Jose Ramirez homered twice and drove in three runs as the visiting Cleveland Guardians rolled past the Detroit Tigers 8-4 on Monday night.
Ramirez added an RBI double and scored three runs for the American League Central leaders. Bo Naylor hit a three-run home run and Josh Naylor supplied two hits, two runs and an RBI.
Guardians starter Tanner Bibee (9-4) gave up two runs and seven hits in six innings.
Wenceel Perez hit a two-run homer for the Tigers. Dillon Dingler, making his major league debut, had a run-scoring double.
Bryan Sammons, also making his major league debut, gave up five runs and four hits in 7 1/3 innings in relief.
Detroit’s scheduled starter, Jack Flaherty, was scratched amid trade rumors.
Cleveland jumped all over Flaherty’s replacement, Beau Brieske, for a 3-0 lead in the first. Angel Martinez smacked a one-out double and scored on a Ramirez double. Josh Naylor brought home Ramirez with a single. With two outs, Andres Gimenez and Jhonkensy Noel singled to bring in Naylor and end Brieske’s night.
Ramirez blasted a changeup from Sammons for his 25th homer leading off the third inning.
The Guardians extended their lead 7-0 in the sixth. Josh Naylor led off with a single. Sammons retired the next two batters before hitting Noel with a pitch. Bo Naylor then ripped a breaking ball just inside the right field foul pole for his seventh homer.
The Tigers had runners on the corners in the bottom of the inning but Bibee induced a double-play ball from Justyn-Henry Malloy.
Ramirez hit homer No. 26 off Sammons for an 8-0 lead. He smashed a curveball over the left-center field wall with two outs in the seventh.
Detroit broke through in the bottom of the seventh. Mark Canha and Bligh Madris had back-to-back singles. Dingler then doubled to left to bring in Canha. After Zach McKinstry walked, Gio Urshela hit a sacrifice fly to make it 8-2.
Perez’s eighth homer came in the bottom of the ninth.