Detroit Tigers observations: Tarik Skubal works on slider in bullpen, downplays ace status

LAKELAND, Fla. — Detroit Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal threw a slider, rehearsed his desired hand motion and threw another slider. He mixed in other pitches, but he was undoubtedly working on his slider in his bullpen session on Wednesday, the first day of workouts for pitchers and catchers.

Skubal is the best pitcher in the Tigers' starting rotation.

"It was good to get the first one out of the way," Skubal said. "I've had better days, but I feel good."

Pitching coach Chris Fetter and video coordinator Austin Tripp stood behind Skubal; manager A.J. Hinch stood beside catcher Jake Rogers. All eyes were on Skubal as he mixed his four-seam fastball, changeup, slider, sinker and curveball.

He tinkered with his slider and curveball in the offseason while trying to maintain the dominance of his fastball and changeup. He wishes he would have had a better slider last season in his return from flexor tendon surgery, so he made adjustments.

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In 2023, Skubal had a plus-13 fastball run value, minus-5 breaking run value and plus-6 offspeed run value. His slider, one of his two breaking balls, generated a mediocre 24% whiff rate. His curveball, the other breaker, was throwing just 6.8% of the time.

But Skubal's new-and-improved slider wasn't sharp in Wednesday's bullpen session, only because he was mixing the slider with all of his pitches.

"Basically, I'm just working on sequencing stuff," Skubal said, "so pitching off the last pitch and treating everything like a game. It's good to get out of your comfort zone because your slider can be good when you throw seven or eight in a row, but can you throw your slider and your changeup, and then back to your slider? It's stuff like that, so that's where I'm at mentally and what I want to dial in."

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Skubal likes the way his new slider moves.

"I think the shapes are there, but it's pretty much compete mode," Skubal said. "No more tinkering with things. It's about getting outs and throwing strikes, so that's where I'm at."

Skubal, 27, posted a 2.80 ERA with 14 walks and 102 strikeouts across 80⅓ innings in 15 starts last season, including a 0.90 ERA in five starts in September to win American League Pitcher of the Month.

He was asked directly if he wants to be known as the ace of the Tigers' starting rotation.

"I don't care," Skubal said. "I'm going to go out there and play. I'll try to put my team in a position to win a lot of ballgames."

'Best in the big leagues'

There's a swagger to the Tigers relief pitchers, an unspoken confidence that they could have one of the best bullpens in the league.

Check that.

Right-hander Alex Lange said it on Wednesday morning.

"I think we could be one of the best in the big leagues," Lange said.

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Last year, the Tigers' bullpen had a 1.27 WHIP, which tied the Houston Astros for the sixth-best in the AL. The Tigers' bullpen had 642 strikeouts (second most in the AL) and 224 walks (sixth fewest).

And it should get even better with the return of left-hander Andrew Chafin and the addition of right-hander Shelby Miller, who had a 0.91 WHIP with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 36 games.

"There is a lot of depth," Lange said. "It's going to be fun and competitive, which is what we want. We all push each other and work towards closing out games at the end and win some ballgames."

Welcome to TigerTown, Kenta Maeda

Manager A.J. Hinch introduced new right-hander Kenta Maeda to the team in the clubhouse before Wednesday's workout. He also introduced Maeda's interpreter, Dai Sekizaki, and Maeda's massage therapist, Yuhei Matsumoto. Maeda, 35, is well respect by fellow players because of his veteran experience and team-first personality. He began his professional career in Japan in 2008 and came to the United States in 2016.

"It's so fun to have a veteran who's iconic in multiple countries," Hinch said. "He's pitched at super high levels. He can help us, and he's super engaging. He wants to be a part of the team. He doesn't want to be off doing his own thing."

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Maeda and outfielder Riley Greene shared a moment on the backfields.

There's history between the two players, with Greene hitting two home runs off Maeda last season when the Tigers played against the Minnesota Twins. He hit the two homers within the span of a week. Maeda gave credit to Greene, but Greene paid his respect to the veteran.

"You got me a couple of times," Greene responded.

Both guys started laughing.

To be fair, Greene is 3-for-6 with two home runs, three RBIs and one strikeout in his career against Maeda.

Akil Baddoo praises George Lombard

Wanna know one reason why Tigers bench coach George Lombard is so beloved by his players?

He's always available for some extra work.

So, outfielder Akil Baddoo spent time this offseason in Miami working with Lombard, along with Andy Ibáñez and Justyn-Henry Malloy.

"I went down there and did some outfield stuff, just staying on top of that stuff," Baddoo said. "So it was good. Enjoy some warm weather."

In many ways, it shows the commitment of the Tigers' coaching staff.

"It was amazing to have someone that cares about us — one phone call away," Baddoo said. "To let us know, 'Hey, you guys want to get some extra work in? I'm all open to be out there. I'm here for you guys.' It's always good to have someone that's committed to us and wants the best for us and wants us to improve."

Baddoo is fighting for one of the bench spots.

He offers something you can't teach — pure speed.

But he has hit .213 over the last two seasons.

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"Just bringing that energy and just having fun out there," he said. "Going into my fourth year now, so a little bit more experienced, but having the same mindset but being hungry."

Medical update

The Tigers are healthy coming into spring training.

Three players were listed on the first medical update: Greene (right elbow sprain), catcher Dillon Dingler (right elbow arthroscopy) and right-handed reliever Garrett Hill (right lat/shoulder strain).

Dingler, who was added to the 40-man roster in November, received a procedure to remove loose bodies from his right elbow. His throwing program is a tick behind, but he is available for all other baseball activities.

Dingler caught bullpens and took batting practice in Wednesday's workout.

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Hill felt discomfort during a bullpen session last week and was diagnosed with a mid lat strain. He wasn't on the field for workouts and needs to be re-evaluated in seven-to-10 days

Greene is only listed on the medical report because he hasn't hit off a pitching machine yet in his return from Tommy John surgery on his non-throwing elbow. He is still progressing through his hitting return-to-play program.

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold. Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him @seideljeff.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers observations: Tarik Skubal determined to improve slider