Tigers’ Tarik Skubal Clears Scan, Avoids Structural Injury After Midgame Exit
Scan shows no structural damage; left-hander to resume post-start throwing Monday as team monitors soreness
MIAMI — Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal avoided a major injury after an imaging exam showed no structural damage following left-side tightness that forced him from Friday’s start, manager A.J. Hinch said Saturday.
The evaluation came back clean, Hinch said before Detroit’s 6-4 loss to the Miami Marlins, and Skubal returned to Detroit after the test. The left-hander is scheduled to take his next post-start throwing day on Monday as the club continues to manage the soreness.
Skubal, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, signaled to the dugout in the fourth inning of Friday’s 8-2 loss at loanDepot Park after feeling tightness on his left side and left the game following a brief conversation with Hinch and a Tigers trainer. He was charged with four runs and four hits in 3 1/3 innings in the start.
Hinch said the scan confirmed Skubal had tightness near the rib cage area but showed no structural damage. "It’s all good news. The scan came back clean," Hinch said. He added, "We’ve got a lot of work to do to get him through this soreness. 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." Hinch also said he had not yet spoken directly to Skubal since the scan but had been informed of the findings.
Skubal, 28, has been a workhorse for the AL Central leaders this season, going 13-5 with a 2.26 ERA in 29 starts and recording 224 strikeouts in 183 1/3 innings. His availability is central to Detroit’s rotation as the team pursues a division title.
Hinch provided an update on shortstop Javier Báez as well, saying Báez has swelling and bruising around his left eye after fouling a pitch that struck his helmet and forehead Friday. Báez exited in the second inning but has resumed game preparation and is "reporting that he’s doing fine," Hinch said.
The Tigers plan to monitor Skubal’s throwing program and soreness over the coming days. The club’s immediate schedule and Skubal’s next turn in the rotation will be determined based on his response to the initial rest and the planned post-start throwing session Monday.