The Red Sox caught a massive break as they arrived in Detroit on Monday, with the Tigers scratching reigning Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal just hours before his scheduled start. Skubal has loose bodies in his elbow and will require arthroscopic surgery, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters. Instead of the dominant lefty, Detroit will use reliever Tyler Holton as an opener, with righty Ty Madden called up to provide length out of the bullpen.
For Boston, this is a welcome reprieve. Skubal had been electric this season with a 2.70 ERA and 45 strikeouts in seven starts, including a dominant performance against the Red Sox on April 18 at Fenway Park, where he struck out 10 batters over six strong innings. With him out of the picture, interim manager Chad Tracy is rolling out a balanced lineup.
Trevor Story returns to shortstop after sitting out Sunday's loss, batting cleanup ahead of right fielder Wilyer Abreu. The most notable change comes at third base, where Andruw Monasterio starts over Caleb Durbin. It's just the second start of the season at the hot corner for Monasterio, who also played there on March 31 in Cincinnati. Interestingly, he has logged more innings at third base (679) than any other position in the majors.
"Just give him a break, that's all," Tracy said of Durbin. "Mona and guys like him are in and out, so I gave him one (start) yesterday. To be able to pop him back in there today and give him another one and give Durb a break, that's all it was."
Durbin, who is hitting just .165 with a .502 OPS in 122 plate appearances this season, is out of the lineup for just the fourth time in 35 games and the first time since April 15. Meanwhile, Masataka Yoshida is once again the odd man out in the outfield/designated hitter mix, with Jarren Duran serving as DH and Roman Anthony in left field.
On the mound for Boston is lefty Payton Tolle, making his third start of 2026. Holton, who has a 5.27 ERA in 14 games this year, also started Sunday for the Tigers, recording just two outs on 17 pitches. And in a late change, first pitch was moved up to 6:10 p.m. ET — 30 minutes earlier than originally scheduled.