Tarik Skubal comes up short in battle of aces as Tigers drop 2nd straight
· Yahoo Sports
Detroit Tigers hitters found themselves on the wrong side of a dominant outing from a Philadelphia Phillies starter for the second straight day.
Tiger bats had nothing to offer against right-hander Zack Wheeler, who delivered six dominant, shutout innings to down the Tigers, 5-0, in the series finale at Comerica Park on Sunday, July 12. On Saturday, the Tigers threatened but could not deliver the big hit against left-handed All-Star starter Christopher Sánchez.
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Detroit (44-52) only mustered two hits off Wheeler, who also struck out 10. He continued his dominant season since returning from the injured list, improving to 10-1 with a 2.13 ERA.
Left-hander Tarik Skubal had a solid start, but could not match Wheeler's run prevention. Skubal gave up two runs over 5-plus innings, along with five strikeouts. He was chased by a Bryce Harper leadoff single in the sixth, which started a four-run sixth inning after reliever Keider Montero struggled against the meat of the Philly lineup.
Skubal gave up two runs on four hits, one walk and five strikeouts, dropping to 5-5 on the season with a 3.09 ERA.
The Tigers head into the MLB All-Star break three games back in the American League wild-card chase, albeit with three teams between them and the three teams tied for the final playoff spot.
On the mound: Tarik Skubal brings the heat
Skubal ran into a bit of trouble in the fifth inning when consecutive base hits from J.T. Realmuto and Bryson Stott put runners at second and third with one out. But Skubal struck out Trea Turner with a changeup in the dirt and got MLB's home run leader, Kyle Schwarber, to chase a four-seam fastball at eye level to strand both.
Skubal punched his glove and let out a yell after striking out Schwarber.
He returned to the mound for the sixth inning, but was pulled after an infield single from the left-handed Harper. Of Skubal's 92 pitches, 63 were strikes. He finished with five strikeouts during the fastball-heavy outing, with 60 either a four-seam or sinker.
He punched out Schwarber twice with fastballs, Turner once with a changeup, and former Tigers prospect Derek Hill twice with a sinker and changeup. He induced 20 whiffs on 56 swings from Philly.
Montero could not stop the inherited runner from scoring. He loaded the bases with a infield single (which caromed off his foot) and a walk, and then surrendered a two-out double down the left-field line by Realmuto. Stott then drove in Realmuto with an infield single – originally called an out at first before being overturned on review – to give Philly a 5-0 lead.
At the plate: Zack Wheeler just too much
The Tigers offered virtually no challenges to Wheeler. He only gave up two hits – singles by Riley Greene and Zach McKinstry – and limited Detroit to an average exit velocity of 77.4 mph.
Detroit had two runners reach base in only one inning (the sixth), but Wheeler struck out James Outman, Dillon Dingler and Greene to end that threat. He generated 19 whiffs from Tigers hitters, including nine from his splitter.
The Tigers faced relievers José Alvarado, Orion Kerkering and Jonathan Bowlan. The Tigers went down in order with nine straight outs over the final three innings.
Next up: The All-Star break
Most of the Tigers will have four days off during the All-Star break, which runs Monday-Thursday, though Kevin McGonigle, Riley Greene, Dillon Dingler and Justin Verlander will represent the Tigers at the All-Star Game in Philadelphia.. The entire team returns to action on Friday (9:38 p.m., Detroit SportsNet) with a three-game series against the woeful Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, California, followed by a visit to Chicago to face the Cubs.
Contact Jared Ramsey at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tarik Skubal comes up short in battle of aces as Tigers drop 2nd straight