CLEVELAND — Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler grew up a Cleveland baseball fan in Stark County, but the Jackson High School graduate has a job to do nowadays.
Business required Dingler to compete and do everything in his power to end the Guardians’ 2025 season. He obliged by providing the turning point during the winner-take-all Game 3 of the American League Wild Card Series, helping the Tigers prevail 6-3 on Oct. 2 at Progressive Field.
Dingler launched a solo home run 401 feet to left field off Guardians pitcher Joey Cantillo in the sixth inning. Dingler’s first career postseason hit gave the Tigers a 2-1 advantage. They led the rest of the way, adding insurance with a four-run seventh inning.
“It’s obviously cool,” Dingler said of hitting his crucial home run in Northeast Ohio. “I grew up coming to a few games up here. I was always a longtime Guardians fan growing up. It was special.”
The 27-year-old Dingler said he has had large contingents of family and friends, all of whom are Guardians fans, attend previous games at Progressive Field when he played there. He explained the season-high is 16 people, but there were only three in attendance for Game 3 — his wife, Alyssa, and parents, Pam and Scott Dingler.
“Yet, he was still the only player who didn’t get booed. It’s amazing,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch quipped.
Dingler entered his pivotal at-bat 0-for-9 with five strikeouts during the best-of-three series. His homer on a 1-1 count had an exit velocity of 104.1 mph.
“I was scratching and clawing a little bit this series,” Dingler said. “I was able to get a pitch to hit and able to do a little bit of damage. I feel like the momentum in this series was the biggest thing. The team with the most momentum was the one that was going to kind of carry on. We were able to flip it right there.”
Massillon native Tigers C Dillon Dingler lifts his team with homer
Massillon native and Detroit Tigers C Dillon Dillard hit the go ahead homerun for his team in the third and decisive game of the A.L. wildcard series.
What college did Dillon Dingler go to?
The Tigers avenged their 3-2 AL Division Series loss to the Guardians from a year ago. Detroit advanced to meet the Seattle Mariners in the best-of-five ALDS.
Although Dingler played 27 regular-season games with the 2024 Tigers, he didn’t appear in the playoffs until this year. Oblique tightness sidelined Tigers catcher Jake Rogers this past spring, and Dingler took advantage by working his way to the top of Detroit’s depth chart.
Selected by the Tigers in the second round of the 2020 MLB Draft out of Ohio State, Dingler assembled a legitimate breakout season this year.
In the regular season, Dingler played 126 games and hit .278 with 21 doubles, two triples, 13 home runs, 57 RBIs, 23 walks and a .752 OPS. He also recorded six defensive runs saved in 1,011⅔ innings at catcher, according to FanGraphs Baseball.
“Dillon stepped up when Jake got hurt early in the year and just ran with the opportunity, but he never stopped preparing,” Hinch said. “He never stopped kind of fighting. He never stopped trying to get better. He’s emerging as a frontline catcher because of all that work that he’s doing and the credibility that he’s gaining and the trust that he’s already gotten.”
Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler throws out Jose Ramirez as Cleveland Guardians star attempts to steal
Dingler also caught Guardians seven-time All-Star Jose Ramirez attempting to steal in the fourth inning. Ramirez had just hit an RBI single to tie the score 1-1 when shortstop Javier Baez caught a throw from Dingler and tagged Ramirez out at second base.
“I believe in presence. I believe in stability,” Hinch said. “What a pitching staff needs is the guy behind the plate that they know what they’re going to get regardless of the ups and downs and the offensive side — and what [Dingler has] given us on the offensive side is exceptional. But our pitchers trust him, and you have to earn that.”
Dingler is the first Tigers player since 2014 to have his first career postseason hit be a homer.
It’s nothing personal, Guardians. A local guy who grew up cheering for Cleveland baseball had a job to do. He executed well. It’s strictly business.
Nate Ulrich is the sports columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal and a sports features writer. Nate can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.