When the Detroit Tigers took the field on Opening Day, their rotation looked like a strength to build around. Fast forward to now, and that original five-man unit has been completely reshuffled.
Left-hander Tarik Skubal, right-hander Justin Verlander, and right-hander Casey Mize are all on the injured list, while left-hander Framber Valdez is serving a suspension. That leaves inconsistent right-hander Jack Flaherty as the only starter still standing from the original group.
"We've been fortunate to be able to put somebody out there every inning of every game," manager A.J. Hinch said Friday before the Tigers' three-game series against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.
The Tigers listed right-hander Keider Montero as Friday's starter, with Saturday and Sunday initially marked as to-be-determined. But before Friday's game, right-hander Ty Madden appeared as Saturday's probable pitcher.
Madden was called up to replace Skubal, who recently underwent elbow surgery to remove a loose body. There's no timeline yet for Skubal's return.
In his first outing since the call-up, Madden turned heads. Filling in during Monday's 5-4 loss to the Boston Red Sox at Comerica Park, he tossed five scoreless innings out of the bullpen, striking out seven on an efficient 81 pitches. It was exactly the kind of performance that makes a team wonder: could this guy be more than a reliever?
Hinch played coy when asked about Madden's role moving forward. "I'll let Q [Royals manager Matt Quatraro] know tonight after the game," Hinch said, "depending on who we use and how we go into tomorrow. I'll trade him out for Sunday's starter."
The Royals are expected to start left-hander Noah Cameron on Sunday. He was scratched from his last start due to back tightness but avoided the injured list.
Meanwhile, Valdez continues serving his five-game suspension from MLB for intentionally throwing at a Red Sox hitter. His absence only adds to the Tigers' rotation shuffle.
"It'll be guys who are here, and we'll mix and match like a traditional bullpen game," Hinch said, hinting that the Tigers are taking a creative approach until their rotation gets healthy.