BOSTON — Through all the ups and downs of the Tigers’ stretch run that turned a postseason berth from a near-formality to a serious question, they had one of baseball’s most formidable, most consistent factors for a postseason: Tarik Skubal at the top of the rotation. Get the reigning American League Cy Young winner into a winner-take-all series, and give the opponents reason to worry.
By clinching a postseason berth on Saturday, the Tigers have not only punched their ticket for October, they’ve given their potential Wild Card Series opponents a reason to fear the matchup. They can line up Skubal for Game 1 on Tuesday.
“This is why you play the game,” Skubal said on Saturday afternoon before their clinching 2-1 win over the Red Sox at Fenway Park. “This is what you prepare for. This is why you do all the stuff in the offseason that you do. It’s why you spend the last seven months taking care of yourself daily. It’s literally why I prepare the way I do.”
Though the Tigers listed Skubal as their probable starter for Sunday’s regular-season finale going into this weekend’s series against the Red Sox, manager A.J. Hinch made the conditions on that clear: Skubal would pitch Sunday if needed to win to get into the postseason. If Detroit wrapped up a berth ahead of time, he’d get pushed back.
Hinch is sticking with the plan, even with a chance to win the AL Central title.
“I think he’s excited to be on a postseason team again,” Hinch said, “knowing he’s going to get Game 1.”
Chris Paddack will get the ball on Sunday against the Red Sox. The veteran right-hander made six starts for Detroit after being acquired in a trade with Minnesota on July 28, but his struggles led the Tigers to shift him to the bullpen in a multi-inning relief role.
Skubal, meanwhile, will play catch but little else. He already threw his usual between-starts bullpen session, and he doesn’t need a second one at this point in the year, especially the way he’s pitching.
“I think my stuff is just as good as it’s been all year,” Skubal said. “That’s something I kind of pride myself on, taking care of myself. That way the stuff coming out of my hand is going to stay the same. My last start, I think my average velo was up a mile and a half, so I’ll let that say it.”
If the Tigers had a chance to earn a top-two seed and a first-round bye, maybe the conversation would be different. But they’ll play a Wild Card Series regardless of what happens on Sunday. The only difference a division title would make would be a chance to play the series at home rather than on the road. For obvious reasons, the Tigers see a bigger difference in starting Skubal in a best-of-three series no matter where they play.
If Skubal started on Sunday, the only way he’d be able to pitch in a Wild Card Series would be in a Game 3 on Thursday on short rest. But Skubal has never started on three days’ rest; his only outing on short rest in the Majors was a relief appearance in 2021, when he was a 24-year-old rookie in manager A.J. Hinch’s first season in Detroit.
The Tigers have just two other traditional starters in Jack Flaherty and Casey Mize. Rookie Troy Melton has started at different points this season, including Thursday in Cleveland. But Melton has spent most of the last two months in the bullpen, and hasn’t been stretched out to provide traditional starter innings. He’d more likely be a front man for their pitching chaos strategy.
