Unfair to compare? Tarik Skubal has taken over Justin Verlander’s job as the Detroit Tigers’ ace

Detroit Tigers manager AJ Hinch didn’t sugarcoat it.

It’s way too early to compare Tarik Skubal and Justin Verlander.

Let Hinch explain.

“I hesitate to bring up Tarik when you’re talking about a future Hall of Famer,” said Hinch, who has managed both Skubal and Verlander since the latter left Detroit for Houston in late 2017. “He’s is probably a little unfair to both of them, but I can tell you I like their competitiveness equally…I just hate the comparison part because Justin is a few thousand rounds ahead of him I think we are. let’s see a lot of elements of a front thrower with Tarik, and he. He has his own name. He doesn’t need to be compared to anyone else.

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The main reason Skubal, a left-handed flamethrower, actively draws comparisons to Verlander, a right-handed wizard, is because Skubal is arguably the only true ace the Tigers have had since Verlander’s dominance in Detroit nearly ten years old.

And those comparisons become a lot easier when Verlander returns to his old stomping grounds at Comerica Park, as he did this weekend with the Houston Astros for a three-game series against the Tigers.

Verlander, now 41, pitched for the Tigers from 2005 to 2017, then joined the Astros from 2017 to 2022. He spent a few months with the New York Mets last season and returned to Houston, a place where he loves to live and pitch, at last year’s trade deadline.

The back of the baseball card, over all those years, is Hall of Fame worthy: a 3.25 ERA with 3,357 strikeouts in 3,347⅔ innings. Verlander won the American League Rookie of the Year in 2006, the AL Cy Young Awards in 2011, 2019 and 2022 and AL MVP in 2011. Skubal needs 2,919⅓ innings and 2,877 strikeouts – and more than a few trophies – to catch Verlander.

“I always support the guys, the organization,” Verlander said, “except when we play them.”

Skubal’s competitive nature – confident that opposing hitters won’t hit his best pitches – resembles the way Verlander attacks hitters, but when there is no batter in the box, Skubal looks more relaxed than Verlander. During games, Skubal is visibly feisty from start to finish in each of his appearances, sometimes throwing his glove into the dugout in frustration or backpedaling off the mound in celebration, while Verlander remains stoic, actually looking like the No. 1 of the Tigers in 2018. , Casey Mize.

But both Verlander and Skubal are fierce competitors armed with crushing fastballs and nasty secondary pitches.

“I feel like every time I pick up the ball,” Skubal said, “I’m pretty confident in what I’m throwing.”

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Skubal is the ace of the present; Verlander is the ace of the past.

This is what connects them.

“When you have a front-end type pitcher,” Hinch said, “no matter where he is in his career, whether it’s early, middle or late, there’s a characteristic that comes with that title, that label or that expectation, and how you handle that will help make that situation even easier.”

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Skubal confirmed his ace status once again in Saturday’s 8-2 win over the Astros at Comerica Park, the day before Verlander was scheduled to face the Tigers in the series finale on Sunday.

He had total control.

Skubal allowed two runs – both in the fourth inning – on six hits and one walk with seven strikeouts in 6⅓ innings, throwing 97 pitches. The 27-year-old left the field for the final time to a standing ovation from fans in the Comerica Park stands.

“It’s like watching one of the best pitchers in the world right now,” said Kerry Carpenter, who hit two home runs. “We get an up-close and personal view of it, so it’s kind of fun.”

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Early Saturday, Skubal threw the first 100 mph pitch of his MLB career to Yainer Diaz, resulting in a foul ball, in the second inning. With that pitch, Skubal became the first Tigers starter to reach triple digits on the radar gun since Verlander in 2012, according to Jason Beck of MLB.com.

Reaching triple digits has been a fun goal for Skubal.

“I always joked about doing it once in my career,” Skubal said. “It’s not the only thing I think about. I obviously think about raising a fastball. But yeah, I think it’s pretty cool.”

It’s early in the 2024 season, but Skubal is currently the favorite to win the AL Cy Young. He commands a 2.02 ERA with eight walks and 60 strikeouts in 49 innings over eight starts. Among AL pitchers, he ranks third in ERA, second in strikeouts, fourth in strikeout rate, seventh in walk rate and tied for sixth in innings pitched.

Skubal also ranks first in the AL with a 0.857 WHIP and 2.06 FIP.

He has allowed just 14 earned runs in his last 13 starts, dating back to last season. He has an incredible 1.59 ERA with a whopping 103 strikeouts in 79 innings during that run, which included a nomination as AL Pitcher of the Month in September.

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More importantly, Skubal has been one of the best pitchers in baseball – arguably the best pitcher in baseball – since returning from left elbow flexor tendon surgery about 10 months ago, recording an ERA of 2, 51 with 162 strikeouts in 129⅓ innings in 23 starts. His 5.1 fWAR ranks first among all MLB pitchers since his July 4 return, ahead of Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler and Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Tyler Glasnow, both at 4. 3 fWAR.

Skubal is consistently dominant as the Tigers’ ace, just like Verlander was.

“One thing all great pitchers do is they string good outs after good outs,” Hinch said. “There’s very little variation. You don’t see the best pitchers at this level disappear for periods of time. They just pile good outing after good outing. They also evolve. It evolves with the art of pitching.”

Contact Evan Petzold at [email protected] or follow him @EvanPetzold.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tarik Skubal landed Justin Verlander’s job as Detroit Tigers ace