Tarik Skubal, Tigers 'encouraged' after 40-pitch sim game
Detroit — Jahmai Jones just shook his head in wonder.
“Oh, man,” he said after facing Tarik Skubal three times in a simulated game Tuesday. “It looks like such a low-effort 97 mph.”
Skubal, just three weeks removed from an arthroscopic procedure to remove a loose body from his elbow, threw 40 pitches over three innings. The only hit he allowed was a home run that Jones off a changeup.
“It was good,” Skubal said. “The velo was good. The execution wasn’t as great. I was one-for-five on curveballs in the zone and that should be a high-zone percentage pitch for me. Just some little misses with the sinker in to righties and a little spin away, barely missing.
“But all things considered, it was a good day.”
Skubal kept his sense of humor, too. When he finally threw a curveball for a strike, he raised his hands and yelled, "I can still do it!"
Manager AJ Hinch said the next step, barring any setbacks, will be to throw another simulated game in five days, probably doubling the innings and the volume of pitches.
“This was a really encouraging day,” Hinch said. “It was good to see him out there and letting the ball go freely.”
The hitters were right-handed hitting Jones and Zack Short and lefty-swinging Gage Workman. Skubal struck out three and didn’t walk anyone.
“You work so hard in the offseason and in season to go out and play,” Skubal said. “And to not be able to do that now is killing me. I am trying to do everything I can to be back as fast as possible, but also as healthy as possible.”
Normally, it takes up to three months to come back from an arthroscopic procedure. But Skubal’s surgeon, Dr. Neal ElAttrache, used a relatively new procedure, using a smaller, less invasion scope (NanoScope), which they believe will drastically reduce recovery time.
“We’re doing stuff that’s kind of unprecedented,” Skubal said. “So we have to walk that line. I want to push the envelope but still be smart. I don’t want to come back in, whatever it is, two or three weeks, and go right back on the shelf. My goal is to come back and pitch the rest of the season healthy and play postseason baseball.”
Tigers at Angels
▶ First pitch: 6:40 p.m. Wednesday, Comerica Park, Detroit
▶ TV/Radio: Detroit Sports Net/97.1, 107.9 FM
Scouting report
▶ RHP Jose Soriano (6-3, 2.44), Angels: He’s been alternating blow-up starts (six runs in 5.1 innings vs. Dodgers) and quality starts (two runs, 6.2 innings vs. Athletics) over his last four. But on the whole, he’s been a monster, holding hitters to a .187 average and .264 slug. He’s drawing X’s with 97-mph sinkers and 98-mph four-seamers, then breaking knuckle-curves (45% whiff rate) and splitters (46% whiff) off them. He’s also been better on the road than at home (4-1, 1.114).
▶ RHP Casey Mize (2-3, 2.47), Tigers: He’s allowed two runs in 12.2 innings since coming off the injured list, a much-needed shot in the arm for the pitching staff. Those starts also showcased how his arsenal has matured and diversified. Against the Blue Jays, his bullet slider was as sharp as it’s been, and he leaned on it to keep the left-handed hitters off his splitter. Against the Guardians, the slider wasn’t as sharp, but he was able to show it enough to again keep the lefties off his splitter. All the while expertly commanding his four-seamer.
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers 'encouraged' after 40-pitch sim game
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