SI:AM | Star Pitchers Lead the Way in MLB Playoff Openers

Michael King, Tarik Skubal and Cole Ragans dominated to power their teams to victory.

King dominated Tuesday, striking out 12 Braves hitters. / Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I was honestly shocked to learn how historically significant Michael King’s start was.

In today’s SI:AM:

👑 The Royals’ young star
🔄 Davante Adams destinations
♠️ Trouble for the Aces

Old-school postseason pitching

Depending on how you look at it, Tuesday was either a bad day to be a hitter or a great day to be a pitcher. Of the four teams that won their opening games of the wild-card round, only one (the New York Mets) had their starting pitcher allow a run. Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers, Cole Ragans of the Kansas City Royals and Michael King of the San Diego Padres all pitched gems to lead their teams to victory.

Skubal, the likely AL Cy Young winner, followed up his tremendous regular season with a fantastic first career postseason start. He went six innings and allowed just four hits while striking out six and walking one in Detroit’s Game 1 win over the Houston Astros. His fastball topped out at 99.8 mph, the fastest of any starting pitcher on Tuesday. He threw a first-pitch strike to 17 of the 23 batters he faced.

Skubal only threw 88 pitches and probably could have pitched deeper into the game, but he was removed after the sixth inning due to a cramp in his left hamstring. The issue flared up after he threw that 99.8 mph fastball in the sixth inning to Alex Bregman. Skubal was attended to by the Tigers’ trainer and remained in the game after throwing a few warmup pitches. Bregman ripped a single off the top of the wall in left but Skubal settled down and struck out Yainer Diaz to end the inning.

“I mean, I feel fine. I’m not really worried about it going forward,” Skubal said after the game, referring to the cramping. “But it’s frustrating. I don’t know what I can do. I hydrate enough. Nutrition is fine. Probably a product of trying to throw every pitch pretty hard. I’m a heavy sweater.”

Ragans, another playoff debutant, was just as good. He went six innings, allowed four hits, no walks and struck out eight as the Royals beat the Baltimore Orioles, 1–0. Like Skubal, he also exited the game after complaining of cramps.

Ragans has been excellent all year. His FIP of 3.00 is the lowest of any Kansas City starter and he finished fifth in the majors with 223 strikeouts. Ragans, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha and Brady Singer formed one of the best pitching rotations in MLB this year. As a group, Royals starters ranked second with an ERA of 3.55.

Ragans was acquired last year from the Texas Rangers in a trade that sent Aroldis Chapman to Arlington. Chapman helped Texas win a World Series but Ragans has established himself as a top-notch starter and won’t be a free agent until 2029. In the long term, he’s a major reason why the Royals are set up for a period of sustained success. In the short term, he’s part of a formidable rotation that could carry Kansas City deep into October.

The best performance of the day, though, was by King, who struck out 12 and allowed five hits in seven innings as the Padres blanked the Atlanta Braves, 4–0. King was the centerpiece of San Diego’s return in the trade that sent Juan Soto to the New York Yankees. And while it’d be impossible to replicate the value that a future Hall of Famer like Soto provides, King exceeded expectations this season and had a career year. He had primarily been a reliever with the Yankees but made 30 starts this year and posted a 2.95 ERA. He was one of just 10 pitchers to strike out 200 batters.

King saved his best stuff for the big stage, becoming just the second pitcher in postseason history to pitch at least seven innings, strike out at least 12 and not allow a walk or a run. (Trevor Bauer is the other, having done it in 2020.)

Having a star pitcher like Skubal, Ragans or King is critical in a best-of-three wild-card series. Being able to win the first game of the series and force your opponent into a do-or-die situation in Game 2 is an enormous advantage, especially when you’re able to win that first game on the road. Last season, there were five pitchers who threw at least six scoreless innings in a wild-card round game: Jordan Montgomery, Nathan Eovaldi,  Zac Gallen, Zach Wheeler and Aaron Nola. What do you notice about that list? Three of them played for teams that reached the World Series. The other two (Wheeler and Nola) are on the Philadelphia Phillies, who lost the NLCS in seven games. That isn’t a coincidence. You need strong starting pitchers to survive the dice roll of a three-game series and give yourself a chance to make a deep run.

Starting pitchers have never been less important than they are now. Teams are pulling their starters earlier and earlier, and while that may be good strategy, fans lose something when the game’s main character—the pitcher—is being changed constantly. Being able to watch an ace like the ones who dominated on Tuesday is more fun for fans, but it’s also a significant competitive advantage for teams. Having a pitcher capable of going deep into games means you’re able to save your bullpen arms for when the starter isn’t as sharp.

Thanks to the dominant performance of those three players, their teams are poised to advance to the next round if they can pick up another win on Wednesday or Thursday. Playoff baseball is nerve-wracking, but having an ace allows you to breathe a little easier.

Where will Adams (17) be traded? / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

The best of Sports Illustrated

• Stephanie Apstein was in Baltimore for the Royals’ win over the Orioles, in which Bobby Witt Jr. added to his quickly growing legend with another standout performance.

• Conor Orr listed a whopping 14 teams that should be interested in trading for Davante Adams now that the Raiders receiver has requested to be dealt.

• You’ve surely seen Derrick Henry’s 87-yard touchdown run, but Matt Verderame broke it down in detail to explain how he was able to bust loose.

• Michael Rosenberg wrote about why the Lions’ ability to win in different ways makes them the best team in the NFC.

• The Aces lost a second straight game to the Liberty and are now facing elimination from the WNBA playoffs. Emma Baccellieri tried to make sense of where things went wrong for them.

• Jon Wertheim’s tennis mailbag leads with an update on the Jannik Sinner case.

• Kevin Sweeney thinks Gonzaga made the right call in moving to the new-look Pac-12.

• Here are Michael Fabiano’s fantasy football Start ’Em, Sit ’Em recommendations for quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends.

• The trade sending Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks has been finalized, with the Hornets stepping in to facilitate the move.

The top five…

… plays from Day 1 of the playoffs:

5. Ryan Mountcastle’s unassisted double play.
4. Spencer Torkelson’s game-ending catch against the Astros. Yordan Alvarez hit a screamer with the bases loaded but it was right at Torkelson.
3. Fernando Tatis Jr.’s first-inning home run.
2. Michael King’s nasty slider for his 12th strikeout of the night.
1. Jose Iglesias’s head-first slide into first base on an infield single. His hustle sparked a two-out rally in which the Mets scored five runs.