LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tarik Skubal started out shaky, putting the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 3-0 hole in the first inning. Then, the two-time Cy Young Award winner dug in to flash the stuff that made him baseball's prize acquisition at the trade deadline.
Skubal struck out 11 — one off his season best — to earn his first win since joining the two-time defending World Series champions, 4-3 over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night.
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"That's the guy that we needed. Completing seven innings, reset the bullpen, great outing,” manager Dave Roberts said. "He’s very physical, and you can see that when he needs to reach back for more, it’s in there.”
Skubal was 0-2 with a 3.18 ERA in his first three starts with the Dodgers, who acquired him in a blockbuster deal with the Detroit Tigers earlier this month.
After a rough first inning in which he gave up three consecutive hits that led to three runs, Skubal (8-7) settled down and retired 20 of his final 23 batters. The left-hander allowed five hits with one walk.
“I’m not gonna be perfect out there, but I definitely need to be better in the first inning,” he said. "But other than that, I thought my execution was good. The stuff coming out of my hand is as good as it’s ever been.”
Skubal was still throwing hard over his final two innings, reaching 99 mph to get Jared Triolo to pop up and topping 100 mph in finishing off Jake Mangum for his final strikeout.
“I feel like I’ve always been able to sustain velocity, from pitch one to pitch however many I’m allowed to go,” he said. “When I feel confident commanding the ball, that’s when I feel like I can really start letting it rip and it’s going to go where I want it to go.”
Skubal has been studying the game-planning and bullpen sessions of his rotation mates, including fellow lefty Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. He also watched Shohei Ohtani throw a live bullpen session before the game.
“We got a ton of really good arms here, a ton of talent, and it’s just about us going out there and playing baseball and executing,” he said. "When we’re doing that, we’re the best team in the league.”
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