Which Tigers Player Has the Most Pressure To Produce for Remainder of the Season?

There is one Detroit Tigers player who is under pressure to produce.

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The Detroit Tigers are cruising toward their first AL Central title since the 2014 campaign, sitting 6.5 games ahead of the Cleveland Guardians with 12 games remaining in their regular season.

With an 85-65 record, there is some work to do if they want to chase down the Toronto Blue Jays for the No. 1 seed in the American League. The AL East leaders are 87-62 entering play on Sept. 15. A big issue for the Tigers has been getting up to play against lower-echelon opponents. They just lost a series to the Miami Marlins, Chicago White Sox, reeling New York Mets and Athletics for example, but took two out of three from the New York Yankees.

One reason for the team’s lack of consistency recently has been the performance of everyone not named Tarik Skubal in their starting rotation. The reigning and likely back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner has been dominant when he takes the mound. Unfortunately, none of his teammates have stepped up behind him on a regular basis.

Tigers Have Major Starting Pitching Problem

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The starting rotation is a major question mark heading down the stretch. Chris Paddack, one of their trade deadline acquisitions, was moved to the bullpen. Charlie Morton, another pickup ahead of the deadline, has a 5.92 ERA with Detroit. 

Jack Flaherty’s overall numbers leave a lot to be desired, but when he faces a playoff contender, he has looked like an ace. Casey Mize has had a nice bounce back season. He was named an All-Star but has struggled in the second half with a 5.23 ERA.

Because of all that, Skubal is the only starter manager A.J. Hinch can rely on. That is as much of a reason as any as to why Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report has placed Skubal on his list of the 12 players under the most pressure to deliver for the remainder of 2025, with the ace coming in at No. 3 since the team’s success is resting on his shoulders.

Tarik Skubal Tasked With Carrying Tigers Rotation

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If he has one bad outing, tension will begin to rise in the clubhouse. There is so much uncertainty beyond him taking the ball in Game 1 of their series that he has to perform at a high level. If he doesn’t, the team’s odds of advancing drop significantly.

It is unfair to put so much of the onus on a single player. But these are the exact situations in which the great ones step up. Skubal certainly qualifies as such, turning himself into arguably the best starting pitcher in baseball.

The expected level of production that comes with such a title is what the Tigers and their fanbase will be anticipating seeing on the mound.