Originally published by DodgerBlue.com
Tarik Skubal made his return to Comerica Park on Friday night for the first time since being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers from the Detroit Tigers roughly one month ago.
Skubal was drafted by the Tigers in 2018 and made his MLB debut with the club in 2020 before spending six and a half seasons with them.
Before the game began, the Tigers played a tribute video for their two-time Cy Young Award winner as he was walking back to the dugout after warming up.
“I think I did cry,” Skubal said on SportsNet LA after the game. “If you go watch the video, there were definitely tears. Luckily enough, I was able to make it to the tunnel before more happened. It’s tough. This is a place I’ve known my entire career since 2018. It was special, for sure.”
Skubal was also given a standing ovation as he took the mound once again in Detroit, even though he was wearing a different uniform.
“You know, with the last name ‘Skub,’ you don’t know if they’re boos or cheering for you,” the ace said. “I’m going to assume they were cheering for me.”
Despite the emotional return, Skubal was dominant and pitched like he did for so long with the Tigers.
The southpaw threw six innings on just 83 pitches while allowing only one run on four hits with seven strikeouts and no walks.
“I think I did a good job of keeping baseball, baseball,” Skubal said. “Tried to compete and give our team a chance to win. I think you kind of saw the emotions early, but I felt like I did a good job of keeping it baseball. But obviously, this place is special to me.”
Although Skubal wished to pitch deeper in the game with a low pitch count, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts opted to give him a little extra rest after pushing him in previous outings.
Skubal has already had two games with pitch counts that nearly set a new career-high in his previous outings with the Dodgers.
Even without pushing Skubal, the Dodgers were able to end their three-game losing streak and take the series opener from the Tigers with a 2-1 victory.
Tarik Skubal’s strikeout dominance
Since making his Major League debut on Aug. 18, 2020, Tarik Skubal has struck out 1,042 batters in 158 games, ranking 10th in the Majors during that span.
He notched his 1,000th career punchout in his final start with the Tigers on July 29, becoming the fastest Tiger to accomplish the feat in just 857 innings.
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