Tarik Skubal is moving quickly in his recovery from May 6 surgery to remove a loose body from his left elbow. Steph Chambers / Getty Images
May 18, 2026Updated 5:07 pm EDT
DETROIT — Tarik Skubal’s accelerated return from left elbow surgery has reached its next step.
Skubal, the back-to-back reigning American League Cy Young Award winner, moved his rehab progression from the Tigers’ Florida spring training facility to Detroit on Monday and threw off a mound for the second time since his surgery.
Skubal had surgery to remove a loose body from his left elbow May 6. Thanks to the NanoNeedle, Skubal’s arthroscopy was less invasive than a typical procedure and allowed him to return to throwing only a few days after surgery.
Skubal’s first session off a mound was more of a “touch and feel,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. On Monday, Skubal warmed up on the field at Comerica Park and threw to 120-plus feet with ease. Approaching rain then moved his bullpen session inside, but Skubal said he used all his pitches and threw as though it was his normal second day after a start.
“For me, I’m trying to keep the governor on a little bit,” Skubal said afterward. “That’s kind of the guidance that I’ve been told. ‘Hey, hold it back. You’re 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.’ I think that’s the hardest part right now. I feel really good, and I want to let it go, but I’ve been instructed not to.”
There is no firm timetable for Skubal’s return to the major leagues, but given his progress so far, it might not be a whole lot longer.
May 18, 2026
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