Detroit Tigers, Tarik Skubal start vs. Pirates rained out; doubleheader Thursday

Fans who were hoping to see Tarik Skubal pitch for the Detroit Tigers will have to wait 18 hours or so.
A thunderstorm rolling through Michigan interrupted baseball activities at Comerica Park on Wednesday, June 18, with officials postponing the night's matchup between the Tigers and the Pittsburgh Pirates to the following day.
Advertisement
A split doubleheader between the Tigers and the Pirates is set to take place Thursday scheduled for 1:40 p.m. and 5:40 p.m. Skubal is now set to pitch Game 1 with the second game starter yet to be determined.
JEFF SEIDEL: One story about Tigers prospect Kevin McGonigle sheds insight into why he's different
A left-handed matchup was set to take place on Wednesday, with the Pirates' Andrew Heaney scheduled to pitch against Skubal. Neither team has announced whether the same pitchers would be starting in either game of Thursday's doubleheader.
Baseball fans initially missed the chance to see a duel between Skubal and Pirates ace Paul Skenes, with the rotations separating the pitchers — listed as favorites to win the Cy Young Award in their respective leagues — by a day. A Thursday doubleheader, however, allows for that matchup to take place, in theory.
Advertisement
However, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch hasn't indicated whether he would make that switch, as he has other options that might make more sense from the team's perspective.
PURR-FECT GAME: Tarik Skubal's 2025 MLB All-Star Game bid: Ace reaching heights not seen since 1875
For one, the Tigers could go along with the previously scheduled matchups, with Skubal facing off against Heaney in one game of the doubleheader. The Tigers could also bring up a starting pitcher from the minors to serve as their 27th man.
The Tigers beat the Pirates 7-3 in the first matchup on Tuesday, June 17. Detroit smacked four home runs on Tuesday, including getting two from Javier Báez, who marked his 10th year of MLB service on Tuesday.
You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers game vs Pittsburgh Pirates rained out Wednesday

