Tigers ace Jack Flaherty sends chilling warning, taps into “dark side” in cryptic message

Detroit Tigers ace Jack Flaherty is enjoying a great start to the season, holding a 1.62 ERA and 0.96 WHIP after three starts, going 1-0. In 16.2 innings, he has struck out 21 hitters against seven walks.

In his last game against the New York Yankees, Flaherty pitched 5.1 shutout innings, allowing three hits, three walks while striking out nine. Ahead of his next scheduled start against the Milwaukee Brewers early next week, Flaherty sent a cryptic message to the rest of MLB.

In black-and-white photos posted on social media, Flaherty stood just outside the dugout in full uniform, captioning it:

"My dark side been well in-tuned ☯️ Na’au ⚡"

It’s a cryptic note that perhaps suggests a mental reset, a new level of focus or simply a warning that this version of Flaherty returning to the mound is one that opponents won't want to face.

The phrase "Na’au", a Hawaiian term often tied to gut instinct or inner wisdom.

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Jack Flaherty and his high school teammate combined for 20 Ks

The series finale between the Yankees and the Tigers saw two high school teammates rivaling each other on opposite mounds.

They didn't miss to put on a show, as they traded zeroes and combined for 20 strikeouts, nine in favor of Jack Flaherty and 11 by his Harvard-Westlake High School teammate Max Fried.

Eventually, Fried's Yankees helped him get the win as the Tigers lost 4-3. Meanwhile, Flaherty received a no-decision.

“Max, he was unbelievable today. He outpitched me,” Flaherty said. “And at the end of the day, it might have been the difference. We had to go to a couple more guys in our pen. If I stay away from that long second inning, it hopefully leads to getting a little deeper into games.”

Fried transferred to Harvard-Westlake High School for his senior season, joining Jack Flaherty and Lucas Giolito.

“I don't think we ever really talked about if we matched up,” Flaherty said. “We've been in different settings, played against each other, watched each other throw, but never matched up on the same day.”

Fried also liked to get into a pitching duel with his former high school teammate.

“We’re both competitive, and so we knew we were locked in and had a job to do,” Fried said.

“But it was fun. It was a cool experience, but we lost the first two [games] of the series, and I just wanted to make sure that I did whatever I could to keep us in the game to hopefully come out with the win.”

Both Max Fried and Jack Flaherty are leading members of their respective starting rotations and want to take their teams into the postseason.