After a promising start to the three-game set at home, the Yankees are coming off of a disappointing couple of games against the Reds. The last two days saw the Bombers plate just three runs in total, while giving up double digits on Saturday. But, they are right back on the horse, as they hit the road for a trio of contests in Detroit. The Tigers have had their flaws in 2026, but the Yanks will see the best of their pitching, likely having their hands full without the “A” lineup.
The Tigers have
struggled mightily for much of the season, though they are on high note at the moment, coming off of a sweep of a better-than-expected White Sox squad at home. Despite that, they still have a 7.5-game deficit in the AL Central (trailing all but the Royals), and remain five games out of a Wild Card spot. The Cats will be fighting for everything the rest of the way if they want to return to the postseason — or at least make the case to ownership that nonpareil ace Tarik Skubal shouldn’t yet be traded ahead of free agency.
They’re currently missing two All-Stars from their 2026 club, Javier Báez and old friend Gleyber Torres, who are both on the IL. But rookie shortstop Kevin McGonigle is back on track in June with an .894 OPS following a bumpy second month in the big leagues. Riley Greene and Dillon Dingler are building their own cases for the Midsummer Classic, too. Detroit can absolutely punch a team in the nose, so the Yankees must be on their guard in enemy territory.
Monday: Gerrit Cole vs. Framber Valdez (6:10 pm ET)
After a red-hot start to his return from the injured list, Gerrit Cole has settled into a nice groove, and will be making his sixth start of the season to kick off this series. Since his return, the veteran has completed five innings in all but one of his outings, and the same rang true in his most recent start. On Tuesday against the White Sox, Cole struck out six in as many innings, while allowing a pair of runs. While he’s been very good on the whole, he’ll look for a classic Cole gem to start the week off right.
In the first season of a nine-figure deal, erstwhile Houston standout Framber Valdez has not quite had the start he or the Tigers likely hoped for. Despite ERA and FIP numbers that would be his worst since becoming a full-time starter, the lefty is coming off one of his better outings of the year. Against his old team last week, Valdez allowed just a single unearned run, while striking out six in a half-dozen innings. He last faced the Yankees in September of last year, when he allowed six runs and a pair of homers in five innings of work.
Tuesday: Carlos Rodón vs. Casey Mize (6:40 pm ET)
Following a strong start to his return from injury, Carlos Rodón has stuttered a bit in his more recent outings. Across his last two starts, the veteran lefty has allowed six earned runs in 11 innings against the Guardians and White Sox. The K’s are still there, as he notched seven in each of those starts, but he’ll look to limit hard contact to a greater degree in Detroit on Tuesday niht.
In his age-29 season, the Tigers are seeing the very best of their former number one overall pick in 2026. In what has been an undisputable career-year to this point, Casey Mize is boasting a 2.58 ERA and 2.66 FIP in 52.1 innings of work this year. After missing the first couple weeks of June, however, the 2025 All-Star struggled in his return, when he allowed three runs on six hits over 4.2 innings last week against the Astros. The righty should be back in full health now, however, and is sure to give the Yankees plenty of work to do come Tuesday.
Wednesday: Ryan Weathers vs. Tarik Skubal (6:40 pm ET)
The series finale finds Ryan Weathers taking the bump for New York. In what will be his 15th start of 2026, the 26-year-old will look to build on his bounce-back effort against Chicago last week, when he struck out eight across 6.1 innings of one-run ball. Prior to that, Weathers had allowed at least five earned runs in four of his previous five starts. He has also allowed eight home runs over his last four outings, a habit he’d certainly like to buck for the end of this series.
This three-game set wraps up with a lefty-lefty matchup, as the Tigers are set to send Skubal to the mound on Wednesday. At his best, the reigning two-time Cy Young Award winner is perhaps the best pitcher in the game, though he hasn’t quite been himself since returning from the IL on June 13th. He’s allowed five earned runs over his last two starts (10.1 IP), but that is also coming fresh off of a month-and-a-half layoff — and a groundbreaking elbow surgery that saw a pretty quick comeback from the ace despite the removal of loose bodies (well, body). His talent is nearly unmatched around the league, and he will undoubtedly present a challenge for the Yankees bats to close out the series.
