Shortstop Brayan Rocchio, who had been struggling for weeks, hit two home runs in Friday’s Game 1 of the doubleheader against the Detroit Tigers. The second one was a walk-off blast to give his team, the Cleveland Guardians, an impressive 7-6 win in the series opener.
The game, played at Progressive Field, started late due to inclement weather, but it was well worth the wait for fans. The two teams will play again later on Friday, but boy, it will be difficult to top the opener.
The Brayan Rocchio game.#GuardsBall | #GuardiWins pic.twitter.com/SVP1FGAFt5
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) September 4, 2026
Rocchio finished the afternoon 2-for-4, with a couple of runs scored and a whopping five RBI: his first dinger was a game-tying grand slam in the fourth frame. It was arguably the shortstop’s best performance of the season, and it included homers from both sides of the plate.
Starter Logan Allen surrendered five runs in 2.1 innings, but the bullpen was masterful. Slade Cecconi, activated earlier on Friday, tossed 2.1 solid frames and allowed one run, while Craig Yoho, Erik Sabrowski, and Cade Smith combined to blank the Tigers for four innings.
The Guardians dug themselves into a 4-0 hole in the very first inning, though. Ben Malgeri found the bases loaded and hit a two-run single off Allen, scoring Gleyber Torres and Kevin McGonigle. Then, Max Clark hit a line drive to right field that fell for another single, driving in Riley Greene and Malgeri.
Cleveland was on the board in the bottom of the first. Jo Adell’s sac fly brought home Chase DeLauter, who had hit a one-out double.
In the top of the second, Hao-Yu Lee grounded into a double play, clearing Allen’s mess but scoring Gleyber Torres in the process. Cecconi allowed a solo home run to Spencer Torkelson in the top of the third, as Detroit took a 6-1 lead.
The afternoon looked like a lost cause for Cleveland, but the offense and Rocchio were just warming up.
Travis Bazzana’s RBI single in the bottom of the fourth plated Nathaniel Lowe to put the game 6-2. A few minutes later, with the rookie second baseman, Patrick Bailey, and Angel Genao on board, Rocchio belted a bullet to right field for a game-tying grand slam. The ball left his bat at 97 mph. All of a sudden, the game was 6-6.
A grand start to Rocctember!#GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/7CZwfOSAlX
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) September 4, 2026
The tie would persist until the ninth inning, when Rocchio did it again, this time to walk off the Tigers and hitting right-handed against a lefty:
We adore you, Brayan Rocchio.#GuardsBall | #GuardiWins pic.twitter.com/4X4RBnLm39
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) September 4, 2026
The shortstop single-handedly gave the Guardians a much-needed win to put their record at 71-70. They still own the third and final Wild Card spot in the American League and are trying to take the division away from the Chicago White Sox.
Game 2 will start at 7:45 pm ET. The Guardians will be sending Foster Griffin to the mound to try and sweep the doubleheader.
NEXT: Guardians Announce Four Roster Moves Ahead Of Friday's Doubleheader
