The News’ Tony Paul gives his quick takes on the Tigers’ 8-2 loss to the Guardians on Monday:
One thing I loved
The best development for the Tigers on Monday didn’t come during the game, as they dropped their ninth in 11 games since word came that ace Tarik Skubal needed arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow.
Skubal was actually back at Comerica Park before the opener of the four-game series with the Cleveland Guardians, and he was playing catch — remarkably, less than two weeks since he had a loose body removed.
A surgeon I spoke to before Skubal had surgery May 6 put the best-case scenario on a timetable in the August range, but the same surgeon said it was likely he wouldn’t be throwing for several weeks, after getting back his range of motion. So, there’s a chance — only a chance, but at least a chance — that the timetable for Skubal’s return could be sooner than later for the two-time American League Cy Young Award winner.
The Tigers and Skubal still aren’t putting a target date out there, but it’s still a positive development that the ace is on the mend quicker than is typical for this kind of surgery. The question, will his eventual return even matter? The Tigers, with Monday’s loss, fell 6.5 games back of the Guardians in the AL Central, and they’re eight games under .500 (20-28) for the first time since Aug. 10, 2024.
Tigers fans have been hoping Skubal makes it back for the playoff push. They might soon shift that hope to a return anytime before July 31 — Major League Baseball’s trade deadline.
One thing I didn’t
Pretty much everything else. (We’re saying that waaaay too much these days.)
But we’ll stick with the offense, which was held to two runs or fewer for a third straight game, and the fifth time in seven games. The Tigers’ OPS for the month of May was an abysmal .610 coming into Monday night’s game, and they did little to boost that — even with Matt Vierling’s inconsequential homer in the eighth inning, with the game already a laugher (or a crier, as the case may be). Their team on-base percentage is well under .300 for the month.
Three of the bottom four hitters in the Tigers’ lineup Monday have an OPS under .500 for the season (Zach McKinstry, Wenceel Perez and Zack Short). Heck, Short still doesn’t even have a hit this year for the Tigers.
Kerry Carpenter and Gleyber Torres could return from the injured list soon, while Javier Báez and Parker Meadows should be back eventually.
Great. Maybe more trade bait.
Three stars
(Season total in parentheses)
Riley Greene (14)
Kevin McGonigle (14)
Slade Cecconi
Player of the game
Jose Ramirez — He now has 36 home runs and 135 RBIs in 169 regular-season games against the Tigers.
Tigers’ uniform tracker
Next Tigers game
Game 49: Guardians at Tigers, 6:40 Tuesday, Detroit SportsNet, 97.1
ICYMI: Yesterday’s Tigers recap
tpaul@detroitnews.com
@tonypaul1984
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit Tigers, Game 48: One thing I loved, one thing I didn’t
Reporting by Tony Paul, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
