The 30-year-old – the third highest-paid pitcher and fifth highest-paid player on the Detroit Tigers' roster, at $20 million – labored through his sixth start.
This time, Flaherty lasted just two innings, after surrendering six runs on 68 pitches in the Tigers' 9-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday, April 25, in the second of three games at Great American Ball Park. In his six starts, he has a 5.33 ERA with 22 walks (plus four hit-by-pitches) and 28 walks across 25⅓ innings.
The Tigers have lost five of their past nine games.
'ON TIME': Spencer Torkelson finds his timing, unlocks his power after slow start
More notably, the Tigers have a 14-14 record after 28 games – meaning they'll need to go 76-58 (a .567 winning percentage) in their final 134 games to reach 90 wins. (Even worse, the Tigers are 42-55 since July 9, 2025.)
The Tigers (14-14) and the Reds (18-9) meet in the series finale Sunday (1:40 p.m., Detroit SportsNet). The probable pitchers: right-hander Keider Montero for the Tigers and right-hander Rhett Lowder for the Reds.
In Saturday's game, Flaherty gave up three home runs: a three-run shot to rookie Sal Stewart and a solo blast to Nathaniel Lowe in the first inning, then a two-run homer to Elly De La Cruz in the second. The homers in the first inning were back-to-back blasts after back-to-back walks.
All three homers came on breaking balls at the bottom of the strike zone, giving the Reds an early 6-1 lead.
While Flaherty struggled, right-hander Brady Singer led the Reds by pitching into the sixth inning and limiting the Tigers to two runs. He has a 3.17 ERA in 15 career starts against the Tigers.
The Tigers, though, struck first in the first inning.
Rookie Kevin McGonigle hit a leadoff home run off Singer's second-pitch sinker, driving it 405 feet to center with a 105.2 mph exit velocity. The 21-year-old went 3-for-5 Saturday, finishing a triple shy of the cycle.
In 27 games, McGonigle is hitting .333 with two homers and a .963 OPS.
Kevin McGonigle opened up the scoring in Cincinnati with a leadoff homer for the Tigers!📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/JJNXfE2keS
The Tigers also scored in the fourth inning, when an on-time Spencer Torkelson homered for the fourth game in a row. He received a first-pitch sinker over the heart of the plate from Singer – and he didn't miss it.
Torkelson hit .186 with zero home runs and a .566 OPS in his first 23 games, but since then, he is hitting .357 (5-for-14) with four home runs in four games.
The Tigers had multiple non-homer scoring opportunities but failed to produce, stranding runners on the corners in the first and third innings and two runners in the seventh inning.
The Reds extended their lead to 8-2 in the sixth inning.
Right-handed reliever Connor Seabold replaced left-handed reliever Tyler Holton, who gave up back-to-back singles to Ke'Bryan Hayes and TJ Friedl. After Seabold walked De La Cruz, Stewart delivered with the bases loaded and one out for a two-run single – smacking a two-strike fastball on the ground, past diving second baseman Javier Báez and into right-center field.
The 22-year-old is hitting .303 with a 1.024 OPS in 27 games.
Right-handed reliever Drew Anderson completed the final 2⅔ innings, allowing one run on a solo home run to Friedl in the eighth. He struck out the side in the seventh, but it was the bottom three batters in the Reds' lineup. He bounced back from the homer by retiring three of the next four batters, including De La Cruz on a lineout that had a 115.3 mph exit velocity.