Olson digs deep against tough lineup as rise continues

DETROIT -- Reese Olson put together an outstanding first half to his sophomore season by showing more than one path to getting through opposing lineups. If his deceptive changeup isn’t working, he can turn to his buckling slider and curveball. But what if those paths are blocked by one of the most pesky, pragmatic hitters in baseball?

That was Olson’s conundrum on his way to Wednesday’s 5-4 Tigers win over the Guardians at Comerica Park as he stared at José Ramírez in the batter's box and Josh Naylor on deck in the third inning after three consecutive hits, including Angel Martínez’s two-run ground-rule double that tied the game and put the go-ahead run in scoring position for the two hitters who had tormented Detroit on Tuesday.

Ramírez had worked a full count in his first at-bat before reaching for a fastball off the plate -- right around where Olson wanted the pitch -- and lining a two-out single into right field. He’d reached base safely seven consecutive times since Tuesday, though the Tigers didn’t try to retire him three times on intentional walks.

After Ramírez declined to offer at two changeups and a slider out of the zone for a 3-0 count in his second at-bat, he seemed destined for an eighth consecutive time on base, especially with first base open. But Olson had other ideas.

“I’m not going to shy away from what our scouting report says and what [catcher Jake Rogers] says,” Olson said. “I’m going to throw everything with conviction.”

Olson went back to the fastball, knowing what Ramírez can do with one even if he hits his spot. But Olson, also knowing Ramírez rarely swings on 3-0, put his 3-0 heater on the inside corner for a called strike. Then he went back to the heater off the outside corner, just above where Ramirez had hit it in the first inning. The All-Star third baseman hit it again to the right side, but this time on the ground to first for the second out.

Up came Naylor, whose three hits Tuesday included a two-run homer and the go-ahead single in extra innings. With a runner on third, all he needed was another single. But Olson, having coaxed Naylor into chasing a slider for a strikeout in the third inning, buried another slider that Naylor chased for strike one. Then Olson challenged Naylor with a changeup -- a pitch he had struggled to locate early in the game -- which Naylor pounded into the ground in front of home plate for an inning-ending groundout.

“To execute those pitches to get them on the ground, that helped me get through the outing,” Olson said.

Olson’s path to victory was on the ground. On a night when he induced eight groundouts compared to just three strikeouts from a tenacious Guardians lineup loaded with left-handed and switch hitters, those two groundouts were the biggest of the night.

“Anytime you can get a ground ball from Ramírez and Naylor, sign me up,” said manager A.J. Hinch, who hadn’t intentionally walked any hitter three times in a game before doing so with Ramírez Tuesday. “That’s as dangerous of a combo as you’re going to get. We tried to avoid it tonight.”

Ramírez is 1-for-6 off Olson, the one Tigers starter he hasn’t really hit, despite no strikeouts. Naylor is 1-for-5.

Olson wasn’t dominant Wednesday -- he gave up a Daniel Schneemann solo homer an inning after the aforementioned escape -- but he was effective, posting his fourth quality start in his last five outings amidst an unbeaten stretch that has seen the 24-year-old recover from a brief midseason funk and fortify his place as one of the stalwart members of Detroit’s formidable rotation.

“He never had an easy inning,” Hinch said, “but yet, he did come through with really big pitches at the end of innings."

Olson (4-8), who went winless in his first nine starts with an 0-5 record and stood 1-8 with a 3.68 ERA just a month ago, has gone 3-0 over his last five starts with some long-awaited run support. The Tigers scored five runs only once in Olson’s first 12 starts this season. Wednesday’s five runs marked Olson’s fourth straight outing with that level of offense behind him.

There wasn’t a major adjustment in his game, Olson said, just in his ability to go with what works and find a way.

“Just understanding that I didn’t need to make any big pitches,” Olson said. “Just understanding that rough patches happen. Can’t be perfect the whole year. Just continue to do what I do well.”