DETROIT — Shane Bieber pitched seven dominant innings, Oscar Gonzalez drove in two runs and the Cleveland Guardians beat the Detroit Tigers 5-2 Tuesday night for their third straight win.
Bieber (7-6) allowed just four singles and a walk while striking out eight. Amed Rosario had three hits, including two doubles, while scoring a run and driving in another.
Cleveland entered the night trailing first-place Minnesota by one game in the American League Central Division.
Tyler Alexander (2-6) gave up two runs and seven hits in seven innings for Detroit. The Tigers barely avoid getting shut out for the second straight game, as Eric Haase drew a two-out, bases loaded walk against Eli Morgan in the ninth. They added another run on a wild pitch by Emmanuel Clase.
Clase then recorded his 25th save by getting Akil Baddoo to ground out.
Cleveland scored the first run of the game in the fifth. Owen Miller and Andres Gimenez hit back-to-back, one-out singles. Miller came home on Austin Hedges’ sacrifice fly.
The Guardians made it 2-0 in the sixth on back-to-back doubles by Steven Kwan and Rosario.
Cleveland tacked on three more runs in the eighth off reliever Will Vest. Gonzalez's two-out double off the right-field wall drove in Kwan and Rosario. Josh Naylor knocked in Gonzalez with a single.
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