Tigers Announce Probable Starting Pitchers for Pirates Series
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After making a push in the American League Central Division race following trading pitchers Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize at the trade deadline, the Detroit Tigers were swept at home over the weekend by the first-place Chicago White Sox. Any hope the Tigers had of making a surprise run to win the division went out the window at Comerica Park.
The only likely path to the playoffs for Detroit is the AL wild-card race. The Tigers begin a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night on the road, one game behind the Baltimore Orioles for the third and final spot. The Texas Rangers are a half-game in front of Detroit, with five teams, including the Tigers, within striking distance and just 1.5 games back.
It is set up to be a wild final six weeks, with a handful of teams jockeying for the final playoff berth in the American League. Detroit will look to rebound from a tough weekend series against the White Sox beginning on Monday night.
Tigers Announce Probable Starters for Pirates Series
Manager AJ Hinch has been in this position before and knows that anything can happen late in August and September. Here are the pitching matchups for the series that begins a six-game road trip and ends with three games against the Kansas City Royals next weekend.
- Monday: Framber Valdez (6-8, 4.26 ERA) vs. Carmen Mlodzinski (6-5, 3.79 ERA), 7:05 p.m.
- Tuesday: Keider Montero (9-7, 3.22 ERA) vs. Braxton Ashcraft (12-5, 3.88 ERA), 6:40 p.m.
- Wednesday: Jackson Jobe (1-1, 6.23 ERA) vs. Paul Skenes (9-11, 3.99 ERA), 12:35 p.m.
As luck would have it for Detroit, they get to see two of the Pirates' top arms in Ashcraft and Skenes. However, both are having opposite seasons. Ashcraft has been good and was an All-Star this season. He already has 12 wins, while Skenes has been trending in the other direction. His struggles began on Opening Day against the New York Mets and things have not gotten better as the season has gone along.
Skenes was scheduled to pitch the rubber game of this past weekend's series against the Boston Red Sox at home, but after Saturday night's 4-0 loss, Pittsburgh announced that they were pushing his start back to Wednesday to allow him some more rest. The Pirates, who have struggled since the All-Star break, took two of three over the weekend from Boston.
The playoffs seem like a long shot at best for Hinch and the Tigers, but winning a series is what they need to do, starting with Pittsburgh, to remain in the wide-open AL wild-card race.
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Scott Roche has covered both college and professional sports for nearly three decades for various outlets. Scott has covered the MLB, NHL, and college sports and he is someone always looking for a good rumor, no matter which sport it is.