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AJ Hinch reveals reason for no Tarik Skubal vs. Paul Skenes showdown
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- AJ Hinch reveals reason for no Tarik Skubal vs. Paul Skenes showdown
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The post AJ Hinch reveals reason for no Tarik Skubal vs. Paul Skenes showdown appeared first on ClutchPoints .
The two best pitchers in Major League Baseball are Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes . Both are the Cy Young favorites in their respective leagues, and both are set to pitch on Thursday as Skubal and the Detroit Tigers host Skenes and the Pittsburgh Pirates . The only issue is that it's a double header, and the two of them aren't going up against each other. It would've been an epic pitching matchup, but it isn't happening.
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With the original series schedule, Tarik Skubal was set to start Game 2 on Wednesday, and Paul Skenes was slated to go Thursday in Game 3. Then, Wednesday's game was postponed due to bad weather, and Thursday turned into a double header. Fans became excited about the possibility of a Skubal vs. Skenes duel , but no pitching changes were made.
"I'll make it really simple from our standpoint," Tigers manager AJ Hinch said, according to a post from Evan Petzold. "I went to Tarik (Skubal) and asked him which game he wanted. He said, 'The early one.' At that point, we're going to lock in Tarik for the game that he can prepare for. I don't know what went into their decision — why (Paul) Skenes is in Game 2 versus Game 1. That's a good question for Donnie (Pirates manager Don Kelly). Put him on the spot. … I'm going to take care of my guy and let the baseball work itself out how it does. I guess I could have gone to Tarik and said, 'Hey, Skenes is pitching Game 2, so you're going to move to Game 2.' And I can imagine, while cool, he would have said, I'm going to pitch Game 1."
Pirates manager Don Kelly, who used to play for the Tigers, didn't meet with the media ahead of Thursday's contest, but he apparently kept Skenes in the Game 2 spot because he thought it was in the team's best interest.
"Kelly doesn't speak to reporters before day games, but through a team spokesperson, he said starting Skenes in Game 2 was a managerial decision based on what was best for the team," Evan Petzold said in a post.
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It does make sense that the Pirates want Skenes to face a pitcher that isn't Skubal. The Tigers are one of the best teams in baseball, and the Pirates are one of the worst. If they want to get a win in this series, their best chance is to have Skenes go up against someone else.
The double header in Detroit did get delayed because of more rain, but Game 1 got underway at 1:50 ET. Tarik Skubal is on the rubber for the Tigers, and Paul Skenes will lead the Pirates in Game 2 at 5:40 ET.
Related: Fans upset as Tarik Skubal vs. Paul Skenes duel gets shut down
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