The Detroit Tigers suffered a tough 5-4 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Monday night in the series opener at Comerica Park, but the story of the day started long before the first pitch. In a devastating blow to the rotation, ace left-hander Tarik Skubal was scratched from his scheduled start and placed on the injured list with loose bodies in his left elbow, requiring surgery.

Without their staff anchor, the Tigers turned to a bullpen-only game, and the results were mixed. The Red Sox erupted for all five of their runs in the seventh inning, targeting right-handed reliever Ricky Vanasco and left-hander Enmanuel De Jesus. The inning began with a leadoff walk from Vanasco and was compounded by a misplay in right field from Wenceel Pérez, allowing Boston to seize control.

To their credit, the Tigers showed fight. After a 28-minute rain delay in the eighth inning, Detroit rallied for two runs, but the comeback ultimately fell short. The loss drops the Tigers to 18-18 on the season, while the Red Sox improve to 14-21.

For much of the night, the Tigers were stifled by Red Sox left-hander Payton Tolle, who held them to just one hit over the first seven innings. Tolle allowed two unearned runs on one hit and one walk while striking out eight over 83 pitches. Had it not been for the rain delay, he might have been in line for a complete game.

The Tigers finally broke up Tolle’s perfect game in the fifth inning, when Riley Greene ripped a down-and-in sinker for a leadoff double into the right-field corner. But the next three batters couldn’t bring him home, leaving Greene stranded in scoring position.

Detroit’s only runs came in the sixth inning, courtesy of some Red Sox miscues. A Colt Keith hit-by-pitch and a Jahmai Jones walk put two runners on with one out. Then, a throwing error by catcher Carlos Narváez on a pickoff attempt moved both runners into scoring position. Matt Vierling followed with a broken-bat grounder to third base, but third baseman Andruw Monasterio’s off-balance throw home sailed past Narváez, allowing both runners to score for a brief 2-0 lead.

The Tigers will look to bounce back Tuesday at 6:40 p.m. on Detroit SportsNet. Left-hander Framber Valdez (3.35 ERA in seven starts) is scheduled to take the mound for Detroit, opposed by Red Sox right-hander Brayan Bello. With Skubal sidelined, the Tigers will need to dig deep to keep their season on track.