Detroit Tigers at Los Angeles Angels

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DET	4	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	7	11	0
LAA	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	7	1

Detroit took the series opener 2-1 on Friday, and now it hands the ball to Tarik Skubal, which is about as bad a Saturday as an already-reeling Angels club could ask for. First pitch is 7:07 PM PT, and the Tigers would love nothing more than to steal this one behind their ace before the Angels' bats even wake up.

Show fees

FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Tigers(45-52)

WLLWW

7

-1.5-117-190o8.5+115

Angels(38-60)

LLLWL

0

+1.5+117+186u8.5-115

Best BetTigers -193

Pregame

Detroit's price reflects an ace on the mound against a last-place lineup that's lost 4 of 5, and that's a fair gap. The Angels have shown occasional life but nothing close to consistent enough to trust as a moneyline play here. Lay the price and take the Tigers.

Grayson Rodriguez is the one standing in the way, and his season has been a mess almost by design. He came over from Baltimore in the Taylor Ward trade, opened this year on the shelf with shoulder inflammation, then got rocked for 7 runs in 3.2 innings in his Angels debut against the Dodgers. His last time out against the Twins was actually a step forward: 3 earned runs over 5.1 innings and a win, even without recording a single strikeout. That's the shakiest possible foundation to lean on against a lineup Skubal just beat.

Tarik Skubal

(7-5)·2.79 ERA

Jul 12 vs Phillies

L

5.0IP

2ER

5K

1BB

93P

07/18 Lineup

Grayson Rodriguez

(3-3)·7.98 ERA

Jul 10 @ Twins

W

5.1IP

3ER

0K

1BB

79P

07/18 Lineup

For Detroit, this series is bigger than one weekend. The Tigers were running away with the AL Central two months ago; a brutal May sent them into freefall, and they're now chasing the White Sox with the trade deadline bearing down. Every game against a last-place club like the Angels is one they need to just take, and Skubal is exactly the arm to make sure they do.

Detroit Tigers

(45-52)

Jul 18W@ Angels2-1

Jul 12Lvs Phillies0-5

Jul 11Lvs Phillies2-4

Jul 10Wvs Phillies10-2

Jul 9Wvs Athletics4-1

Los Angeles Angels

(38-60)

Jul 18Lvs Tigers1-2

Jul 12L@ Twins2-4

Jul 11L@ Twins3-5

Jul 11W@ Twins4-3

Jul 10L@ Rangers6-7

The Angels, meanwhile, are staring down an 11th straight losing season, and the front office chaos matches the record. Perry Minasian got fired in late June, John Mozeliak is running things on an interim basis, and owner Arte Moreno's reluctance to blow it up means this deadline could be more half-measures than fire sale. None of that fixes a lineup that's dropped 4 of its last 5, including Friday's opener.

Detroit Tigers

(13)

• 10-Day-ILGleyber Torres (2B) — Torres (oblique) played five innings at second base and went 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI in his first rehab appearance Monday in the rookie-level Florida Complex League.07/13
• BereavementFramber Valdez (SP) — The Tigers placed Valdez on the bereavement list Sunday, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.07/12
• 15-Day-ILWill Vest (RP) — Vest has been diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right elbow, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.07/10
• 60-Day-ILJavier Baez (SS) — Baez (ankle) began participating in live batting practice this week and is scheduled to run the bases Saturday, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.07/18
• 60-Day-ILBailey Horn (RP) — Horn (elbow) will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.07/18
• 60-Day-ILBurch Smith (RP) — Smith (shoulder) will start a rehab assignment with Single-A Lakeland on Friday, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.07/17
• 60-Day-ILJackson Jobe (SP) — Jobe (elbow) struck out four while allowing two hits and no walks over three scoreless innings in a rehab start Monday in the rookie-level Florida Complex League.07/13
• 60-Day-ILJustin Verlander (SP) — Verlander (hamstring/hip) announced Wednesday via social media that he will retire following the 2026 season.07/08
• 60-Day-ILWenceel Perez (RF) — Perez (orbital) played light catch on the field at Comerica Park on Tuesday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.07/07
• 60-Day-ILParker Meadows (CF) — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Meadows (forearm) has yet to resume hitting and is without a timeline to return from the 60-day injured list, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.06/25
• 60-Day-ILTrey Sweeney (SS) — Sweeney will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery this week, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.06/05
• 60-Day-ILBrant Hurter (RP) — The Tigers placed Hurter on the 15-day injured list Sunday due to lumbar spine inflammation.05/29
• 60-Day-ILReese Olson (SP) — The Tigers placed Olson on the 60-day injured list Tuesday after he underwent a right shoulder labral repair Feb. 2 that will result in him missing the 2026 season.05/08

Los Angeles Angels

(10)

• 10-Day-ILGustavo Campero (C) — Campero (hand) will begin a rehab assignment in the Arizona Complex League on Monday.07/13
• 10-Day-ILSebastian Rivero (C) — Rivero (hand) has been catching at the Angels' spring complex in Arizona, MLB.com reports.07/12
• 10-Day-ILAdam Frazier (2B) — The Angels announced Saturday that Frazier (elbow) has been hitting on the field, taking grounders and running, but he's not yet throwing at full intensity, MLB.com reports.07/05
• 60-Day-ILTravis d'Arnaud (C) — D'Arnaud (foot) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Salt Lake on Friday.07/17
• 60-Day-ILBen Joyce (RP) — Joyce (shoulder) averaged 100.2 mph with his fastball in a one-inning rehab appearance in the Arizona Complex League on Thursday, Taylor Blake Ward of TheSportingTribune.com reports.07/17
• 60-Day-ILYusei Kikuchi (SP) — Kikuchi (shoulder) threw a bullpen session Sunday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.07/05
• 60-Day-ILJack Kochanowicz (SP) — Kochanowicz's Tommy John surgery on his right elbow was deemed "successful," per MLB.com.06/27
• 60-Day-ILYoan Moncada (3B) — Moncada will require surgery on his right knee, Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com reports.06/09
• 60-Day-ILRobert Stephenson (RP) — The Angels announced that Stephenson underwent ligament and flexor repair surgery on his right elbow Wednesday and is likely to miss the remainder of the season, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.05/08
• 60-Day-ILAnthony Rendon (3B) — The Angels placed Rendon (hip) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08

Detroit's absences are mostly rotation and lineup pieces still working back from injury; Framber Valdez is even away on bereavement leave. The Angels' issues run deeper and longer, with d'Arnaud, Rendon and Moncada all lost for extended stretches, which is a big part of why this roster hasn't been able to string together wins even against a Tigers team that's been stumbling itself.

Skubal's last outing was a rare off night, a loss to the Phillies where he gave up 2 earned over 5 innings with 5 strikeouts. Even a modest bounce-back look from him against this Angels lineup should be enough. Detroit needs results more than style points right now, and Anaheim is the softest schedule spot they'll see for a while.