Tigers News: Tarik Skubal overtakes Justin Verlander's record with final strikeout of his complete game vs Guardians

Reigning American League Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal is going strength to strength for the Detroit Tigers in the 2025 MLB season. The Tigers' ace is launching a bid for consecutive Cy Young titles after a strong start this year.

Skubal showcased why he is one of the best pitchers in the league after a remarkable performance against the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday. The Tigers' ace pitched the entire nine innings of the game, the first of his career, to shut out Cleveland.

Skubal broke several records in a 5-0 win for the Tigers. One of them was a star that saw him overtake three-time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander.

Skubal eclipsed the former Tigers ace's record of the fastest pitch thrown by a starting pitcher in the ninth inning when he clocked a 102.6 mph fastball. Verlander's 101.3 mph pitch was the fastest by a starter in the ninth inning or later for more than a decade.

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The Tigers starter's thunderbolt also earned him the final strikeout of his game, his 13th. It's the fastest strikeout by a starter in the Statcast era.

Tarik Skubal breaks Los Angeles Dodgers icon's record in historic outing

While Tarik Skubal surpassed a Tigers legend, he also etched his name into the record books by registering the most strikeouts (13) in a Maddux (complete-game shutout in less than 100 pitches).

He surpassed Los Angeles Dodgers icon Sandy Koufax, Carlos Carrasco and Cliff Lee, who held the previous record with 12 strikeouts each.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash