In the last six weeks he took the mound, the left-handed star Tarik Skubal you are officially back. The Tigers activated the two-time AL Cy Young winner on the 15-day injured list and placed the right-hander. Jack Flaherty in IL for 15 days with left peroneal type. In other moves, the Tigers recalled a center fielder Hao-Yu Lee from Triple-A Toledo and optioned a righty Ty Madden.
Skubal will get the ball on Saturday against the AL Central Guardians, holding him to a 2.33 ERA in more than a dozen starts since his 2020 start. It will be Skubal’s first MLB game outing since he fired seven innings of two-run ball against the Braves on April 29. In Skubal’s one game start last Sunday at West West. five scoreless innings, two hits. He hit six and walked nothing.
Skubal underwent surgery to remove loose ligaments from his elbow on May 6. At the time, the fear was that Skubal would miss two to three months. Instead, opting for the new NanoNeedle procedure – a less common surgery – led to Skubal’s much faster recovery. He only has 38 days left to avoid going under the knife. Dodgers injured lefty Blake Snell and has made good progress since having the same surgery about a week and a half later than Skubal. It could be game-changing for pitchers if Skubal and Snell back off.
Skubal’s surgery temporarily derailed what had been an excellent season for the 29-year-old. He came out of the gates with 43 1/3 innings of 2.70 ERA ball and a 27.1 percent strikeout against a paltry 3.6 percent walk rate. The Tigers are off to a slow start with a healthy Skubal, as they have a 15-16 record after his latest start. Wheels were often off the shelf.
The Tigers now sit at a very disappointing 29-41, but have won seven of their last 10 to climb back into the playoff race in a weak league. Although they remain nine games behind the middle-of-the-pack White Sox, they face a manageable 5 1/2 game deficit to clinch a wild card spot. As the Tigers know, even nine games may not be too many to overcome. They lost a seemingly insurmountable 15 1/2 games to the Guardian in the final few months of the 2025 campaign.
The Aug. trade deadline is more than a month and a half away. 3, giving the Tigers enough time to emerge as buyers or at least avoid a trade. If they’re out of the running, president of baseball Scott Harris will have to decide how to proceed with Skubal. Scott Boras’ client is expected to hit free agency in the offseason, and chances are Detroit won’t be the highest bidder for his services. As the most desirable trade chip in the game leading up to the deadline, Skubal could give the Tigers a nice package of prospects. Otherwise, if he leaves in free agency after receiving and rejecting a qualifying offer, the Tigers will receive a draft pick as compensation. That pick will come after the first round.
While Skubal’s long-term future will be determined later, the Tigers can take solace in the fact that their rotation is getting healthy. That’s right Casey Mizewho has been sidelined since late May due to hip strain, will return on Sunday. Franchise icon Justin Verlanderwho started the year back on March 30, is making progress in his recovery from hip inflammation. Meanwhile, after missing almost two full months with elbow inflammation, he’s fine Troy Melton was released on May 24 and has since posted a 2.81 ERA in one start, spanning a 25 2/3-inning span.
Meanwhile, Skubal and Mize will rejoin Melton, Keider Montero and some big money offseason signings Framber Valdez in the Tigers’ rotation. Tigers manager AJ Hinch was prepared to field a six-man squad, but that was before Flaherty exited Friday’s loss to the Guardians after just three innings. His injury “affects the tendon that wraps around the outside of the foot and ankle,” explained Evan Woodbery of MLive.com.
Like Skubal, Flaherty is on track to reach free agency during the offseason. However, barring a reversal when Flaherty returns (assuming he does), he won’t hit the market with much momentum.
After exercising a $20MM player option to stay with the Tigers over the winter, Flaherty has pitched to a 5.35 ERA with a 25.5 percent strikeout rate and 11.1 percent walk rate over 15 starts and 65 2/3 frames this season. The 30-year-old made free passes at the second-highest clip of his career and recorded a career-worst 30.3 percent ground ball rate. An above average .337 batting average on balls in play and an unusually low 63 percent strikeout rate hurt Flaherty, FIP (4.10), SIERA (4.19), xFIP (4.52). His xERA (4.58) is a whole lot lower than his ERA. Maybe there will be a good backlash when he comes back.
