Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal sharp for Whitecaps in rehab start
DAYTON, Ohio – Tarik Skubal is back on the mound.
The Detroit Tigers starting pitcher had a sharp return in a rehab start for the West Michigan Whitecaps on Saturday, throwing two scoreless innings what turned into a 12-5 loss to the Dayton Dragons.
Skubal injured his left forearm 10 months ago. He needed just 12 pitches to get through two innings and saw his fastball reach up to 96 miles per hour while striking out Cincinnati Reds prospect Austin Hendrick on three pitches before getting Mat Nelson to ground into an inning-ending double play in the second.
The lefty finished his day throwing a handful of pitches in the West Michigan bullpen after completing his scheduled two innings on the mound.
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The Whitecaps took a 1-0 lead into the second before Jace Jung slapped a two-run single to extend the lead to 3-0.
Lefty Carlos Pena entered the game beginning the third inning and failed to finish the fourth due to a six-run Dragons attack. Two-run homers by Nelson and Edwin Arroyo highlighted a Dayton surge that sent 11 batters to the plate and turned a three-run Dragons deficit into a three-run lead.
The Whitecaps fall to 28-23, while the Dragons record heads over the .500 mark at 26-25. Dragons starting pitcher Thomas Farr allowed just three runs in six innings to collect his first win of the season, while Pena (0-4) gave up six runs in 1 1/3 innings in taking his fourth loss.
Jung finished by going 3-for-5 and broke out of a slump from earlier in the week by going 13-for-18 with 10 RBIs in his last five games to conclude the series.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Detroit Tigers' Tarik Skubal sharp for Whitecaps in rehab start
