It was a interesting battle Friday between Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal and Kansas City Royals star Salvador Perez as the the former's team lost, 9-2. Skubal would talk about Perez after the loss in a friendly manner as the two traded some worthwhile moments in the game.
However, it was Perez that got the upper hand more times than not Friday as in the three plate appearances, the first two consisted of a 448 foot home run and a single. The final one would be a strikeout from Skubal where Perez said to the Tigers pitcher “Good pitch, you strike me out a lot.”
Skubal was nothing but complimentary towards the Royals catcher who both have shared conversations beforehand since they were on the AL All-Star team. The 27-year old Tigers pitcher would even rank Perez among the best catchers ever and called it “special” to have a moment with him according to Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free Press.
“One of the best catchers to ever do it,” Skubal said. “To have that moment with him, I don't know if he thinks it's special because obviously he struck out, but I think he had a good day off me overall.”
“My interactions that I had with him over the All-Star break was pretty cool,” Skubal continued.
Skubal talks how Tigers fans reacted to outing against Perez and Royals
As for Skubal who is putting on an impeccable season, he struggled Friday as he let go of five earned runs, allowed seven hits, and walked two despite striking out eight batters. However, the crowd would still reportedly give him a standing ovation which Skubal was appreciative.
“The fans were great tonight,” Skubal said. “You tip your cap to that, especially how we're playing right now, too, for them to show up and show out and be loud, you appreciate those things.”
Tigers manager talks Skubal's performance
The performance could come as a shock since Skubal has been stellar at home with a 1.95 ERA in 10 starts at Comerica Park along with 2.57 ERA overall along with 162 strikeouts. However, it was an off game for him as Tigers manager A.J. Hinch spoke about taking out Skubal in the seventh inning.
“Tarik and I talked in the dugout,” Hinch said. “I told him I had help for him at (Maikel) Garcia or Witt. I wanted to give him a chance to get Garcia. He could've got a double play. He could've punched him. The base hit chased him from the game. You know, Shelby's strength is the fastball up. It's the one area you have a shot at with Witt. ”
“It's always nice to get Tarik the lead and settle in against a good pitcher, and then that was it,” Hinch continued. “I thought our at-bats were decent. We didn't get a lot to show for it. It always feels like the at-bats can be better when you're not getting hits.”
After Skubal was taken out, the Royals would score six runs which didn't help the pitcher in the slightest as it would result in Detroit's fifth straight loss. The Tigers currently have a 52-59 record which puts them second to last in the AL Central as the third contest in the four-game series against the Royals is Saturday night.
Follow Us
Subscribe