Tigers hope to keep Skubal dry as playoff chase comes to Detroit

DETROIT – The Tigers are doing everything they can to avoid what they see as the biggest threat to the success of their Cy Young contender's Tuesday start: rain.

The team opted on Monday evening to move up first pitch of its Tuesday series opener against the Rays from 6:40 p.m. to 1:05 p.m.

Manager A.J. Hinch said on Tuesday morning that giving ace Tarik Skubal his best chance at an uninterrupted clear window of weather as he goes for his 18th win of the season is what led to the decision.

"The single biggest threat to Tarik was going to be rain during his outing," Hinch said. "This gives us the best chance to have a window with the choppy weather we're going to have today."

According to the National Weather Service, there's a 70 percent chance of rain the Detroit area on Tuesday, with thunderstorms possible after 2 p.m. The chance of rain is greater in the late afternoon and early evening hours than it is between noon and 2 p.m.

Two hours before that scheduled first pitch, the grounds crew removed the tarp from the Comerica Park infield and prepared to play.

Hinch said Tigers management had multiple meetings on Monday with weather experts, Major League Baseball and the Rays to figure out the best course of action as the forecast became clear.

By early evening the team had settled on an earlier first pitch. Hinch said he personally reached out to Skubal to ensure he would be ready for the earlier start while club staff reached out to the rest of the team members to ensure they knew to get to the park early on Tuesday.

The schedule change means that some of the most impactful baseball to be played in Detroit in a decade will arrive just a few hours earlier than scheduled.

The Tigers entered Tuesday tied with Kansas City for the final wild-card spot, a game ahead of Minnesota, thanks to a torrid 11-3 stretch since early September that has helped raised its playoff odds from less than 1 percent to greater than 70. They have six more games of the regular season, all at home, to try to wrap up the franchise's first playoff berth in a decade.

Hinch said he hasn't felt the need to bring up a topic with his team that he knows is already top of mind.

"Our guys know what's at stake and we're having a great time chasing down what we hope to be some of the most memorable baseball to date," Hinch said.