The Detroit Tigers mounted a late rally in the ninth inning but ultimately fell short in their series finale against the New York Yankees, losing 4-3.
On the brink of their first shutout of the 2025 season, the Tigers sparked a two-out surge in the final frame. Spencer Torkelson crossed home on a wild pitch, and Zach McKinstry followed with a clutch two-run single to bring the Tigers within one. However, Justyn-Henry Malloy’s popout ended the comeback and sealed the loss.
Offense was hard to come by for Detroit until that ninth inning. Yankees left-hander Max Fried, who signed with the team this offseason, was dominant in his seven shutout innings, never allowing more than one baserunner in an inning. He struck out 11, including four innings with multiple strikeouts, and kept the Tigers quiet outside of a fifth-inning triple by McKinstry and a seventh-inning double by Dillon Dingler.
Tigers starter Jack Flaherty matched Fried’s brilliance early, striking out nine across 5⅓ scoreless innings. He leaned heavily on his knuckle-curve and slider to generate 13 whiffs and kept New York off the board despite a few threats.
The Yankees finally broke through in the seventh. Tyler Holton gave up a two-out single to Oswaldo Cabrera, and leadoff man Ben Rice followed with a towering 419-foot home run to right-center off an inside sinker, giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead.
New York added two more insurance runs in the top of the ninth. John Brebbia hit the first two batters he faced, and a fielding error by Colt Keith loaded the bases with no outs. Aaron Judge then singled up the middle to drive in two, pushing the lead to 4-0.
Luke Weaver had thrown a clean eighth for New York after Fried exited, but the Tigers finally got to closer Devin Williams in the ninth. Still, the rally fell short, handing Detroit its first home loss of the season after a 5-0 start at Comerica Park. Despite dropping the finale, the Tigers still claimed the series 2-1, missing out on back-to-back sweeps.
Flaherty’s strong outing was a highlight—striking out the side in the first inning and escaping a jam in the second. He was lifted in the sixth after allowing a walk to Judge and a double to Paul Goldschmidt, with Holton keeping the Yankees off the board—at least temporarily.
Fried, meanwhile, delivered a statement performance in just his second start for New York, fanning multiple key Tigers hitters like Dingler, Keith, Báez, and Malloy multiple times throughout the game. His poise on the mound set the tone for the Yankees, who weathered the Tigers’ late charge to escape with the win.
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