Henry Bolte homers in losing effort vs. Tigers

Torres led off the third inning with a single off of Parker Messick and scored on an RBI knock off the bat of Riley Greene. He then started a rally with a one-out single in the seventh and raced home on Greene’s RBI double. When healthy, he has been a terrific table-setter in the Tigers’ lineup this season, slashing .270/.371/.384 with eight homers and 36 RBI in 369 plate appearances.

Malgeri led off the second inning with a single, but wound up getting stranded at second base. He also smacked a one-out double in the sixth inning, but once again the Tigers were unable to cash him in. He then took matters into his own hands with a two-out, RBI single in the seventh that extended the Tigers’ lead to 6-0. With his three-hit attack, the 26-year-old outfielder is now slashing .258/.356/.393 with three homers and 14 RBI in his first 104 plate appearances at the game’s highest level.

The 32-year-old left-hander struck out three batters in the contest while allowing only one base on balls. The only real threat against him came in the second inning as the Guardians started with two singles and a sacrifice bunt, putting two runners in scoring position with only one out. He was able to escape trouble there though and didn’t allow another hit the rest of the way. Valdez got just five swings and misses on 94 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 21 percent. He’ll attempt to replicate this fine outing as he carries a 4.17 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and a 119/58 K/BB ratio (157 2/3 innings) into a premium matchup against the Rockies on Friday.

Geno collected one of just three Guardians’ hits on the evening — all of them singles. The 22-year-old has held his own in his first exposure to big league pitching, slashing .255/.314/.362 with a pair of homers and six RBI in his first 102 plate appearances.

The 25-year-old southpaw racked up 12 strikeouts on the night while issuing a pair of walks. All of the damage done against him came from Riley Greene, who smacked a pair of solo home runs and also added an RBI single. Messick got 19 whiffs on 103 pitches on the night, registering an elite CSW of 37 percent. Now 11-9 on the season, he’ll carry a 2.53 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and a 173/45 K/BB ratio (167 innings) into Friday’s matchup against the Twins in Minneapolis.

Schwarber came into this one in a bit of a slump, going 0-for-17 over his last four games. He drew a walk and scored a run in the first inning, then brought a run in to score on a groundout in the second. Schwarber then took Martín Pérez deep for a solo homer in the fourth, his first home run since August 26. He later added a single in the sixth and drew a walk in the eighth. The 33-year-old slugger leads baseball with 41 homers while hitting .240/.356/.520 with 83 runs scored and 85 RBI across 610 plate appearances.

Acuña knocked a base hit in the first inning, then provided the only run the team could score over six innings against Zack Wheeler, taking him deep for a solo homer in the third inning. It was a massive, 450-foot moonshot for his 15th of the season. The 28-year-old outfielder is hitting .251/.349/.432 with 51 runs scored, 41 RBI, and 20 steals across 392 plate appearances.

Duran was summoned in the top of the ninth to close out the game against the Braves with a two-run lead. He struck out the first batter, then induced a pair of groundouts to end the game with his 30th save of the season, with a 1.58 ERA over 51 1/3 innings.

Wheeler started the top of the first inning by loading the bases with no outs and got himself out of the jam unscathed with a pop-up, a strikeout, and a flyout. After a clean second inning, Ronald Acuña Jr. took Wheeler deep for a solo homer in the third. Wheeler settled in for three more scoreless innings, holding the Braves to just the one run while collecting nine strikeouts. The 36-year-old right-hander ends the day with a 3.23 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and a 163/43 K/BB ratio across 136 1/3 innings. He’ll take on the Astros in Philadelphia on Thursday.

Pérez labored through a 35-pitch first inning, allowing two runs on four walks and one hit. He gave up a third run on a triple and a groundout in the second inning. Kyle Schwarber then took him deep for a solo homer in the fourth. Pérez recorded one more out and allowed back-to-back hits, ending his day with two outs in the inning at 84 pitches. The 35-year-old left-hander will take a 3.25 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and a 94/54 K/BB ratio across 124 2/3 innings into a rematch against the Phillies in Atlanta on Friday.