DETROIT -- Tarik Skubal’s next team has been revealed: The reigning American League Cy Young Award winner is about to become a West Michigan Whitecap, making a rehab start with the High-A club on Sunday.
The start could be the final step in Skubal’s rehab following surgery to remove a loose body from his left elbow. If all goes well, he would be in line to rejoin the Tigers’ rotation next weekend in Cleveland during an AL Central clash that could be critical to determining whether the Tigers get back into playoff contention or Skubal becomes the biggest name on the market at the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline.
"Hopefully it’s a one-[start] stint, and he can come back to the big leagues,” manager A.J. Hinch said Friday.
Skubal will likely get stretched out to around 75 pitches. He threw 64 pitches during his last simulated game on Monday at Tropicana Field.
It’ll be Skubal’s first Minor League appearance since 2023, when he made three rehab starts with West Michigan and Triple-A Toledo on his way back from flexor tendon surgery. He has been the most dominant pitcher in baseball in the three years since then, posting a 41-15 record with a 2.41 ERA, 2.37 FIP and 616 strikeouts over 511 innings on his way to back-to-back Cy Young Awards.
Skubal could have lined up for a rehab start with Toledo, as Justin Verlander did on Tuesday, but the Mud Hens face an iffy weather forecast this weekend in Iowa, where they’re finishing a six-game series against the Cubs’ top affiliate. The Whitecaps are home this weekend against Dayton, allowing Skubal to drive to Grand Rapids, where the weekend forecast is more favorable.