Originally published by DodgerBlue.com
Tarik Skubal had his best start with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday despite running into some early trouble against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The left-hander settled in after a rocky first inning, which saw him allow three runs on three hits. Skubal managed to get through seven innings without giving up another run and collected 11 strikeouts en route to his first win with the Dodgers.
“Yeah, it feels good, obviously, to get the first one out of the way,” Skubal said after the Dodgers’ 4-3 win. “But I didn’t do a good job early in the game, but the boys picked me up.
“I was able to keep us in a game, and obviously the offense got going, and that’s all we needed to get a win today.”
Skubal held the Pirates to just three baserunners from the second inning through the end of his outing. He retired 18 of the last 19 batters faced, and credited that success to making key adjustments.
“I think one, they hit some good pitches. I think execution got a little bit better as the game went on, and obviously, there’s some adjustments that needed to be made. That’s probably just more pitch execution than anything, and just getting ahead in counts,” Skubal answered when asked of the big difference from the first inning to the next six.
“I don’t think I did actually. I think I was 0-for-5 on my last five first-pitch strikes, but other than that, I thought I was ahead in most counts.”
Skubal has allowed at least one run in the first two innings in each of his last three starts with the Dodgers. He believes he can solve those early-inning issues by being more aggressive out of the gate and making adjustments when necessary.
“Yeah, I was talking to Mark (Prior) about that today. Early in games, I might just be trying to feel it out too much instead of just competing with what I got at that moment,” Skubal explained.
“So that’s something that I need to make a change for, instead of trying to command the ball early. Maybe just go out there and compete with what I got, and then the adjustments will happen naturally.
“So, yeah, I was talking to Mark about that earlier today, too. Early in games, my stuff should be more crisp than it is. So yeah, I think it’s just about competing early in games instead of trying to find a feel for things. Just go out there and compete and that’s all you can really ask of yourself.
“So that definitely will be an adjustment. It’s something that I got to be better at for sure.”
Dave Roberts praises Tarik Skubal
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts credited Skubal for bouncing back against the Pirates and believes the performance was more in line with what has come to be expected of him over the years.
“That was good,” Roberts said. “Obviously, the first inning didn’t go great and they rode out some changeups, but just seeing him on the attack after they got those two runners on in the second inning, from that point on, it was a different pitcher. And yeah, that’s the guy that we needed. And completing seven innings, reset the bullpen, great outing.”
Through four starts with the Dodgers, Skubal is 1-2 with a 3.38 ERA, 2.66 FIP, 1.13 WHIP and 11.3 strikeouts per nine in 24 innings pitched.
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