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

UPI

33 minutes ago

• UPI

Watch: Dave Roberts pushes fellow manager Mike Shildt in Dodgers-Padres tiff

June 20 (UPI) -- Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts pushed his San Diego Padres counterpart, Mike Shildt, as benches cleared during a ninth-inning quarrel between the MLB rivals at Dodger Stadium. The confrontation occurred after Dodgers pitcher Jack Little hit Padres outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. with a 93-mph fastball Thursday in Los Angeles. Home plate umpire Marvin Hudson ejected Shildt and Roberts. "The fact of the matter is it's a good rivalry," Shildt told reporters. "It's a good, hard-fought baseball rivalry. I don't want it to get to a point it got to and accelerated to. But we got to the ninth not in isolation. We got to the ninth over a combination of things." Tensions steamed throughout the series after earlier perceived infractions and eventually boiled over in the finale of the series, which included eight hit-by-pitch sequences. Ohtani and Tatis were hit twice each. Benches clear in the 9th inning of the Padres-Dodgers game in Los Angeles. MLB (@MLB) June 20, 2025 "They like to pitch in, they are aggressive pitching in," Shildt said. "That's fine. People pitch Tati in. He's been hit five times by this group and played a lot of dodgeball." The Padres carried a 5-0 lead into the top of the ninth Thursday at Dodger Stadium. Little struck out Padres third baseman Martin Maldonado to lead off the inning. Tatis then settled in against the rookie right-handed relief pitcher, who was making his MLB debut. Little painted the bottom-inside corner with a strike to start the exchange. He then missed the zone with a splitter. He hit Tatis in the left arm with his final fling. Tatis immediately fell to the ground. Shildt proceeded to step out of the Padres dugout and shouted toward the field, before focusing his attention on Roberts. The Dodgers' manager then walked up the steps and toward Shildt before using his right arm to nudge the Padres manager, triggering more chaos as both benches spilled onto the field. Players eventually returned to the dugouts and the game resumed. Trenton Brooks replaced Tatis as a pinch runner, but was stranded as Little retired Padres first baseman Luis Arraez and third baseman Manny Machado to end the inning. Padres relief pitcher Sean Reynolds walked Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez and third baseman Max Muncy to start the bottom of the ninth. Left fielder Andy Pages flew out to left center in the next exchange. Relief pitcher Robert Suarez, who replaced Reynolds, then allowed an RBI single to Dodgers second baseman Tommy Edman and an RBI groundout to center fielder Hyeseong Kim, bringing Ohtani to the plate. Suarez missed the strike zone with three-consecutive fastballs before hitting Ohtani in the upper back area with a 99.8-mph heater. Fans yelled in response to the hit, but Ohtani looked toward the Dodgers bench and waved his teammates off so they didn't run on the field. Hudson ejected Suarez and Padres bench coach Brian Esposito in response to the hit-by-pitch. Shohei Ohtani plays peacemaker at the end of another wild game between the Padres and Dodgers. MLB (@MLB) June 20, 2025 Yuki Matsui, who replaced Suarez, walked Dodgers shortstop Miguel Rojas in the next exchange. He then threw a wild pitch, giving the Dodgers their third and final run. Matsui struck out catcher Dalton Rushing to end the night. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters that there was "no intent there," when asked about Little hitting Tatis. He also said Shildt bothered him by staring him down when he came out of the Padres dugout. "I think anyone would understand there's no intent there," Roberts said. "And even by my reaction, I didn't feel good about Tatis, a great player, good guy, getting hit. I didn't feel good about it. "So, as [Shildt] comes out, and he's yelling at me and staring me down, that bothers me, because, to be quite frank, that's the last thing I want. ... I took that personal because I understand the game and know that it doesn't feel good to get hit, but understand, again, intent versus clearly no intent." Padres shortstop Xander Bogaerts went 4 for 4 with a home run, double, three runs scored and an RBI in the win. Second baseman Jake Cronenworth went 3 for 4 with a double and an RBI for the Padres. Designated hitter Jose Iglesias drove in two runs in the win. Tatis went 0 for 4, while Ohtani went 1 for 4 for the Dodgers. Second baseman Tommy Edman reached base four times. He went 2 for 2 with two walks, an RBI and a run scored. Padres starter Ryan Bergert allowed three hits and no runs over 4 2/3 innings, but was not on record for a decision. Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowed seven hits and three runs over 6 1/3 innings to drop to 6-6 this season. Shildt said Tatis was taken back for X-rays, which returned negative results. The Padres outfielder hit .270 with 13 home runs, 15 stolen bases and 31 RBIs through his first 72 games this season. "The initial X-ray was negative, but it's not in a good place," Shildt said of Tatis. "You are messing with people's careers, messing with people's seasons. But again, we've got a guy in there getting drilled and getting X-rays. That's not good enough. That's not cool, man. He's our dude and I've got him. I've got our whole club." The Padres (40-34) are 3-7 over their last 10 games and sit in third place in the National League West, five games behind the division-leading Dodgers (46-30). "Before this series -- and I can back this up with complete evidence and track records speak for themselves -- teams I manage don't get into altercations like this because teams I manage don't throw at people," Shildt said. "But, also, teams I manage don't take anything. And after a while, I'm not going to take it. I'm not going to take it on behalf of Tati or on behalf of our team, intentional or unintentional. It's really that simple. That's how this game is played. "If you want to call that old school, then yeah we'll play old-school baseball." The Padres will host the Kansas City Royals (37-38) at 9:40 p.m. EDT Friday in San Diego. The Dodgers, who lead the National League in wins, will host the Washington Nationals (31-44) at 10:10 p.m. Friday at Dodger Stadium.

