Guardians rally from 15 1/2-game deficit to take AL Central lead

CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Guardians staged a historic rally, erasing a 15 1/2 game deficit to seize the lead in the AL Central with a 5-1 win over the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday night at Progressive Field. Cleveland improved to 86-72 and moved one game ahead of Detroit (85-73) with four games remaining in the regular season. The Guardians also own the tiebreaker by taking the season series. Pitcher Tanner Bibee (12-11) worked six innings, allowing one run, and the bullpen closed it out as Cleveland extended a streak of two or fewer runs allowed by Guardians starters to 19 games, a run not seen since the 2019 Tampa Bay Rays.

In a game that swung on one swing of the bat, Detroit grabbed a 1-0 edge in the third when Parker Meadows lined a sacrifice fly to bring home Dillon Dingler. Cleveland answered in the bottom half of the frame as Brayan Rocchio doubled to start the inning and George Valera followed with a two-run homer that appeared to sail toward the wall in center before it was deflected off Meadows’ glove and stayed fair, giving the Guardians a 2-1 lead.

The Guardians extended their advantage in the eighth when José Ramírez belted a two-run double to right, a ball that deflected off the glove of Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres and rolled into shallow right, pushing Cleveland’s lead to 4-1 before Ramírez scored on a subsequent hit. Ramírez’s two-bagger was the key hit that opened a two-run inning, and it also marked a milestone moment for the All-Star infielder: Ramírez became the second player in Cleveland franchise history to reach 3,000 total bases, joining Earl Averill, who had 3,201 from 1929 through 1941.

Ramírez had entered the night tied to bring the franchise’s total-base club, and the hit verified his place among the franchise’s all-time leaders. The Guardians padded the margin later in the inning to reach the final 5-1, with the bullpen preserving the lead.

Detroit, meanwhile, dropped eight straight and fell out of first place for the first time since April 22. Tigers right-hander Jack Flaherty (8-15) took the loss after allowing two runs over six innings. Detroit had looked to take command early, but Cleveland’s pitching and timely hitting quelled the rally, notably with Valera and Ramírez delivering the decisive blows.

Cleveland’s victory continued a remarkable season-long narrative for a club that has thrived on late surges and strong starting pitching. Bibee, who has rotated through a string of effective starts, earned his third straight decision, and the Guardians have now allowed two or fewer runs in 19 consecutive starts by their pitchers, a stretch that echoes the best pitching runs in recent memory.

The two teams will wrap up their season series on Thursday, with Cleveland sending left-hander Parker Messick (3-0, 2.08 ERA) to the mound opposite Detroit, which has not announced a starter. The result will determine the final alignment of the AL Central standings with four games remaining for both clubs and the tiebreaker already set in Cleveland’s favor after winning the season series.

The feat of overcoming a 15 1/2 game deficit to assume the lead in either division or league play is a rare one in modern baseball. The 1914 Boston Braves were the last team to erase a larger deficit in the National League, rallying on the Fourth of July to win by 10 1/2 games, per Elias Sports Bureau. Since division play began in 1969, the largest deficit overcome to claim a division crown was 14 games by the 1978 New York Yankees to win the AL East. In this season of dramatic late-inning drama, Cleveland’s rally stands as a historic milestone that reshapes a tight playoff race and adds a new chapter to the franchise’s lineage.