Things haven't gone smoothly for the Detroit Tigers following the 2025 MLB All-Star break. Despite being baseball's first club to 60 wins, the Tigers haven't looked like much of a World Series threat with a 1-4 record in their last five games, leaving time to tell if they can turn things around before their series with the AL East-leading Toronto Blue Jays this weekend.
As manager A.J. Hinch and his staff figure out a way to end the club's slump, the Tigers just learned that they'll be without one of their top players for the next few days. While that seems concerning on paper, the upcoming absence is due to an exciting reason.
Tigers Place LHP Tarik Skubal on Paternity List Ahead of Birth of 2nd Child
On Wednesday, the Tigers announced that 2025 All-Star hurler Tarik Skubal has been placed on the MLB's paternity list. The reigning American League Cy Young winner and his wife, Jessica, are expecting their second child, meaning Skubal will miss Wednesday's finale against the Pittsburgh Pirates but no more than three games.
RHP Troy Melton has been selected from Triple-A Toledo. He will wear #52 and make his major league debut as the starting pitcher this afternoon in Pittsburgh.
— Tigers PR (@DetroitTigersPR) July 23, 2025
To make room for Melton on the active roster, LHP Tarik Skubal was placed on the paternity list.
To make room on the…
A paternity list placement means that Skubal will be back in the rotation during the Tigers' upcoming series against the Blue Jays. The 28-year-old southpaw is currently 10-3 through his first 20 starts, and leads the AL in several statistics, including ERA (2.19), WAR (4.9), WHIP (0.815), strikeouts per nine innings (11.6), and strikeouts per base on balls (10.25).
In other words, it's great to know the Tigers can call on Skubal when duking it out against one of baseball's hottest teams.
In the meantime, right-handed pitcher Troy Melton will take Skubal's spot in the rotation and make his big-league debut against the Pirates on Wednesday. The former 2022 fourth-rounder he been wheeling and dealing with Triple-A Toledo, pitching to a 2.72 ERA with 56 strikeouts across 36 1/3 innings in eight games (six starts).
The Tigers also designated outfielder Brewer Hicklen to create space on the 40-man roster. Hicklen only played one game for Detroit since being acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers in March, and has underwhelmed with just eight homers, 31 RBIs, and a .222/.331/.385 slash line in 63 games with Toledo.
Time will tell how becoming a father for the second time will impact Skubal's game when he returns. He's already been one of baseball's top aces while only having one child, and Tigers fans certainly wouldn't complain if the birth of his second one motivates him to become even more dominant.