Things are heating up in the AL Central race between the Detroit Tigers and the Cleveland Guardians. Detroit currently holds a 4.5-game lead with just 10 games remaining in the MLB schedule.
However, Cleveland and Detroit are in the middle of a three-game set, where the Guardians have already taken the first two games of the series, and Detroit aims to avoid the sweep on Thursday.
Cleveland is the more desperate team, and the Tigers aren't out of the woods yet in terms of locking up the AL Central. Detroit had a division-clinching scenario if they had swept the Guardians, but now they are itching for a victory and a little more buffer in the division.
Tigers need Tarik Skubal to ease the AL Central tension
The good news for Tigers fans is ace Tarik Skubal will be pitching in the series finale against the Guardians. Skubal hasn't pitched since being removed in the fourth inning of a game last week against the Miami Marlins.
At the time of writing this, Skubal has already pitched three scoreless innings, and Detroit holds a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning.
The Tigers players are pretty stout on "not feeling any pressure", and they still shouldn't. With a 4.5 game lead, and Skubal pitching in an important game, a vintage Skubal performance would likely give the team all the confidence it needs. If the Tigers were to win the series finale, that would give them a 5.5-game lead in the division with under 10 games to go.
Skubal likely has just one more start in him after today, with the idea of him being ready and fresh for October at the forefront of manager AJ Hinch's mind.
Skubal's start today, and the potential last of the regular season will give him a good chance to put the final touches on his AL CY Young campaign, in which he is currently a large favorite to win.
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