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Tigers’ Tarik Skubal reaches career high in strikeouts vs. Guardians
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- Tigers’ Tarik Skubal reaches career high in strikeouts vs. Guardians
Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The post Tigers' Tarik Skubal reaches career high in strikeouts vs. Guardians appeared first on ClutchPoints .
The Detroit Tigers entered Thursday with a 4.5-game lead over the Cleveland Guardians for the AL Central lead . That lead has shrunk, with Cleveland winning the first two games of the three-game set. But Detroit had the best possible stopper on the hill with their ace going on Thursday afternoon. Tigers ' Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal set his career high in strikeouts with number 229 in the fourth inning.
The Tigers faced a Skubal injury scare during his last start. He left the game against the Miami Marlins after grabbing his left side, but the tests came back positive. Needless to say, he is back on track in this start against the Guardians, with six strikeouts in five innings to start.
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Skubal won the 2024 American League Cy Young with a 2.39 ERA and 228 strikeouts. He has already bested the strikeout total and entered Thursday's start with a 2.26 ERA. After a historic season in 2024, the lefty has upped his game and is in line for a second Cy Young Award.
The Tigers are a few steps away from a division title in part because of Skubal's dominance. In his 29 starts this year, Detroit has won 21 games, including a stretch of 12 wins in 13 starts from late April to early July. That bodes well for the Tigers in the postseason, especially after their surprising run to Game 5 of the ALDS last year.
Skubal's 2025 season now moves into 14th place in Tigers' history for strikeouts. He will certainly make one more start, with his turn in the rotation coming against the Guardians next week. Replacing Max Scherzer in tenth place with 240 strikeouts this season is conceivable, and would be guaranteed if he makes two more starts.
The Tigers stay home for three games against the Atlanta Braves after the set with the Cleveland Guardians wraps up.
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