Tarik Skubal wasn’t perfect.
The reigning two-time American League Cy Young winner made some mistakes in his second start since returning from the injured list, including a pair of changeups that stayed too close to the middle of the strike zone and resulted in solo home runs.
Despite those mistakes, the Detroit Tigers prevailed in a 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Friday, June 19, in the first of three games in the series at Comerica Park.
Skubal owns a 3.02 ERA in nine starts.
A two-run sixth inning made the difference for the Tigers.
The Tigers scored those runs on a two-out bloop double from Kerry Carpenter that was misplayed by White Sox center fielder Tristan Peters. He tried to end the inning with a diving catch, but he missed the ball.
Both Dillon Dingler and Riley Greene scored.
After Skubal, three relievers slammed the door on the White Sox: right-hander Drew Anderson for four outs, right-hander Will Vest for three outs and right-hander Kenley Jansen for three outs.
It was Jansen’s first save since May 10.
On the mound
The Tigers have a 5-4 record in Skubal’s nine starts.
This time, Skubal allowed three runs on seven hits and one walk with eight strikeouts across 5⅔ innings, throwing 94 pitches. He gave up one run apiece in the first, fifth and sixth innings, with the solo homers occurring in the first and sixth.
Skubal has failed to complete six innings in his two starts since returning from the injured list. The 29-year-old left-hander was sidelined for 38 days due to a bone chip in his left elbow that required minimally invasive surgery.
Before surgery, Skubal took down at least six innings in six of his seven starts.
In the first, Randal Grichuk – a right-handed hitter with a track record of crushing lefties – pulled Skubal’s two-strike changeup for a solo home run, providing a 1-0 lead for the White Sox. The changeup was located at the bottom of the strike zone, but it was left over the middle of the plate.
In the sixth, Junior Perez – a right-handed hitter in the second game of his MLB career – drove Skubal’s one-strike changeup for a solo home run, providing a 3-2 lead for the White Sox. The changeup was located away on the outside part of the strike zone, but it was left up in the zone.
Between those homers, the White Sox scored one run in Skubal’s 26-pitch fifth inning.
Two-out singles from Sam Antonacci and Luisangel Acuña set the tone for the White Sox, putting runners on the corners without any outs. Moments later, Peters grounded into a force out that drove in a run for a 2-2 tie.
Skubal put himself in more trouble by loaded the bases, but he escaped further damage by striking out Colson Montgomery (for the third time in as many plate appearances) to end the fifth.
After that strikeout, Skubal exchanged words with White Sox left-handed reliever Mike Vasil, who is sidelined for the entire season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Skubal failed to compete the sixth inning.
At the plate
The Tigers scored two runs in the first inning.
All thanks to Matt Vierling.
Vierling – a right-handed hitter who succeeds against left-handed pitchers – gave a ride to left-handed reliever Brandon Eisert’s first-pitch fastball for a two-run home run.
He came into Friday’s game hitting .274 with an .816 OPS against left-handers.
Next up: Melton on the mound
The Tigers (31-44) and White Sox (39-35) meet again Saturday (1:10 p.m., Detroit SportsNet) in the second of three games. Right-hander Troy Melton is the starter for the Tigers, but the White Sox haven’t revealed their starter.
Melton has a 2.81 ERA in four starts.
There are some reasons to be concerned about his performance, including below-average marks in whiff rate (17.6%, fifth percentile) and strikeout rate (13.7%, third percentile). Opponents have averaged an 89.3 mph exit velocity against him, which ranks below average in the 40th percentile.
His expected ERA based on underlying metrics?
It’s 4.34.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers save Tarik Skubal in close win vs Chicago White Sox
Reporting by Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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By Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press | USA TODAY Network
