Cleveland — It seemed odd initially that manager Ron Gardenhire had right-hander John Schreiber up so soon in the sixth inning Saturday.
After all, the Tigers were up 1-0 and lefty starter Matthew Boyd was cruising through five innings — allowing just four hits with six strikeouts, using an economical 77 pitches. It was a return-to-form performance.
But he walked Jose Ramirez to start the sixth and with right-handed slugger Franmil Reyes looming, Gardenhire decided to get the side-arming Schreiber hot.
The rationale for the move became clear, but the results ended up poor for the Tigers.