Guardians end 20-inning scoreless streak, Thomas hits RBI single in 1st inning of ALDS Game 4
DETROIT (AP) — Lane Thomas ended the Cleveland Guardians ' 20-inning scoreless streak with an RBI single in the first inning of AL Division Series Game 4 against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday night.
Steven Kwan led off with an opposite-field single to left, extending his postseason hitting streak to nine games. He tied Tony Fernández, one behind Kenny Lofton’s franchise-record, 10-game run in 1995.
Kyle Manzardo singled, José Ramírez flied out and Kwan stole third. Josh Naylor struck out and Thomas drove a first-pitch sinker to right against right-hander Reese Olson, who did not allow a run in the first inning of 22 regular-season starts.
Cleveland won the series opener 7-0 as Thomas hit a three-run homer in a five-run first. The Guardians tacked on two more runs in the sixth.
Detroit won the next two games and was within a win of reaching the AL Championship Series for the first time since 2013.
Cleveland entered having lost 11 straight games when facing postseason elimination, since winning Game 6 of the 1997 World Series at the Florida Marlins.
If the Guardians extend the series, they would host Game 5 on Saturday.
Lage has been the Michigan Associated Press Sports Editor since 2000, serving as a beat writer for eight teams in pro and college. He has covered the Winter Olympics four times, most recently as the ski jumping and Nordic combined writer at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games.
