CLEVELAND — José Ramírez hit a solo homer in the sixth inning, breaking Hall of Famer Larry Doby's franchise record with his 87th career go-ahead blast and lifting the Cleveland Guardians to a 2-1 win over the Detroit Tigers on Monday night.
Ramírez's drive off starter Jack Flaherty (0-2) hit the foul pole in right field, snapping a 1-all tie that had stood since the first. The Guardians have the second-best record in the American League at 23-12.
Riley Greene homered on the first pitch of the game for Detroit, which lost its fourth straight. The shot off Triston McKenzie was Greene's second leadoff homer of the season and the third of his three-year career.
Nick Sandlin (3-0) worked 1 1/3 innings for the win and Emmanuel Clase earned his 11th save, moving into a four-way tie for the most in the majors.
Flaherty struck out six over six innings, extending his winless streak to 12 starts. The right-hander is 0-5 with a 5.98 ERA since defeating Toronto on Aug. 3, 2023, while pitching for Baltimore.
Will Brennan singled in Estevan Florial for Cleveland's first run. McKenzie worked five innings, allowing one run while striking out six.
Kyle Manzardo — the Guardians' top power-hitting prospect — made his major league debut, striking out in all three plate appearances as the designated hitter.
The 23-year-old Manzardo, acquired from Tampa Bay for pitcher Aaron Civale last July, hit .303 with nine homers and 20 RBIs in 29 games with Triple-A Columbus.
Earlier in the day, Cleveland placed AL batting leader Steven Kwan on the injured list with a left hamstring strain. The two-time Gold Glove left fielder, who is hitting .353, is expected to miss four weeks with an injury that occurred Saturday against the Angels.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Tigers: OF Wenceel Pérez (illness) returned after missing one game, walking as a pinch hitter in the sixth. Detroit manager A.J. Hinch had planned on giving the rookie another day off.
Guardians: LHP Sam Hentges (left middle finger inflammation) was activated. He pitched 6 2/3 scoreless innings in a rehab stint with Triple-A Columbus and Double-A Akron.
UP NEXT
Tigers RHP Kenta Maeda (1-1, 5.02 ERA) takes on Guardians LHP Logan Allen (3-2, 5.11) in the second game of the series. Maeda picked up his first victory with Detroit last week against St. Louis.