DETROIT -- The Tigers had been scheduled to play a home-and-home series against the Cardinals next week -- two in Detroit, two in St. Louis -- as part of a stretch of 20 games over 20 consecutive days to begin the season. Between this weekend’s weather and the Cardinals’ situation, the Tigers will now have an off-day Monday, followed by four games against the Cardinals at Comerica Park, and they won’t leave town until next weekend.

After positive COVID-19 tests among Cardinals players and members of the team’s traveling party led to the cancellation of their weekend series in Milwaukee, Major League Baseball announced Saturday night that the Tigers and Cardinals will play a four-game, three-day series at Comerica Park beginning Tuesday, including a Wednesday doubleheader.

Tuesday’s game will start at 6:10 p.m. ET. Wednesday’s doubleheader will feature two seven-inning games, with Game 1 starting at 3:10. Thursday’s series finale starts at 1:10. The Tigers will be the home team Tuesday and for Game 1 Wednesday, then will become the “road” team for the other two games.

“We’re flying there, and it just didn't make sense to then fly back and be on a plane again,” Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak told reporters. “We’re trying to minimize the ‘togetherness’ in these tight quarters as best we can. … [We're] trying to also accommodate Detroit to some level. They’re being inconvenienced, so it’s really just sort of a thank you for them to be willing to take us and not force us to play a doubleheader on our first day back.”

Instead of a game Monday, the Cardinals will work out at Comerica Park, while the Tigers are off.

“With two games [Sunday], that’s a good day off tomorrow,” Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said Sunday morning. “We were going to play 20 in a row, so that’s a break. We’ll get them in here and mix it up.”

Though the rescheduling means the Tigers will play two doubleheaders in four days, it shouldn’t have a drastic effect on Detroit’s pitching staff thanks to Saturday’s rainout and Monday’s off-day. The Tigers will need six starters next week but already have it thanks to Daniel Norris’ return from the injured list to start Sunday.

“If we have a bad start and have to go through a lot of people, obviously we could have to make adjustments,” Gardenhire said. “But that’s why you have a taxi squad, for something just like this. So we’re prepared for it as best as we possibly can be.”

Fulmer pushed back
Like Reds starter Trevor Bauer, Tigers starter Michael Fulmer was warming up in the bullpen Saturday afternoon just before the scheduled start time when rain hit Comerica Park and brought on the tarp, eventually leading to the game being postponed. Though Fulmer didn’t throw a game pitch, the Tigers decided not to start him in Sunday’s doubleheader.

“Obviously with his situation and what he’s had to come back from, we’re definitely not going to do anything like that,” Gardenhire said of Fulmer, who pitched last Monday in his first start back from Tommy John surgery. “He handled it very professional. We’re not going to risk anything with him. He’s fought too hard and worked too hard to do this.”

The last-minute decision to delay the game, Gardenhire said, came when the rain arrived sooner and heavier than expected. The Tigers had originally moved up Saturday’s start time by five hours to try to beat the rain.

“We can’t control the weather,” Gardenhire said. “We can try to anticipate what’s going to happen, but obviously the rain [arrived sooner than expected]. We talked about starting the game in a light rain, but it just got heavy. It really built up big, and you can’t do anything about it. I know there’s frustrations on both sides, but what are you going to do? The rain is the rain, and it rained.”

Mize stays in Toledo
Though top prospect Casey Mize was widely speculated as an option to start Sunday, the Tigers instead activated Norris. Asked if Mize was considered for the start, Gardenhire referred the question to general manager Al Avila.

“That’s not my department,” Gardenhire said. “We need a pitcher for a game, and Daniel Norris is the next guy in line. He’s the one that’s been here, done it. Al and I, we talked about it, and that’s the guy.”