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Detroit Tigers’ Javier Baez talks Chicago Cubs’ Pete Crow-Armstrong
Detroit Tigers shortstop Javier Báez talks to reporters June 2, 2025, about playing for MLB’s best team, his career resurgence, Pete Crow-Armstrong.
- Jack Flaherty pitched six scoreless innings against a strong Cubs offense, leading the Tigers to a 4-0 win.
- Flaherty effectively mixed his fastball and curveball, keeping Cubs hitters off balance.
- The Tigers have a much-needed day off on Monday after playing 23 games in 24 days.
It was a pretty good day for Detroit Tigers right-hander Jack Flaherty to have arguably his best start of the season.
Sure, he had three quality starts in a row entering Sunday’s 4-0 win against the Cubs. He gave up zero runs and two hits in six innings pitched against the San Francisco Giants on May 27, and then one run on four hits vs. the Chicago White Sox on June 2. But those teams are 25th and 28th in the majors, respectively, in batting average.
The Chicago Cubs, meanwhile, are second in the majors in batting average (.261). And fifth in home runs (88). And first in runs scored (363). It would have been understandable if they had gotten to Flaherty at least a little bit.
But Flaherty (5-6, 3.41 ERA) kept his composure through a challenging fourth inning – one where he gave up three walks and a base hit yet escaped without allowing a run – to pitch six strong innings in the series-winning victory.
Flaherty credited his ability to play his breaking balls off his effective fastball for much of his success on Sunday.
“You want to feel things out as the way the game goes, but if you’re able to establish and spin off of that (fastball) – which is typically a good thing when you can go out and command the ball – outside of that one inning I did a good job of that,” he said.
That “one inning” he’s referring to was the fourth, where a throw from Kerry Carpenter on a single from Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong erased Ian Happ at home plate and kept the game scoreless.
“(I got) bailed out with the defense there,” Flaherty said.
But Flaherty also supported his team’s effort with strong command of his secondary pitches, especially early in the game with a knee-buckling curveball. He used the pitch to strike out Kyle Tucker, Seiya Suzuki and Carson Kelly his first time through the order.
By Statcast’s run value, Flaherty’s curveball is his most effective pitch in his arsenal this season. In his worst outing of the year, a May 10 loss to the Texas Rangers where Flaherty gave up five earned runs in three innings, he threw his curveball 27% of the time. On Sunday, he threw it 34% of the time, reaching as high as 44% the first time through the lineup.
But he went away from the curveball the second time through the Cubs order, leaning more towards his fastball, especially against right-handed hitters. Manager A.J. Hinch said mixing up pitches as the game develops is the gameplan for his starters “virtually all the time.”
“Not every (game) is designed to have an exact pitch-by-pitch plan. We have guys that can audible here, or can adjust there, or can see, ‘Hey, he’s got a pretty good fastball today. We’re going to execute that finished fastball.'” he said. “I think being unpredictable is one of the strongest traits you can have as a member of our team.”
Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler said he and Flaherty didn’t really make midgame adjustments, instead consistently mixing Flaherty’s fastball with his breaking pitches to keep the Cubs batters off-balance.
“Jack spins it,” Dingler said. “Jack spins it well. That’s just who he is as a pitcher.”
With the six scoreless innings, Flaherty lowered his season ERA to 3.41. Less than a month ago, after that start against the Rangers, it was at 4.61—more than a full run higher during a rougher stretch of the season for the veteran.
Flaherty says the extra work he’s been putting in between starts has helped him improve his execution:
“It was huge to make those adjustments from the last time out, where things may not have been as great,” he said. “To come out and execute a lot better was huge, just another step in the right direction.”
Tigers get some long-awaited rest
After playing 23 games in a 24-day stretch, the Tigers get a day off on Monday, June 9, before beginning a three-game road series against the Baltimore Orioles the next day. Hinch said the time off, plus the following two Mondays off, will be good for everybody.
“The nature of this schedule is a perfect time to have this one day off a week,” he said. “With Riley (Greene), (Kerry Carpenter), these guys are all playing mostly every day, and the way we use our roster, even if you don’t start, you’re probably playing.
“So it’ll be welcomed by everybody, and hopefully get guys fresh and keep us going in the right direction.”
You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com
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