Jack Flaherty's Walk Problem Just Got Worse and Detroit Has No Backup Plan

The Detroit Tigers are staring down a potential sweep at home, and their biggest problem isn't the Boston Red Sox bats. It's Jack Flaherty's inability to throw strikes. The right-hander is 0-2 with a 5.90 ERA heading into Wednesday's must-win game, and the numbers behind those stats are downright ugly: 25 walks in 29 innings.

With the rotation decimated by injuries, the Tigers have no choice but to keep running Flaherty out there and hope something clicks. But hope is wearing thin. In his last three starts, he hasn't recorded more than 11 outs. Against Boston on April 20, he issued six walks in just 3 1/3 innings before getting yanked. Five days later at Cincinnati, he surrendered six runs including three home runs in two innings. His most recent outing against Texas on Friday? Four runs, five hits, three walks in 3 2/3 innings.

The Mental Grind Is Real

Flaherty isn't hiding from the problem. "You just lose it for three hitters and it's just like, agonizing, it's frustrating," he said after his last start. "It probably pisses you off, because it's, I'm losing sleep over it every single day, trying to figure out what goes on in that little bit right there where we end up walking three guys in a row."

The context makes it worse. During the 2024 season when Flaherty started with Detroit before getting traded to the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, he walked just 38 batters in 162 innings. Last season, after rejoining the Tigers, he issued 59 walks in 161 innings. Now in 2026, he's on pace for catastrophic numbers. "I never walked guys like this in my career, so it's one of those things that is gonna be frustrating to really figure it out," Flaherty admitted.

Red Sox Looking to Close Out the Series

Boston has already dropped the first two games at Comerica Park and is pushing hard for the sweep. The Red Sox have scored 15 runs in those two victories, even with outfielder Roman Anthony dealing with a sprained right wrist suffered in Monday's opener. Anthony won't play Wednesday, but interim manager Chad Tracy says there's no structural damage, leaving the door open for his return later in the series.

Red Sox right-hander Sonny Gray is expected to be activated from the injured list to start Wednesday. Gray is 5-2 with a 2.45 ERA in 11 career starts against Detroit and threw six scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts against the Tigers last season when he was with St. Louis.

First pitch Wednesday. This is Detroit's last chance to avoid getting swept at home. If Flaherty can't locate his fastball and cut down the free passes, it's going to be a long night at Comerica Park.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.