Thanks to a fantastic run over the last two weeks that has allowed them to reduce their deficit for the final American League wild card position to less than five games, the Detroit Tigers are on the rise right now.

The Tigers visit the Boston Red Sox at Comerica Park on Friday after losing to the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday, but they are still one game above.500. Overall, the team is performing better.

One of the main reasons Detroit is making a slow but steady comeback in the race is pitcher Tarik Skubal, who is the current AL Cy Young leader. Following his left-hander’s final start against the New York Yankees on Sunday in the Little League Classic, manager A.J. Hinch, his boss, created a stir.

Reporters were given hints by Hinch that this might be Skubal’s final game on a regular rest day. People began to wonder if Detroit would try to control his workload going forward or if they would even consider shutting him down.

Before Thursday’s game, the manager was asked if he was second-guessing the idea in light of the Tigers’ recent upsurge in MLB Network interviews.

In addition to declining, he clarified that Skubal will probably throw with more rest for the rest of the season and that this had nothing to do with controlling his innings.

A lot of individuals, according to Hinch, “didn’t look at the schedule.” “September offers a ton of free days.”

On an additional day of recuperation, Skubal is scheduled to pitch against Los Angeles on Saturday. September is when the Tigers have at least one off day every week, and Hinch is correct when he says that Skubal probably won’t pitch every fifth day owing to scheduling constraints.

Due to a peculiarity, the Tigers’ Tuesday trip to San Diego is off next week. That should cause everyone to be delayed by one day and allow Skubal to play versus Oakland on Friday.

After the Oakland series, Detroit has an off day on September 9. That would again delay Skubal’s home game versus Colorado to September 12—a day later.

Skubal might pitch on regular rest the following week. The left-hander might make an appearance against Kansas City on September 17 because the Tigers won’t be off until the next Thursday. He is a possibility if the Tigers are still in the running.

Skubal might have up to seven days of rest if he pitches against Kansas City on regular rest. The Tigers also have a day off before and after their series with Baltimore, so he might get one more start before the season ends against Tampa Bay.

Thus, this operation is not suspended. Just a manager who understands the problem and looks at the schedule.

“He’s going to get some rest from some natural things,” Hinch remarked. “Let me tell you, every five or six days, I get to watch him pitch and I have the best seat in the house,” the man said.

Jarren Duran of the Red Sox provided “breathing room” against the Tigers.

After leading the Detroit Tigers 4-3 going into the ninth inning of their game on Friday night, the Boston Red Sox were in a bit of a bind. However, an All-Star outfielder named Jarren Duran’s single hit gave the team’s dugout a collective sigh of relief as they went on to win 7-5 at Comerica Park.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters, “Jarren hitting the homer gave us real breathing room,” as seen on NESN’s postgame footage. We think, ‘Man, we should’ve been this and that,’ but a W’s a W sometimes. When we arrived around 2:00 in the morning, it was out and steamy. That one was difficult. We lost the advantage in the ninth, and they mounted a strong comeback in the eighth, but we managed to win.”

In the top half of the 10th inning, Boston led 6-4 when rookie Ceddanne Rafaela hit a clutch two-run round tripper. Duran then went up to the plate. Rafaela’s heroics were not enough to satisfy Duran, who responded with his own (solo) home run off Detroit bullpen pitcher Tyler Holton. As he left the field, Duran tied Alec Bohm of the Philadelphia Phillies for the lead in doubles (44) and led the MLB in leadoff extra-base hits (20). The performance just made Cora’s feelings on Duran throughout 2024 stronger.

Cora underlined, “Like I’ve been saying all along, you better get here early because something good is gonna happen,” according to NESN’s postgame report. “In the first inning, he smacks the ball immediately and doubles. Jarren is getting us moving right now. It’s entertaining to watch.”

Now that the Red Sox are at the most crucial part of the season, Duran’s lightning-fast intensity from the beginning of the campaign is paying off. The Red Sox are still three games behind the Minnesota Twins, who Boston trails for the third and final wild card berth in the American League, as they also prevailed on Friday night. In any case, Duran and the group don’t plan to allow the pressure dictate how they play for as long the Red Sox play in 2024.

Duran told reporters, “We’re just having fun,” according to NESN’s postgame coverage. “You know, it can appear that we perform well on the road for whatever reason, but I really think it’s just us playing baseball. It simply occurs.”