Tigers ace Tarik Skubal shows some rust in first start since elbow procedure

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CLEVELAND (AP) — Tarik Skubal wasn't seeking any sentimentality for his return from elbow surgery. Save the pats on the back and warm words for someone else.

Skubal didn't win back-to-back AL Cy Young Awards on fuzzy feelings or nostalgia. The fiery left-hander is all business, and his time away from the mound didn't soften him at all.

“I don’t want to play into that narrative of trying to be back,” Skubal said Saturday following his first start since April 29. "I need to be better, plain and simple. ‘Just happy to be there,’ that’s a loser mentality to me. I need to go out there and pitch and compete and give my team a chance to win and I didn’t do that.”

Skubal showed some rust while pitching 4 2/3 innings as the Tigers again failed to get any timely hits (they stranded 11 runners) i n a 3-1 loss to the Cleveland Guardians. The left-hander had a loose body removed from his elbow in an i nnovative surgical procedure on May 6 that accelerated his return.

While Skubal wasn't dominant, that hardly mattered to the Tigers. They were just happy to have No. 29 back on the mound and delivering pitches with his familiar high-leg delivery.

“He didn’t execute at the level that we’re used to,” said Detroit manager A.J. Hinch. “But man, it was nice to see him out there.”

Skubal was lifted after 80 pitches by Hinch, who noted it was a “weird start” given the Guardians' lineup changed dramatically in the early innings when Cleveland lost outfielders Angel Martinez (bruised foot) and Chase DeLauter (bruised ribs) to injuries.

Skubal allowed five hits, struck out four and made one big mistake when he elevated a two-strike pitch to Daniel Schneemann, who connected for a two-run homer in the third inning.

“If I want one pitch back, it’s the one to Schneemann,” Skubal said.

Skubal was ahead 0-2 in the count when he missed with a high fastball that Schneeman, a left-handed hitter who had never faced Detroit's ace, drove 417 feet to give the Guardians a 3-1 lead.

“It was bad. Really bad,” Skubal said. "On 0-2, I’m going up and away and I kind of miss. It’s not in enough and it’s not up enough. If I’m going to miss, it needs to be more in and more up. It’s a good swing on it, but the execution on it was pretty poor.”

Skubal's velocity was fine, as his fastball registered in the mid-90s (mph). His breaking pitches had their usual spin, and for the most part he was pleased with his outing.

“My process was really good today,” he said. "Every pitch I was bought-in on. At the end of the day, that’s all I can really control, is me trying to go out there and execute every pitch and sometimes things just don’t fall your way.

"Credit to those guys, too. They had some really good at-bats, and they were in on some pitches, and fouled off some pitches and took some really good pitches, too. You kind of give credit where credit is due. At the same time, I’ve got to be better to give our team a chance to win. I just didn’t do that today.”

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