\u201cI think the first thing they said was, \u2018The recovery will be faster,\u2019\u201d Skubal said. \u201cI think I stopped listening after that. It\u2019s like, \u2018All right, I\u2019m good with it if you\u2019re good with it.\u2019 You trust the doctors. (Dr. Neal) ElAttrache is the best surgeon in the world. \u2026 If he\u2019s comfortable with it, I don\u2019t see why I wouldn\u2019t be comfortable with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Skubal is the first known MLB pitcher to have the NanoNeedle used, a\u00a0tool smaller than a traditional arthroscope to penetrate the elbow and locate loose bodies. The smaller instrument causes less damage to tissue, resulting in less swelling and inflammation after surgery. For pitchers, that means a much shorter time without throwing.<\/p>\n
In the days after the surgery, agent Scott Boras started touting the instrument as the \u201cSkubal Scope.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201c(ElAttrache) is the one who said it, and Boras ran with it,\u201d Skubal said, laughing. \u201cLet\u2019s clear the room there. I saw a lot of stuff about that. That was not our camp.\u201d<\/p>\n
While reports of his accelerated timeline might have seemed like a publicity stunt, Skubal warmed up with throws from 120-plus feet, firing the ball to a bullpen catcher.<\/p>\n
Incoming rain moved Skubal\u2019s bullpen inside and away from public view, but Skubal came back with positive reports.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, I\u2019m trying to keep the governor on a little bit,\u201d Skubal said. \u201cThat\u2019s kind of the guidance that I\u2019ve been told. \u2018Hey, hold it back. You\u2019re going to feel good, but try to keep the reins on a little bit, and as you respond well and as you keep bouncing back well from each bullpen session, then you can just go out there and compete.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s the hardest part right now. I feel really good, and I want to let it go, but I\u2019ve been instructed not to.\u201d<\/p>\n
The big question now is when, exactly, will Skubal be back to game action?<\/p>\n
He is a free agent after the season, and there could be a large sum of money riding on how much and how well he pitches. Skubal\u2019s club is also scuffling at 20-27, having lost 10 of its past 12 games.<\/p>\n
For now, there is still no definitive timeline.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of things that (have to) happen, whether it be a rehab assignment or something,\u201d Skubal said. \u201cGetting through those starts obviously matters, and that will determine (when) I\u2019m back here too. I\u2019d love to sit here and give you an answer for when I\u2019m going to be back. I want that same answer. But hopefully, sooner rather than later.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-2273890059-1-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n A two-time Cy Young Award winner, Tarik Skubal\u2019s return isn\u2019t just integral to the Tigers\u2019 chances but his own impending free agency. (Kevin C. Cox \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Although some uncertainty remains, Skubal has marveled at aspects of his own recovery. He previously had Tommy John surgery in 2017 and flexor tendon surgery in 2022.<\/p>\n
Skubal recalled waking from previous operations in an arm cast. This time, he only had to wear an arm sleeve, and he was encouraged to work on regaining his range of motion as soon as possible. He returned to throwing within days and instantly reported a feeling of freedom in his arm.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t realize how much it was impacting me day to day until taking that thing out of there,\u201d Skubal said. \u201cI feel great. It\u2019s different stuff, too. Stuff that\u2019s not even pitching related. These symptoms would come up at home, too, sometimes. To not have that has been a huge blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The incisions from Skubal\u2019s surgery were also minor. He explained it as small dots on the back of his arm.<\/p>\n
He lifted his left elbow to show his scar from Tommy John surgery.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a lot less than that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Skubal\u2019s return to the ballpark could serve as an emotional boost for a Tigers team dealing with a long list of injuries. Over the past two years, Skubal has been not only the team\u2019s ace but also its emotional centerpiece.<\/p>\n
Still, the Tigers will resist the temptation to throttle Skubal. The club will continue following a step-by-step plan, building Skubal\u2019s volume back to full force.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn trying to not put a schedule in our minds to begin with, we don\u2019t have to think we\u2019re moving up or slowing down at any point,\u201d manager A.J. Hinch said. \u201cWe just are giving him the next thing that\u2019s prescribed by experts in throwing, the doctor and Tarik himself, who\u2019s describing what he\u2019s feeling or what he\u2019s not feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n
As Skubal keeps moving forward, more people in the sport are wondering how the NanoNeedle could alter recovery timelines for pitchers with similar injuries. Blake Snell of the Dodgers, like Skubal a two-time Cy Young Award winner, recently went on the injured list with loose bodies in his arm.<\/p>\n
Skubal said he hasn\u2019t yet reached out to Snell, though he\u2019s game for anything that helps make the sport better.<\/p>\n
But as for patenting the Skubal Scope?<\/p>\n
\u201cI haven\u2019t really wrapped my brain around having an injury named after me,\u201d Skubal said. \u201cI\u2019d rather have my career be what people remember (me) for. Not some sort of surgery. But we\u2019ll see. Jury\u2019s out.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DETROIT \u2014 Tarik Skubal took a seat at the front of the Comerica Park interview room and cracked…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":679657,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[558],"tags":[64,63,5260,591,85],"class_list":["post-679656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-detroit-tigers","tag-mlb","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679656","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=679656"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679656\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/679657"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=679656"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=679656"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=679656"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}