Tarik Skubal was back in Detroit for the first time on Friday night and gave his former team a different perspective on his dominance. It did not go well for them.
Tarik Skubal pitches gem in return to Detroit
Skubal went six innings in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 2-1 win over the Detroit Tigers, allowing just one run, walking none and striking out seven batters.
It lowered his season ERA to 2.84.
It was his first appearance against his former team since the pre-trade deadline move that sent him out west.
He received a mixed reaction from the Detroit crowd, but cheers seemed to far outnumber the few boos that were directed his way.
Skubal spent the first six-and-a-half seasons of his career with the Tigers and developed into one of the league’s best pitchers, winning a pair of American League Cy Young Awards. But with his contract expiring after this season and the Tigers unable to get him signed to a new contract, they moved him to the Dodgers for a package of prospects that was widely panned for not being enough value.
It was even more difficult given the reality that the Tigers were still very much in the playoff race at the time of the move despite a losing record. While they were able to stay in the race for a couple of weeks after the move, things have quickly gone in a different direction over the past few weeks, with a 3-12 record in their past 15 games.
