Detroit Tigers’ Ty Madden listed as starter vs Royals. What is plan?

KANSAS CITY, MO – The rotation was the biggest strength for the Detroit Tigers on Opening Day.

Now, it’s a reason for uncertainty.

Left-hander Tarik Skubal, right-hander Justin Verlander and right-hander Casey Mize are on the injured list, while left-hander Framber Valdez is suspended. Those situations have left inconsistent right-hander Jack Flaherty as the only remaining member of the original five-man rotation.

“We’ve been fortunate to be able to put somebody out there every inning of every game,” manager A.J. Hinch said Friday, May 8, before the first of three games against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.

Facing the Royals, the Tigers had right-hander Keider Montero listed as the starter for Friday’s game, followed by to-be-determined starters for Saturday and Sunday. Before Friday’s game, right-hander Ty Madden appeared as Saturday’s probable pitcher.

Will Madden actually start for the Tigers?

“I don’t know,” Hinch said.

The Tigers recalled Madden to replace Skubal, who recently underwent elbow surgery to remove a loose body from his left elbow. There isn’t a timeline for Skubal’s return to the Tigers.

Madden pitched in Skubal’s absence in Monday’s 5-4 loss to the Boston Red Sox at Comerica Park, throwing five scoreless innings with seven strikeouts in an impressive 81-pitch performance out of the bullpen.

In that game, Madden served as the bulk reliever.

It could be a traditional start this time.

“I’ll let Q [Matt Quatraro, Royals manager] know tonight after the game,” Hinch said, “depending on who we use and how we go into tomorrow. I’ll trade him out for Sunday’s starter.”

Left-hander Noah Cameron is scheduled to start Sunday for the Royals, but that information wasn’t known until just before Friday’s game. He was scratched from his last start due to back tightness and has avoided a stint on the injured list.

The Tigers are gearing up for more pitching chaos.

Valdez was supposed to start, but he will continue serving his five-game suspension issued by MLB for intentionally throwing at Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story.

“It’ll be guys who are here, and we’ll mix and match like a traditional bullpen game, whatever that means,” Hinch said. “We’ll handle the volume based on the next two days in who is available to us, but the group that’s down there is the group that’s going to get us through that day.”

Will Vest receives cortisone injection

Right-handed reliever Will Vest hasn’t pitched for the Tigers since April 26.

The 30-year-old remains sidelined with right forearm inflammation. He received a cortisone injection before Friday’s game to address the remaining inflammation in his right forearm.

“He’s going to resume throwing, which is great news,” Hinch said. “We were able to get it diagnosed and treated, so he can start his activity, ramp-up soon.”

In 2026, Vest has a 6.17 ERA with six walks and 13 strikeouts across 11⅔ innings in 13 games. (He registered a 2.93 ERA over 187⅓ innings from 2023-25, including a 3.01 ERA with 23 saves in 30 opportunities last season.)

Troy Melton injury update

Three Tigers pitchers are working through the early stages of rehab assignments in Low-A Lakeland: right-handed reliever Beau Brieske (left adductor strain), right-hander Troy Melton (right elbow inflammation) and right-handed reliever Connor Seabold (left ankle inflammation).