DETROIT — Trade deadline target Tarik Skubal and Detroit fans gave each other a warm farewell Wednesday, just in case this was the two-time Cy Young Award winner’s final appearance in a Tigers jersey.<\/p>\n
What happened after Skubal left made it all the more likely this was indeed goodbye. <\/p>\n
Skubal<\/a> was cheered at every opportunity by a crowd of 34,406 while taking a shutout into the seventh inning against Baltimore, but then the Orioles rallied from a 7-0 deficit to beat Detroit 10-9 in 12 innings<\/a>. The loss leaves the Tigers 51-58 and well outside playoff position in the final year they have Skubal under contract.<\/p>\n The vibes were great early. Skubal got first standing ovation came when he struck out leadoff hitter Taylor Ward on a 3-2 changeup to record his 1,000th career strikeout.<\/p>\n \u201cFor some reason, strikeout marks hit differently for me,\u201d he said. \u201cReaching 200 strikeouts for the first time was a huge milestone for me, and as I was getting close to 1,000, it just felt really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n He reached the mark in 857 innings, breaking Max Scherzer’s franchise-best mark of 944 2\/3 innings.<\/p>\n He got another ovation when Tigers manager A.J. Hinch removed him after Leody Tavares’ RBI single with two out in the seventh.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is always special when our fans get to their feet and give you a pretty good ovation,\u201d he said. \u201cHopefully, they feel like I’ve given everything to the team and the city, because I truly have.\u201d<\/p>\n The Tigers led 7-1 when Skubal came out and appeared to be well on their way to a win over a team they could be battling for a wild-card spot in September. Instead, the Orioles turned one seventh-inning run into five, tied the game with two in the eighth, then got three more in extra innings.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, this was a tough one,\u201d Skubal said. \u201cWe were up 7-0 and end up losing. … I don’t even know what the final score was, but this one hurts.\u201d<\/p>\n The Tigers seem increasingly likely to deal their ace ahead of next Monday\u2019s trade deadline. Skubal is eligible for free agency after the World Series. He has a $32 million salary, a record total in arbitration, after the team offered $19 million, and is expected to sign a massive contract in the offseason. <\/p>\n \u201cI’m just trying to live in the moment,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are a lot of things going on around me that I can’t control.\u201d<\/p>\n Hinch feels the same way.<\/p>\n \u201cI just can’t think in hypotheticals \u2014 I just can’t,\u201d he said when asked about the possibility of Skubal leaving. \u201cI’ll have a ton to say when and if and where and whenever, but it’s just a waste of my time talking hypotheticals.\u201d<\/p>\n