CLEVELAND, Ohio — Emmanuel Clase, the picture perfect closer, had a bad day Monday.
Clase, pitching for more than one inning for just the second time this season, allowed three runs in the ninth inning as Detroit ralled for a 3-0 victory in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series. Kerry Carpenter’s three-run homer in the ninth tied the best-of-five series at 1-1.
The two teams will play Game 3 on Wednesday at 3:08 p.m. at Comerica Park.
Clase, who entered the game with two out in the eighth, started the ninth with two quick outs. But Jake Rogers and Trey Sweeney, the eighth and ninth batters in the Tigers’ lineup, singled to put runners on the corners and bring Carpenter to the plate. Carpenter and Clase dueled to a 2-2 count when Carpenter lined a slider into the right field seats to set off a celebration in the Tigers’ dugout.
Left fielder Steven Kwan kept the Tigers off the scoreboard in the eighth with a diving catch on Wenceel Perez’s liner to end the inning. Matt Vierling doubled and Hunter Gaddis intentionally walked Riley Greene with two out. Manager Stephen Vogt called for Clase in the scoreless game to face the switch-hitter Perez.
Perez, who hit .251 with eight homers during the regular season while batting left-handed, sent a liner into left field that Kwan caught with a dive. The Tigers challenged the out call, but the call on the field stood.
Clase, who led the AL with 47 saves saves, allowed five earned runs all season. He allowed three on Monday.
Until the ninth the game was a pitching duel. Lefty Tarik Skubal went seven scoreless innings with eight strikeouts for the Tigers. Matthew Boyd and the Guardians’ bullpen kept the game scoreless through eight innings as well.
This is Boyd’s 10th year in the big leagues, but the postseason has been mostly a rumor to him. Until Monday’s start, he pitched one-third of an inning in the postseason for Seattle in the 2022 ALDS against Houston.
But Boyd looked anything but untested Monday.
He threw 4 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out five and walking two. He allowed four hits, the last two dripping with danger.
Perez opened the fourth with a double. Boyd retired Spencer Torkelson on a fly ball to right as Perez advanced to third. Boyd, with the infield pulled in, struck out Parker Meadows. When the infield pulled back with two out, he struck out Jake Rogers to end the inning.
In the fifth, Justyn-Henry Malloy sent a drive down the right field with one out. He tried to stretch the single into a double, but a strong throw from Jhonkensy Noel followed by a nice tag by Brayan Rocchio erased him at second.
Vogt, as he did in Game 1, called for Cade Smith with two out in the fifth. After Boyd left the mound to an ovation from the soldout crowd, Smith took over and struck out Vierling to end the inning.
Smith retired the Tigers in order in the sixth and the Guardians missed a great scoring chance in their half of the inning against Skubal. Brayan Rocchio bounced a one-out double past third. Kwan slapped a soft single into left field as Rocchio stopped at third. But Skubal induced a 6-4-3 double play from David Fry to end the inning.
Skubal didn’t allow a hit through the first 4 1/3 innings. Josh Naylor ended it with a one-out double to right center field. After Skubal hit Noel, he escaped by rolling another double play, this one off the bat of Andres Gimenez.
This was just the second time the Guardians faced Skubal this year. On July 22, Skubal allowed 10 hits, but only one run in seven innings in a 8-2 Detroit win.
Beau Brieske earned the save in the ninth for the Tigers.
Next: The ALDS moves to Comerica Park on Tuesday for a workout day for the Guards and Tigers. Game 3 will be played Wednesday at 3:08 p.m. RHP Alex Cobb (2-1, 2.76) will start for the Guards, but the Tigers have not announced a starter. TBS, TruTV, MAX, WTAM, WMMS, ESPN and the Guardians radio network will carry the game.
