What We Learned About The Guardians After Series Loss To Tigers

The Cleveland Guardians' starting pitching situation was on display in their series loss to the Detroit Tigers.

Detroit Tigers right fielder Wenceel Pérez (46) slides into second base against Cleveland Guardians second base Andrés Giménez (0) during the first inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Thursday, July 11, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Cleveland Guardians are crawling toward the All-Star Break as they dropped three of four games against the Detroit Tigers during a week-long series. 

Guardians Have A Dire Situation With Starting Rotation

We knew that the Guardians had an issue with their starting rotation, but this series against the Tigers highlighted just how dire the situation truly is.

Gavin Williams only pitched 5.1 innings in his second start of the season, Tanner Bibee showed grit but still struggled with his command at times, and Ben Lively gave up six earned runs over 5.1 innings in his start. 

That brings us to Spencer Howard's Guardians debut on Thursday afternoon, and it didn’t go quite the way he planned. He pitched just 3.0 innings and gave up seven hits, four earned runs, and three walks. Like Triston McKenzie and Logan Allen (who are both at Triple-A), Howard struggled to locate his pitches and lacked command.

Forget about a starter who can help Cleveland in a playoff push; the Guardians just need another arm who can consistently give them at least four to five innings a start. 

Jul 9, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt (12) take the ball to relieve pitcher Ben Lively (39) in the sixth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports / Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Woes Against American League Central Continue

The Guardians have played well against almost every team they’ve faced this season, as can be seen in their record against .500 or better teams. However, for some reason, they’ve struggled against teams in their own division.

Cleveland has a 5-5 record against the Chicago White Sox, a 2-4 record against the White Sox, and now are 3-4 against the Tigers.

Outside of the Minnesota Twins, whom the Guardians are 5-0 against this season, Cleveland needs to find a way to play better against the teams it plays more against than anyone else on the calendar. 

Angel Martinez's Defense

Let’s not focus on just the negatives of this series because there were some positives to take away as well. 

Angel Martinez has been impressed with his plate presence through his first week and has a half in the big leagues. However, the 22-year-old also showed his defensive versatility in this series.

Martinez played most of the four games in center field and made multiple running catches and over-the-shoulder grabs. One of those impressive catches came right at the end of the series finale as he made a leaping grab on the warning track.

Ángel Martínez leaps and snatches a ball behind his head on quite the impressive play.#ForTheLand | @CleGuardians pic.twitter.com/DvMdqNdmOe

— Bally Sports Cleveland (@BallySportsCLE) July 11, 2024

The outfield at Comerica Park is no joke, either. If Martinez can cover the ground in that park, he can do it anywhere.