The Detroit Tigers lost 8-6 to the Boston Red Sox on Patriots' Day, struggling with walks. The Tigers issued eight walks in total, contributing to their defeat in the series finale at Fenway Park.
Key points
Detroit Tigers lost 8-6 to Boston Red Sox
Game played on Patriots' Day at Fenway Park
Tigers walked eight batters
Sonny Gray left the game with hamstring tightness
Jack Flaherty struggled with six walks
Detroit TigersBoston Red SoxSonny GrayJack Flaherty
BOSTON – In a Patriots' Day special, the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox matched up in an earlier-than-usual matchup – 11 a.m. on Monday, April 20 – in the finale of the four-game series at Fenway Park.
Both starters had less-than-ideal outings: Red Sox right-hander Sonny Gray left in the third inning with right hamstring tightness, and Tigers right-hander Jack Flaherty failed to complete the fourth inning after six walks.
The Tigers walked eight batters, with the Red Sox drawing three walks off Flaherty in a two-run second inning and two walks off left-handed reliever Tyler Holton in a three-run seventh inning.
Caleb Durbin of the Boston Red Sox slides head first into home to score on a throwing error by pitcher Jack Flaherty of the Detroit Tigers during the second inning at Fenway Park, Monday, April 20, 2026, in Boston.
Caleb Durbin of the Boston Red Sox slides head first into home to score on a throwing error by pitcher Jack Flaherty of the Detroit Tigers during the second inning at Fenway Park, Monday, April 20, 2026, in Boston.
The Tigers (12-11) and Red Sox (9-13) split the four-game series.
Q&A
How many walks did the Detroit Tigers give up in the game against the Red Sox?
The Detroit Tigers gave up eight walks during the game against the Red Sox.
What was the final score of the Tigers vs Red Sox game on Patriots' Day?
The final score was 8-6 in favor of the Boston Red Sox.
Who were the starting pitchers in the Tigers vs Red Sox game?
The starting pitchers were Sonny Gray for the Red Sox and Jack Flaherty for the Tigers.
What caused Sonny Gray to leave the game early against the Tigers?
Sonny Gray left the game in the third inning due to right hamstring tightness.
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Next up, the Tigers will return home to Comerica Park for a three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers, beginning Tuesday (6:40 p.m., Detroit SportsNet).
He reached out and pulled a down-and-away changeup with two strikeouts, placing the ball over the head of the shortstop and putting it into left-center field.
The Red Sox responded immediately against left-handed reliever Brant Hurter, sparked by a one-out double to Carlos Narváez. The bigger issue? Letting Narváez steal third base for the second steal of his 138-game MLB career. He then scored when Roman Anthony fought off an inside sinker for an RBI single into center field.
It tied the game for the Red Sox, 3-3.
The Red Sox kept the momentum rolling with three runs in the seventh inning, taking a 6-3 lead.
Rafaela fell behind in the count, but he pushed a down-and-away changeup into right field, producing a two-RBI single for a 5-3 lead. A wild pitch from Holton advanced Rafaela to third with two outs; he then scored for a 6-3 lead on Narváez's RBI single.
The Red Sox tacked on two more runs in the eighth inning against right-handed reliever Drew Anderson for an 8-3 advantage. Anderson has a 7.94 ERA across 11⅓ innings in seven games.
Before the late-game letdown, the Tigers and Red Sox traded two runs across the first four innings.
The Red Sox took a 2-0 lead in a miserable second inning for Flaherty, who walked three batters and threw the ball away for an error.
On the error, Flaherty fielded a bunt from Narváez, forcing Caleb Durbin to slam on the breaks and retreat to third base after getting three-quarters of the way to home plate. Instead of running at Durbin, Flaherty made a critical mistake in trying to throw the ball to third baseman Hao-Yu Lee. The ball tipped off Lee's glove and rolled into foul territory, allowing the Red Sox to score their first run.
Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Jack Flaherty (9) pitches during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park in Boston on Monday, April 20, 2026.
Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Jack Flaherty (9) pitches during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park in Boston on Monday, April 20, 2026.
The second run came on a bases-loaded walk from Wilyer Abreu with two outs. Flaherty then bounced back by inducing an inning-ending groundout against Masataka Yoshida to strand the bases loaded.
Flaherty surrendered two runs (zero earned runs) on three hits and six walks with three strikeouts across 3⅓ innings, throwing 73 pitches.
The 30-year-old – who returned to the Tigers by exercising his $20 million player option in the offseason – owns a 3.47 ERA across 23⅓ innings in five starts, but his 18.4% walk rate is alarming.
He has walked 20 batters in 23⅓ innings in 2026.
Back in 2024, he walked 19 batters in 106⅔ innings.
The Tigers scored one run apiece in the third and fourth innings for a 2-2 tie, thanks to Jake Rogers' RBI single (after Matt Vierling's double) in the third and Lee's RBI single (after Greene's walk and Carpenter's hit-by-pitch) in the fourth.
It marked the first hit of Lee's MLB career.
The milestone hit came off right-handed reliever Zack Kelly, as Lee dropped a middle-middle cutter into center field.
The Tigers trimmed their deficit to 8-4 in the ninth inning with Lee's double, Kevin McGonigle's double and Gleyber Torres' RBI single, all facing right-handed reliever Ryan Watson.
That put runners on the corners with one out for Keith.
The Red Sox brought in left-handed reliever Aroldis Chapman to put the Tigers away; the Tigers countered with pinch-hitter Spencer Torkelson to avoid the left-on-left matchup.
But Torkelson struck out swinging.
Down to their final out, the Tigers trimmed their deficit once again – this time, making it 8-6 – with Greene's two-RBI double, but it wasn't enough to complete the comeback.
