Tarik Skubal’s availability threw a wrench into Team USA’s plans heading into the World Baseball Classic, but there appears to be more clarity on Tuesday night about what their pitching plan is for the tournament.
On Monday, Skubal announced that, while he will play for the United States in the WBC, it will be only for a single, shortened start against Great Britain in their second group-stage game.
This left many American fans upset, as the back-to-back Cy Young winner for the Detroit Tigers was seen as a lock to be on the mound in either the semifinals or the finals if Team USA made it that far.
Skubal’s one-and-done mindset began to frighten Team USA supporters, who wondered what that meant for the other Cy Young ace, Paul Skenes.
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On Tuesday, though, those worries subsided, as The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported that Skenes is set to start twice in the WBC.
He is currently slated to pitch their third game of the tournament against Mexico before being lined up to go in the semifinal or finals.
Logan Webb, the San Francisco Giants star, is projected to open the WBC matchup versus Brazil before then getting ready for a quarterfinal matchup.
With Skubal gone, though, that would open up a spot in the order for either the semifinals or the finals.
In that scenario, the leading candidate is Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan, with Clayton Kershaw and Nolan McLean as other potential options.
But for Team USA, they should at least have one of their superstar pitchers available for the semifinals or finals, if needed, to face powerhouses Japan or the Dominican Republic.
