Detroit Tigers Name Game One Starter For Wild Card Series Against Houston Astros
The Detroit Tigers enter the 2024 MLB Playoffs as one of the hottest teams in the sport after going 17-8 in September and erasing a five-game deficit for a playoff berth.
Now set to face the American League West Division Champion Houston Astros on Tuesday, the road does not get any easier for the Tigers.
What was easy for Detroit, however, was who to pick to start Game One of the Wild Card Series.
The Tigers have announced that American League Triple Crown winner (and all but guaranteed American League Cy Young Award winner) Tarik Skubal will take the mound for the series opener.
Skubal finishes the 2024 season with a 2.39 ERA across 192 innings with a 0.922 WHIP and 228 strikeouts in 31 starts.
The lefty finished the year as the American League leader in ERA, ERA+ (170), and FIP (2.49), and the Major League leader in wins (18), and strikeouts.
Skubal has faced the Astros twice this year, going 1-1 in those starts and pitching to a 4.26 ERA with a 1.26 WHIP and nine strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings.
His 4.26 ERA against Houston is his second-highest mark against a team that he has pitched 10 or more innings against this year.
The lefty has been a big part of Detroit's success in September, as he pitched to a 1.52 ERA in the month across 23 2/3 innings in four starts with a 0.85 WHIP and 27 strikeouts.
This American League Wild Card series is shaping up to be one for the ages, and the pitching matchup of Skubal and Framber Valdez in Game One will surely entertain.
