The Detroit Tigers have named their Opening Day starter for the 2025 season and it’s no surprise who it is. Left-hander Tarik Skubal, the reigning American League Cy Young winner who secured the AL pitching Triple Crown, will start March 27 against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.
In Wednesday’s game, Skubal completed two scoreless innings on one hit and zero walks with one strikeout. Skubal faced seven batters, throwing 14 of 19 pitches for strikes. He mixed all five pitch types in his first spring start: six sinkers, five changeups, four sliders, three four-seam fastballs and one curveball. It’s safe to say that Skubal is in mid-season form even if it was his first start of spring training.
Tigers Name Tarik Skubal as Opening Day Starter
In the 2024 season, Skubal posted a 2.39 ERA with 35 walks and 228 strikeouts across 192 innings in 31 starts. He led the AL in wins (18), ERA and strikeouts, becoming the first AL pitcher to win the Triple Crown in a full season since Justin Verlander in 2011.
“I think that might be the easiest decision a manager has to make when it comes to Tarik Skubal,” manager A.J. Hinch said during an in-game interview. “I told him when we first got here, obviously he’s going to pitch on Opening Day in L.A.”
You won’t believe who A.J. Hinch named Opening Day starter
pic.twitter.com/mh6p6nis6G
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) February 26, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Skubal opened the 2024 season in dominant fashion against the White Sox. In a rare 1–0 Opening Day win, he delivered six scoreless innings while surrendering just three hits and striking out six. Skubal mixed fastballs—topping out near 99 mph—with a sharp changeup to keep hitters off balance, throwing only 89 pitches in total. His precision and ability to suppress hard contact set a promising tone for the season that led to his first AL Cy Young award.
Main Photo: © Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The post Tigers Turn to Tarik Skubal for Opening Day Start appeared first on Last Word On Baseball .