Tarik Skubal returns to Comerica Park facing high stakes and heavy emotions, while trying to snap a Los Angeles Dodgers skid at the same time.
The Los Angeles Dodgers made the biggest move of the trade deadline when they acquired Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal.
Skubal has been a 0.4 WAR player since being traded, and he's just 1-2 for the Dodgers through his first four starts.
That said, he's thrown 24 innings and has an extremely strong 4.3 K/BB ratio, something everyone has come to expect out of the 29-year-old.
The southpaw is set to make his first start against the Tigers, and there's a lot on the line in this one, not just personally for Skubal, but simply due to the fact that the Dodgers were just swept and are now basically four games out from having the best record in all of baseball.
Skubal on returning to Comerica Park
“It’s playing baseball in a place that’s obviously special to me, right?” he told The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya. “I spent eight years there. But I’m just trying to play baseball. That’s gonna be the challenge, just to keep the game the game.”
Skubal added, "All I can do is go out there and pitch and try to be the best version of myself on the mound. Whatever happens after that just doesn’t really matter to me.”
“I’m sure there will be some emotion, obviously. But at the same time, the game of baseball is normal for me. That’s my normal, is playing baseball," he said.
Skubal made his big league debut with the Tigers in 2020, and 2026 marks the first time he's ever played for a major league team that's not the Tigers.
Getting traded in the final year of his deal was almost a guarantee with Detroit's record, and now Skubal is a few starts away from what could be an absolutely massive deal in the offseason.
Dodgers desperately need a win
There's obviously going to be a bit of extra pressure on Skubal knowing this is his return to Detroit, but the Dodgers are desperate for a win, so manager Dave Roberts and Co. also have that on the back of their mind.
Skubal's last start saw him pick up his first win in a Dodgers uniform. He allowed three earned runs in seven innings, which surprisingly was tied for the most he's allowed in LA.
Regardless, he's 8-7 overall on the year with a strong 2.91 ERA and 0.95 WHIP, so he knows it's simply time for him to put his head down and go to business, as usual.
Coming into this series, the Tigers are only five and a half games out of an American League Wild Card spot, and with roughly a month to go in the regular season, there's still enough time for them to make up ground, but they'll need to go on a hot streak and get help from up to six different AL teams.