CBS News

39 minutes ago

• CBS News

Red Sox sending Kristian Campbell to Triple-A Worcester

The Boston Red Sox are sending struggling second baseman Kristian Campbell to Triple-A Worcester. ESPN's Jeff Passan was first to report Campbell's demotion on Thursday. The Red Sox are expected to announce the move Friday ahead of a three-game series against the Giants in San Francisco, with outfielder Wilyer Abreu set to be activated from the Injured List to take Campbell's spot on the roster. Campbell broke Spring Training as Boston's starting second baseman after an impressive camp, and the 22-year-old rookie got off to a hot start at the plate when he slashed .301/.407/.495 with four homers, eight doubles, 12 RBI, and 18 runs scored over his first 29 games. Campbell was the Rookie of the Month after his hot March and April, and was signed to an eight-year, $60 million contract less than a week after he began his Major League career. But he's gone ice cold since that scorching start, with Campbell hitting just .159 -- going 20-for-140 -- with a .243 on-base percentage since May 1. He's struck 40 strikeouts to just 10 walks over his last 38 games. The Red Sox have put a lot on the rookie's plate, with manager Alex Cora still batting him as high as fourth in the lineup despite Campbell's struggles. He had recently dropped to the bottom third of the lineup. And while Campbell started 54 games at second base, he was also moving around the field as he navigated his rookie season. He made seven starts in center field (including Wednesday's finale in Seattle) and two appearances in left. He also started doing some work at first base after the injury to Triston Casas, before the Red Sox pulled the plug on the experiment. In his 59 overall appearances at second, Campbell made seven errors to lead the team. The Red Sox are now hoping a little time in the minors will help Campbell regain his confidence at the plate and in the field. A fourth-round pick by Boston in 2023 out of Georgia Tech, Campbell played just 19 of his 138 minor league games at the Triple-A. Who will play second base for Red Sox? While Campbell tries to get right in the minors, the Red Sox will rely on David Hamilton and Romy Gonzalez to man second base. Hamilton is hitting just .172 in his 99 plate appearances, while Gonzalez is slashing .308/.473/.819 in his 28 games played. Gonzalez has seen action at first, second, and third base for Boston this season. Things could get interesting in the infield when Alex Bregman returns to third. When that happens, there's a good chance rookie Marcelo Mayer (.220/.277/.475 with four homers and six RBI) slides over to second, or he could potentially play shortstop with Trevor Story making the move to second.

Fox News

41 minutes ago

• Fox News

Caitlin Clark has rare shooting woes as Fever fall to Valkyries following fiery Sun matchup

The Indiana Fever did not have to come to Caitlin Clark's defense this time, but the Golden State Valkyries did not make it easy on her on Thursday night. Clark, coming off a game that involved a lot of extracurricular activity after the whistle between herself and the Connecticut Sun, was not her usual sharp-shooting self in the Fever's 88-77 loss to the Valkyries on the road. Clark shot just 3-of-14 from the field, including her seven failed three-point attempts going through the hoop, as the Fever ended up blowing a 13-point lead in this game to fall to 6-6 on the year. Clark tallied 11 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, while turning the ball over six times to Golden State. While Clark struggled from beyond the arc, her teammates did not fare that much better. As a team, the Fever shot just 8-of-29 from three-point land, with Sophie Cunningham, who had been dubbed Clark's "bodyguard" on the court after the previous game against the Sun, being the only one to hit more than one of her attempts. Meanwhile, the Valkyries, led by Kayla Thornton's 16-point night with five three-pointers, now own the same 6-6 record. Golden State also saw major contributions off the bench, with Tiffany Hayes (14 points, five assists, three rebounds), Chloe Bibby (12 points, three rebounds, one assist) and Laeticia Amihere (10 points, three rebounds, three assists) all helping their team overcome a double-digit deficit in the end. For Indiana, Aliyah Boston led the team with 17 points, while Kelsey Mitchell (16 points) and Natasha Howard (13 points) all landed in double digits in that category. However, turnovers played a large factor in the Fever losing their lead, as the Valkyries forced 17 total while committing just seven. This uncharacteristic performance from Clark specifically comes after getting poked in the eye and being shoved to the ground in a very physical WNBA Commissioner's Cup game against the Sun on Tuesday night. Clark was being guarded by Jacy Sheldon when the Sun guard poked her in the eye, and the Fever superstar retaliated by pushing her away. That led to the Sun's Marina Mabrey running over and shoving Clark to the ground while her back was turned. A skirmish broke out, but it would not be the end for both teams. Later in the game, Cunningham wrapped up Sheldon while she was trying to score a basket in the fourth quarter, and it escalated to the point when both players got ejected after their physical altercation underneath the hoop. Indiana ended up winning the game, 88-71, with Clark totaling 20 points and six assists. It was just her second game since returning from injury. However, this certainly is not the way Clark or the Fever wanted to respond after that chippy game against the Sun. Their next opportunity to get back in the win column will be Sunday against the Las Vegas Aces. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.