The Detroit Tigers are off to a fine start to the 2024 Major League Baseball campaign having won five of their first six games all on the road — albeit against some underwhelming competition. Now, the Motor City Kitties return to the D to open up the home portion of their schedule this weekend against the lowly, semi-homeless Oakland Athletics.
AJ Hinch’s squad did not take their first loss until the second leg of a rain-forced doubleheader on Thursday night against the New York Mets, in which the team had a combined no-hitter going that extended back into Game 1. The first game took extra innings and Detroit was able to outlast New York the first time around, but the Mets managed a walk-off win in the second game.
Below is a breakdown of the pitching matchups for their next series coming up this weekend starting on early Friday afternoon.
Detroit Tigers (5-1) vs Oakland Athletics (1-6)
Times (ET): Friday: 1:10 p.m.; Saturday: 1:10 p.m.; Sunday: 1:40 p.m.
Place: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan
SB Nation Site: Athletics Nation
Media: Bally Sports Detroit, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Game 7 Pitching Matchup
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Skubal | 6.0 | 28.6 | 0.0 | 1.64 | 0.3 |
| Sears | 3.2 | 5.0 | 10.0 | 5.99 | 0.0 |
Game 7: LHP Tarik Skubal (1-0, 0.00) vs. LHP JP Sears (0-1, 12.27)
Skubal gets his second start of the year on Friday after pitching on opening day two Thursdays prior, allowing the ace to pitch both season openers. The 27-year-old ace brought a five-pitch arsenal into the game against the ChiSox, with the four-seam fastball averaging 96.6 mph, while also employing his changeup, sinker, slider and knuckle curve, respectively, to keep the hitters off balance.
Sears is now in his third MLB season after splitting his rookie year between the New York Yankees and Oakland — the latter of whom he arrives at Comerica Park this weekend. With exactly 246 innings pitched so far, the 28-year-old has recorded a 4.46 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 4.88 FIP but got off to a bad start in 2024, getting pounded by the Cleveland Guardians to the tune of five earned runs on six hits, two walks and a strikeout in 3 2⁄3 innings.
Game 8 Pitching Matchup
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Maeda | 3.1 | 11.8 | 5.9 | 14.66 | -0.3 |
| Blackburn | 7.0 | 12.0 | 4.0 | 2.83 | 0.2 |
Game 8: RHP Kenta Maeda (0-0, 12.20) vs. RHP Paul Blackburn (0-0, 0.00)
Maeda gets his second turn on the mound this season for the Tigers after an underwhelming debut against the Chicago White Sox to kick off his eighth MLB campaign. The 35-year-old’s career numbers are incredibly solid, putting up a 3.96 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 3.78 FIP over 896 2⁄3 innings, but his opening act for Detroit was brutal, allowing six runs on seven hits — including a trio of home runs — while walking two and striking out one over 3 1⁄3 frames.
Blackburn is now in his eighth season of big-league play — all with the Athletics — having put up a 4.80 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 4.30 FIP over the years. The 28-year-old’s first outing was a dandy, throwing seven shutout innings of three-hit ball against Cleveland in a no-decision effort, but can he keep that up on Saturday? The right-hander’s six-pitch arsenal could be enough to keep the Tigers off balance.
Game 9 Pitching Matchup
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | IP | K% | BB% | FIP | fWAR |
| Flaherty | 6.0 | 30.4 | 5.9 | 3.59 | 0.1 |
| Boyle | 2.2 | 19.0 | 19.0 | 4.76 | 0.0 |
Game 9: RHP Jack Flaherty (0-0, 1.50) vs. RHP Joe Boyle (0-1, 23.63)
Flaherty got off to a fine start in his debut for Detroit against the Sox, hurling six innings of one-run ball while walking zero and striking out seven. The 28-year-old is looking to resurrect his once-prominent pitching profile and hit the ground running last week on that front. He has amassed a 3.73 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 4.01 FIP over the course of eight MLB seasons stretching across 673 2⁄3 innings.
Boyle is just starting his second season in the big leagues after appearing in just 16 innings last year — making him still technically a rookie. The 24-year-old started three games in 2023, winning two of them thanks to allowing just four hits (one home run) while walking five and striking out 15 over that stretch. His first start in 2024 was ugly, getting pummelled by the Boston Red Sox to the tune of eight runs on eight hits and four walks while striking out two in 2 2⁄3 frames.
Series Outlook: Another win for the Olde English D
This is another very winnable series for Detroit, who have been blessed with a weak schedule to open up the 2024 campaign. The Tigers really need to take advantage of this gift before they start facing the real contenders and taking two of three (or even a sweep) is not only within reason, but it needs to be the objective in the home opener. Saturday’s matchup might be the toughest for the good guys, but with baseball being baseball, you never really know.