The Detroit Tigers‘ fear of losing Tarik Skubal is officially over, at least for now.
Despite the fact he pulled himself from his start in Miami on Friday, Skubal’s imaging revealed no structural damage or tears to his side, oblique or muscles.
Skubal, of course, is the favorite to win the American League Cy Young Award for the second straight year, yet he left his outing Friday with what was called “side tightness.” Skubal threw just 45 pitches, allowing four runs and four hits in 3 1/3 innings, and took the defeat in Detroit’s 8-2 loss to the Miami Marlins.
Skubal is 13-5 with a 2.26 ERA in 29 starts and has the second-most strikeouts in the majors this season (224), trailing only Garrett Crochet of the Boston Red Sox.
What Did The Tigers Say About Tarik Skubal’s Injury?
Skubal went back to Detroit to get imaging, which revealed the good news, according to Detroit manager A.J. Hinch
“It’s all good news,” Hinch said before the middle game of Detroit’s series in Miami on Saturday. “Obviously, that’s great for us, and great for him, and now we’ll work toward his work week. … We’ll get together with him on Monday. He’ll do his normal close-throwing workout that he does, and we’ll move forward.”
Skubal was confident the imaging would reveal no issue, and sure enough he was correct. Hinch said Skubal’s imaging confirmed his assessment of his injury.
“He said the ribcage area in his side [was in pain]. … I haven’t spoken to him directly; trainers have after his doctor’s appointment,” Hinch said. “All of that was consistent with what he said last night. It matched the physical evaluation that we took to go along with the medical evaluation today. It makes for an optimistic [day].”
Yet, even though the Tigers are reveling in their good fortune, Hinch still is trying to get Skubal fully healthy and able to throw without pain.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do to get him through this soreness,” Hinch said. “I don’t like him having any soreness whatsoever or any of our guys. Clearly, we were all waiting for the scan and the evaluation, and to have positive news is a good step forward.”
When Is Tark Skubal Pitching Next?
The Tigers are preparing as if Skubal is going to make his next start, which is good because it could be an important outing.
Because of their off day Monday, Skubal is going to get an extra day of rest. But he is still scheduled to pitch against the Cleveland Guardians in their getaway-day game at Comerica Field on Thursday.
The Tigers could use a Skubal-like resurgence. They have dropped three straight, including their 6-4 loss to the Marlins in 11 innings on Saturday, and their lead over the Guardians is down to 6.5 games with 13 games to play.
Detroit has dropped five games to the Guardians over its past 17 games, where it has gone 6-12. The Tigers‘ magic number is still just eight, but they also have not gained ground on the Toronto Blue Jays, who now holds a 2.5-game lead over Detroit for the No. 1 seed in the AL.
Tigers Breathe Sigh of Relief With Great News on Ace Tarik Skubal