DETROIT — When Tarik Skubal walked from the bullpen to the dugout here in his old stomping grounds, the ace who has become one of baseball’s most polarizing figures turned emotional.
The Tigers, the team that traded Skubal to the Dodgers in exchange for three prospects less than one month ago, played a tribute to Skubal on the video board, featuring highlights and sound bites from his former teammates. Skubal was preparing to start Friday night’s series opener between his old team and his new one.
In the lead-up to Friday night’s start against the Tigers, there was a lingering curiosity. Would Detroit welcome Skubal back with cheers or boos?
Tarik Skubal takes the mound in Detroit for the first time as a Dodger pic.twitter.com/OngNTlKMtI
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) August 28, 2026
“My hope is that they see this as a person who gave his heart and soul to this organization and to this city and to his fan base,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said before the game. “There comes a little bit of a tamp down to that love when you put on a different uniform. But the respect for him should be through the roof. And I think actually some of the little jeers and boos and snickering that goes on is actually respect. Was Reggie (Jackson) the one that said they don’t boo nobodies?”
Skubal’s eyes seemed to water as the video played and he made the trek back to the dugout. At times, he turned his head back toward the video board. The immediate reaction from fans at Comerica Park was almost universal cheers.
But when Skubal ran onto the field in the bottom of the first inning, the reaction was more mixed. There was a smattering of boos that slowly morphed back into cheers and the old cries that used to fill Comerica Park throughout Skubal’s two Cy Young Award seasons: Skuuuub.
“There’s going to be emotion, but I still think he’s going to stay within himself,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Friday afternoon. “It’s a familiar mound, familiar background. Once he gets out there, he’ll be back to being who he is.”
