Tarik Skubal. Have you ever heard of him?
The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, who was traded by the Tigers to Los Angeles at the beginning of the month, will make his first start back in Detroit on Friday night. Let’s preview this juicy homecoming and make a couple picks on the DraftKings Sportsbook.
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Dodgers vs. Tigers prediction, preview
I think it would be fair to say that Tarik Skubal’s first few starts as a member of the Dodgers have been a little underwhelming. Now, part of that is unrealistic expectations, but another part is simply a middle-of-the-road 3.38 ERA. However, this past weekend in Los Angeles, the real Skubal finally appeared to stand up. The lefty was the victim of some hit clustering in his opening inning against the Pirates, but when things were all said and done, Skubal finished his outing with six consecutive scoreless innings and 11 strikeouts in those six frames. While the actual box score featured three earned runs, Skubal’s 0.37 FIP is far more instructive for projecting forward. This is man with a 2.49 ERA and a 2.43 FIP since the start of 2023. Did you really think he wasn’t going to live up to the pressure of pitching for the Dodgers?
In terms of matchup, this is also a pretty amazing time to get to face the Tigers. Not that Riley Greene’s left-handed bat would be all that valuable in a duel with Skubal, but in general, Detroit has really missed the injured outfielder’s presence in the middle of its lineup. To wit, over the past two weeks, the Tigers rank dead-last in OBP (.278), 28th in wOBA (.276) and 28th in wRC+ (72). If you’ve been looking for the No. 1 reason why the club has fallen out of the race for the final AL Wild Card spot — putting aside trading arguably the sport’s best pitcher — here it is. Detroit simply can not score with any level of consistency.
Ironically, the man who “replaced” Skubal in the Tigers’ rotation will oppose the southpaw in his return. It was a large pair of shoes to fill, yet Drew Anderson’s actually been solid since the trade deadline, especially when you consider he’s had to build up to a starter’s workload on the fly. Tonight will be the former KBO standout’s seventh start of the season. In the previous six, Anderson’s managed a 2.88 ERA with exactly one strikeout per inning thrown. Obviously, no one is going to confuse the 32-year-old journeyman for an ace, but Anderson’s done everything the organization has asked of him in 2026.
Dodgers vs. Tigers pick, best bet
Best Bet: Tarik Skubal to Record a Win (-130)
Think of this as an alternate bet for Dodgers moneyline with much more palatable odds. The Tigers rank dead-last in OBP (.278), 28th in wOBA (.276) and 28th in wRC+ (72) over the past two weeks. This is not a lineup that should give Skubal much of an issue. Meanwhile, Detroit’s last lost 10 of it’s last 12 contests.
Strong Lean: Under 8 (-152)
It’s not just the Tigers who haven’t been hitting lately. The Dodgers rank 24th in wRC+ in the month of August (91), and the recent loss of Andy Pages (hand) isn’t going to help matters. Look for this one to stay low scoring.
