab assignment.
The Tigers have announced their starters through next Tuesday in Houston. Flaherty would’ve been an option for Wednesday against the Astros, depending upon the Tigers’ course of plan with Verlander. Keider Montero, who started Thursday and got the win against the Twins, could also be an option.
“We had 15 on the injured list, and it’s starting to whittle down,” Hinch said pregame. “The positive news is starting to come and just kind of chipping away at getting a team back that we expected to have. It started with the position players; we’ve seen immediate impact from getting Gleyber [Torres] and [Kerry Carpenter] back in the lineup, and we expect the same in the rotation. It’s been a long time coming.”