Bullpen blows Reese Olson's run support in Detroit Tigers' 5-4 loss to Cleveland Guardians

CLEVELAND — Detroit Tigers right-hander Reese Olson has been lights-out throughout the entire season, but despite an incredible 2.52 ERA in seven starts, he still hasn't been able to flip the switch for his first personal win of the season.

The offense supported Olson Wednesday for the first time all season, delivering four runs in the fourth inning, but the bullpen squandered that support.

The Tigers lost, 5-4, to the Cleveland Guardians in the finale of the three-game series at Progressive Field. Brayan Rocchio hit a walk-off single off right-handed reliever Alex Lange to score the free runner in the bottom of the 10th inning.

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Olson, who retired the final 14 batters, allowed two runs (one earned) on one hit and two walks with four strikeouts across six innings, throwing 89 pitches. Wednesday was his third consecutive start — and his fifth this season— without surrendering more than one earned run.

The Tigers (19-18) took a 4-2 lead into the final two innings before left-handers Joey Wentz and Andrew Chafin gave up one run apiece in the eighth and ninth, respectively, to send it to extras.

A throwing error by catcher Jake Rogers on a stolen base, followed by an RBI groundout from Andrés Giménez, cut the Tigers' lead to 4-3 in the eighth. The run scored with Wentz on the mound, but he wasn't charged with an earned run because of the error.

Left-handed reliever Andrew Chafin entered to start the bottom of the ninth and face Josh Naylor, the hottest hitter in the Guardians' lineup. He struck out the left-handed hitting Naylor with a down-and-away slider.

Then, David Fry smacked a middle-away sinker for a solo home run to right field, barely clearing the wall. The homer from Fry, his second of the season and the sixth of his 80-game career, tied the game, 4-4.

Chafin tossed his glove when he got back in the dugout.

The Tigers didn't score in the top of the 10th inning — free runner Javier Báez was caught off second on leadoff hitter Ryan Vilade's grounder to the left side — and in the bottom of the 10th, Tyler Freeman dropped down a sacrifice bunt, advancing Ramón Laureano — Cleveland's free runner — to third base.

After the Tigers brought in an outfielder to serve as a fifth infielder, Rocchio then hit Lange's first-pitch curveball into center for a game-ending single.

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A big fourth inning

The Tigers struggled early on against Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee, who finished second in American League Rookie of the Year voting last season, but the momentum shifted in the fourth inning.

Bibee threw 44 pitches in the eight-batter frame.

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The inning began when Andy Ibáñez, who blasted two home runs in Tuesday's 11-7 win, fouled off five pitches in a row before winning a 10-pitch battle. He pulled Bibee's up-and-away sinker for a ground-ball single into left field. Kerry Carpenter then hit a seventh-pitch changeup for a double to put two runners in scoring position.

Rookie Colt Keith then delivered on an elevated fastball — producing a 104.5 mph exit velocity — for a ground-ball single into right field, driving in both runners. Keith received two fastballs and one slider in the three-pitch plate appearance, even though he had struck out swinging on Bibee's changeup in the second inning.

The two-run single tied the game at two runs apiece.

The Tigers took the lead soon after when Zach McKinstry jumped a first-pitch changeup, smacked the ball into right field and hustled for a double. An ensuing sacrifice fly from Javier Báez extended the margin to 4-2.

Before the fourth, Bibee seemed to be in complete control. He struck out all three batters in the first en route to putting away the first six batters he faced before McKinstry's single in the third inning.

Bibee allowed four runs on five hits and no walks with five strikeouts in four innings, throwing 82 pitches.

Reese Olson shoves

Before the strong finish, Olson and the Tigers had trouble in the second inning and fell into a 2-0 deficit.

It started with a leadoff walk to Naylor.

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Fry hit a ground ball to third base and McKinstry, who delivered a perfect throw to Ibáñez at second base. The play should have been an easy double play, but Ibáñez took his eyes off the ball, and as a result of his mental mistake, the ball skipped off his glove and rolled into the outfield.

There were two runners in scoring position, then Olson walked Will Brennan to load the bases. He struck out Gabriel Arias, then Austin Hedges hit a first-pitch down-and-in sinker to the left side of the infield.

That's exactly what Olson wanted, but the ball from Hedges — hit with an 86.3 mph exit velocity — found a hole in the infield and snuck into the outfield. Two runners scored on the ground-ball single, making it 2-0 Guardians.

After that, Olson sent down his final 14 batters.

He 11 whiffs on 45 swings — a 24.4% whiff rate — with four changeups, six sliders and one sinker. His changeup produced four whiffs on eight swings, while his slider produced six whiffs on 17 swings.

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers bullpen flounders late in 5-4 (10) loss to Cleveland