If you like relief pitching and pinch-hitting, then Game 3 of the ALDS between the Cleveland Guardians and the Detroit Tigers was the game for you. On the surface it was fairly simple, a low-scoring affair with good pitching and a few timely hits. But look beneath the surface and you’ll see that it was quite a quirky game, one that would be difficult to explain to regular people (not derogatory!). Why was a healthy batter pulled before getting an at-bat? Why was one of the Tigers’ biggest offensive threats taken away in the fifth inning? It was truly a dream game if you enjoy talking about the ins and outs of baseball with your friends. And luckily for me, you are all my friends today.

Let’s nail down a few details before we get into some of the nerdier aspects of Wednesday’s game. The Tigers won 3-0 to take a 2-1 series lead against their division rivals. As he has in recent months, AJ Hinch relied on his bullpen, a unit that posted a 3.00 ERA (fourth in the game) in the second half while giving the Tigers the best record in the American League during that stretch. . They delivered another superlative performance and now his team has a chance to close out a playoff series at home on Thursday night. Imagine telling Tigers fans this was possible in July!

There are 26 players on each of these flawed but fun AL Central rosters. Realistically, four of those 52 players (the starting pitchers from Games 1 and 2) wouldn’t appear in Game 3 unless it lasted a billion innings, leaving 48 who could potentially see action. The Tigers used six pitchers and the Guardians used seven. Both teams used three pinch-hitters, while the Guardians also called on Austin Hedges as a defensive replacement (he ended up getting an at-bat), for a total of seven substitutions between the two teams. Add those pitchers and pinch-hitters to each team’s starting lineup, and you get a whopping 38 players used! Not quite every player, but for a nine-inning game that’s a lot! And all that mixing and matching added a fascinating dimension to chess, especially pinch-hitting.

The first of those moves came surprisingly early. With right-handed Keider Montero named the starter for Detroit, Will Brennan got the starting nod in right field for the Guardians. Montero pitched an error-free first inning, after which Hinch turned to left-handed Brant Hurter to serve as the bulk man. (Hurter excelled in that role in August and September, appearing in ten games and going at least four innings in relief six times.) With his right fielder ready to hit Hurter at least once, Stephen Vogt moved his first chess piece before Brennan even got a chance to hit, putting Jhonkensy Noel and his 165 wRC+ (in 63 at-bats) into the game against lefties.

Things didn’t go as Vogt had hoped. In his first shot against Hurter, Noel chased a switch out of the zone and eventually flew out. On his second round he was given a dead red sinker, but only managed to lineout a can of corn at 90mph. Noel even got a third chance against a southpaw when he faced Tyler Holton in the ninth; just like in the second, he chased a changeup out of the zone and this time produced an easy groundout to third base. As good as Noel was against lefties this season (albeit in a small sample size), he was extremely prone to chasing against lefty switches. Of the 43 outside-zone turnovers he saw from lefties in 2024, he called in a whopping 28 (65.1%). That’s very bad! Holton seemed well aware of this, as he executed a clear plan of changes, mostly low and away:

So how would we judge Vogt’s move? In terms of results, it clearly didn’t work out – Noel had three chances and didn’t make the most of them – but it’s better to judge the process. Noel has had success against lefties, while Brennan has struggled (.198 wOBA and a 20 wRC+ in 127 career PA vs. lefties). Managers must make decisions that give their team the best chance to win. This seemed like one of those choices, but the lefties Noel faced were able to use their changes to address an obvious gap in his approach. As with any chess game, there is always a move in response to your move. A lot of it just comes down to execution, and the Tigers have done better in multiple facets of the game, including some timely shots.

It started at the top with Parker Meadows. I’ve enjoyed the way Meadows has played this postseason. He makes good swings, has good at-bats and plays good defense. Leading up to Game 3 against Alex Cobb, he ripped a 100-mph grounder to right field after a 2-0 sinker in the zone. Meadows had a .398 wOBA against sinkers this season, so once he saw one, he let it rip. After Kerry Carpenter flew out, a groundout by Matt Vierling moved over Meadows, giving Riley Greene a chance to drive him in with two outs.

In general, I admire hitters who are aggressive with runners in scoring position. It’s an old-fashioned mentality, but it’s important to bring out your best swings and try to get your man in, especially with two outs. If a throw is slightly out of zone, but your timing is right and you see it well, run with it. That’s exactly what Greene did, attacking a 1-1 splitter that disappeared from the zone:

The ball left the bat at 110 miles per hour and scored Meadows. That’s exactly what you expect from your best player.

In the third inning, with Jake Rogers on third base with one out, Vierling delivered a quality at-bat, flying out deep enough to make a sacrifice fly. After that, the bats were quiet on both sides despite several scoring opportunities. When Spencer Torkelson came to bat with Colt Keith on second in the sixth inning, it was a chance for him to flip the script, not just because of the subpar swings in his previous at-bats – he had struck out against Cobb and later Erik Sabrowski – but his hitless postseason performance in general. After taking a 2-1 lead against Eli Morgan, he attacked a four-seamer at the top of the zone, hitting the ball so hard that it found some grass in the outfield for a double:

It wasn’t his best swing, but it was good enough to get the job done and score Keith. It also put a big insurance run on the board, although that extra cushion turned out to be unnecessary. The Tigers’ bullpen was nails. The Guardians put runners on first and second in the seventh, but failed to capitalize and fell in order in the eighth and ninth inning. Detroit’s six pitchers combined for six strikeouts and two walks, while allowing barely any barrels. While the Guardians had eight hard-hit balls that night, only three were hit in the sweet spot range of eight to 32 degrees. After Hurter delivered 3.1 innings in the bulk role, Beau Brieske, Sean Guenther, Will Vest and Holton combined to allow just one hit.

Hinch pressed all the right buttons all night, including when he pinch-hit for Carpenter. Despite Carpenter’s stellar career numbers against right-handed hitters (148 wRC+), he still hasn’t figured out how to adapt his swing to lefties (career 69 wRC+). As much as it stinks to take away one of your biggest threats against right-handers early in a game, it’s a decision Hinch has had to make all year, and he’s stuck with that approach so far these playoffs. When Carpenter came to bat in the fifth against a lefty, he was pulled for Justyn-Henry Malloy, who walked on five pitches. Knowing how Hinch will likely act when Carpenter goes against a lefty, I’m very curious to see how aggressive Vogt is tonight in trying to get his bat out of the game.

Speaking of tonight, the Guardians’ bats need to wake up. It’s been quiet since the first inning of Game 1, and now the season is on the line. The Tigers, meanwhile, are playing with house money. With a chance to secure an ALCS berth, expect a lively crowd in Detroit. As unexpected as this July match would have been, it was certainly exciting.