Tarik Skubal is scheduled to make his home debut for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday at Dodger Stadium, facing the Kansas City Royals. Manager Dave Roberts expects the event to be significant, drawing a large crowd similar to previous home debuts of high-profile acquisitions like Yu Darvish, Manny Machado, and Max Scherzer.
Skubal, who was acquired by the Dodgers on August 1 in exchange for three prospects, pitched his first game for the team on Tuesday in Chicago. Despite a solid performance, he was charged with the loss in a 5-1 defeat against the Chicago Cubs. In that outing, Skubal allowed two runs over six innings, with his fastball velocity averaging 97 mph, close to last year's pace. He recently underwent a procedure to address loose bodies in his pitching elbow, with his performance sharpening in recent starts.
"It’s gonna be fun. It’s gonna be a lot of fun. It’s gonna be 50,000 [fans] like it always is," Roberts said. "We’ve made some deadline acquisitions with some top-end guys, but this guy is something special."
Skubal expressed his anticipation for pitching in front of the home crowd. "No doubt, no doubt. Home start, it’ll be a ton of fun. I’m excited to get going," he stated.
The Dodgers' pitching rotation is showing signs of improvement with Skubal's addition. He will be followed in the series by Blake Snell, another two-time Cy Young Award winner, who is slated to make his first major league start in three months. Snell's return is also the result of a procedure on his pitching elbow.
Both Skubal and Snell are crucial additions to a rotation that has been hampered by injuries to key pitchers like Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani. The team had been on a six-game losing streak leading into their series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. "Now when you got Blake back, you got Tarik here, you feel like you have the pieces with the starting pitchers to go on a run," Roberts commented. "But you also gotta play good defense behind them. You gotta score runs. But it does feel like every night we should have a good chance to win a ballgame."
Skubal's previous experience at Dodger Stadium was as an opponent. Last year, during the home opener, the Dodgers scored four runs in five innings against him in a 5-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers, a season where Skubal went on to win his second consecutive Cy Young Award.
Snell's recovery from his elbow procedure was expedited by the use of a minimally invasive NanoNeedle Scope 2.0, developed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache. While a traditional arthroscopic procedure typically requires a 14-week recovery, Skubal was able to resume throwing within a week. Snell, who had pitched through shoulder pain in the previous postseason, had a slower return. After being shut down early in the season, he began a minor-league rehabilitation assignment on July 18, building arm strength over four games with Triple-A Oklahoma City. His last rehab start was less effective, but his pitch count reached 75. Snell also dealt with injuries last season, missing four months due to a shoulder problem but returning to play a significant role in the Dodgers' World Series victory.