The Detroit Tigers open a three-game weekend series against the Chicago White Sox on Friday night at Comerica Park, with Tarik Skubal taking the ball against Erick Fedde. The opener begins at 6:40 p.m. ET and gives Detroit a quick chance to steady itself after a run that has already swung from promising to shaky.
That swing is why this matchup matters now. The Tigers won seven of their first nine games in June, swept the Tampa Bay Rays and took two of three from the Seattle Mariners, then lost four of five after taking two of three from the Minnesota Twins at home. They were also coming off a de facto two-game sweep by the Cleveland Guardians and a two-out-of-three series loss to the Houston Astros, so a division series at home arrives with some pressure attached.
Skubal is the reason many eyes go to this game first. Detroit’s ace left-hander returned from the injured list in his last start against the Cleveland Guardians, but the outing was uneven: 4 2/3 innings, three runs, two earned, on five hits, one home run and one walk, with four strikeouts and one batter hit. The 3-1 loss was his third of the season, and it left a question that cannot be avoided just because the calendar has turned to a new series.
His numbers still frame him as the pitcher Detroit wants on the mound in a spot like this. Skubal entered Friday at 3-3 with a 2.81 ERA, while Fedde came in at 2-5 with a 4.50 ERA. Fedde has had a mixed recent stretch against Detroit, throwing five scoreless innings against the Minnesota Twins on June 3 for his first and only win of the season before later working four innings of two-run relief in a Chicago win over the Tigers in extras, 4-3.
The White Sox arrive with their own reason to pay attention to this series. They were described as being in a battle with the Cleveland Guardians for the top spot in the AL Central, which turns a Friday night opener into more than just another divisional game. For Detroit, the path forward is simpler: the Tigers need a cleaner start from Skubal than they got last time, and they need it at the front end of a three-game weekend series that can either settle them or keep the wobble going.
