CLEVELAND, Ohio — The most important week of the 2025 season begins for the Guardians on Tuesday with a critical three-game series against the Tigers at Progressive Field. Cleveland controls its own destiny when it comes to winning the American League Central Division title or possibly hanging on to a wild card spot.
Here is everything you need to know as the Guardians prepare for their final six games of the regular season, including a critical series against Detroit to open the homestand.
The Matchups
All three games against the Tigers are set for 6:40 p.m. starts at Progressive Field and will air on CLEGuardians.TV, WTAM 1100 AM, WMMS 100.7 FM, WARF 1350 AM (Spanish) and the Guardians Radio Network.
TUE: RHP Gavin Williams (11-5, 3.06) vs. LHP Tarik Skubal (13-5, 2.23)WED: RHP Tanner Bibee (11-11, 4.34) vs. RHP Jack Flaherty (8-14, 4.60)THU: LHP Parker Messick (3-0, 2.08) vs. TBD
Williams is 1-0 with 17 strikeouts over two starts against the Tigers this season. He has not allowed a Detroit run in 11 innings. Bibee has faced Detroit twice and is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA in 13 innings. He has allowed one run and struck out 16 Tigers batters in 13 innings. Messick will be facing Detroit for the first time in his seventh big league start.
Gabriel Arias and Angel Martinez have played key roles in Cleveland’s September surge. John Kuntz, cleveland.comHow did we get here?
On the morning of July 9, the Guardians were 15 1/2 games behind Detroit in the AL Central and 5 1/2 out of a wild card spot. They were 12 1/2 games back in the division and 6 games back in the wild card on the morning of Aug. 26.
After snapping their 10-game losing streak on July 7, Cleveland is an AL-best 44-24.Following the July 31 trade deadline, the club is an AL-best 30-18.
But the real movement took place once the calendar flipped to September.
Since Sept. 3, Cleveland is 16-3.The club is 5-2 since Sept. 5. They have gained 9 1/2 games on the Tigers over the past 24 days.
TEAM
W
L
PCT
GB
MAG#
L10
STRK
NEXT
DET
85
71
.545
–
6
1-9
L6
Sept. 23 at CLE
CLE
84
72
.538
1.0
–
9-1
L1
Sept. 23 vs. DET
The Rival
The Guardians enter Tuesday’s series opener against Detroit with a 6-4 advantage in the season series. One win by the Guardians in the final three games between the two clubs will give them the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage should they finish with identical records. Cleveland has outscored Detroit 34-27 through 10 games.
Cleveland swept Detroit last week at Comerica Park, and Detroit took three straight at Progressive Field from July 4-6. The Guardians won three out of four games at Detroit in late-May, but Skubal authored a dominant shutout effort to salvage the series finale on May 25.
Detroit is 7-14 in its last 21 games and rides into town on a six-game losing skid. The club’s 5.32 ERA in September is the third-worst in the AL, after posting the fourth-best ERA (3.80) through the end of August. The Tigers’ .689 OPS in September ranks 11th in the AL, after posting a .740 team OPS through August and ranking fifth in the AL.
“It’s rough going,” manager A.J. Hinch told MLive.com on Sunday. “But we have the most important road trip of the season staring us in the face.
The Tigers are 5-13 in September and their .278 winning percentage is the lowest in the AL this month. Cleveland, meanwhile, has the best winning percentage (.762) in the majors in that span. The Guardians rank sixth in the AL in team OPS in September (.737) and top the league since the end of August with a 2.32 ERA.
“The last week went the way it did, and we’re still going to wake up tomorrow in first place with our destiny controlled by us against a team that’s been as hot as you can get in baseball,” Hinch said. ”We get to play them in a three-game series. Sign me up.”
Cleveland Guardians relief pitcher Cade Smith, foreground, looks to home plate as Detroit Tigers’ Trey Sweeney, back left, rounds the bases after hitting a three-run home run inning of a baseball game, Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Phil Long)APThe Other Way In
Should Cleveland fail to knock Detroit from it’s AL Central perch, the possibility of reaching the postseason remains in play via a wild card bid. The Guardians enter Monday in the third wild card position thanks to Seattle’s 7-3 win and sweep of the Astros on Sunday.
TEAM
W
L
PCT
WCGB
L10
STRK
NEXT
NYY
88
68
.564
+4.0
7-3
W2
Sep 23 vs. CWS
BOS
85
71
.545
+1.0
4-6
L1
Sep 23 at TOR
CLE
84
72
.538
–
9-1
L1
Sep 23 vs. DET
HOU
84
72
.538
–
5-5
L3
Sep 23 at ATH
TEX
79
77
.506
5.0
3-7
L7
Sep 23 vs. MIN
The Other Contenders
Seattle has won four straight and put itself in position to win the AL West title by dominating the Astros in a three-game series at Daikin Park. Like Cleveland, the Mariners are 9-1 in their last 10.
Houston slipped to 5-5 in its last 10 games and saw its chances at an eighth division title in the last 10 seasons all but slip away. Seattle owns the head-to-head tiebreaker and has a three-game lead in the west with six to play.
In his postgame comments after Sunday’s loss, Astros skipper Joe Espada said his team knows what they are up against down the stretch.
“Pressure comes from not being prepared and from panic, and those are two things that don’t exist in that clubhouse,” Espada said. “It’s about preparing to play the best 6 games we have left in the season. That’s all we have to do, focus on one pitch at a time, one game at a time, one at-bat at a time. If we do that, we’ll be in a good position.”
Boston is one game ahead of Cleveland for the No. 2 wild card spot. The Red Sox are 4-6 in their last 10 and have played inconsistently on offense since the start of September. They hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Guardians, should the two teams finish with identical records.
“We’ve got to play better baseball. That’s it,” manager Alex Cora told MassLive.com on Thursday. “Offensively, there were some signs today but we’re not there offensively. We’ve just got to make sure we understand who we are as an offense. We’ve got to keep the line moving.
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