The Tigers and Padres will square off in a three-game series. The series begins Thursday afternoon at Petco Park. This is an Interleague matchup to open the 2026 season.
Skubal Takes the Mound for Detroit
Tarik Skubal is set to start for the Tigers. Skubal has faced the Padres only once in his career. That outing was on July 27, 2022, at Comerica Park. He tossed six innings with two unearned runs on three hits in a no-decision.
Manny Machado and Jake Cronenworth are the only Padres left from San Diego’s starting lineup that day.
The Padres hit lefties worse than righties last year. They can stack their lineup with right-handed batters, including Miguel Andujar and Nick Castellanos. It’ll matter little unless they can figure out how to hit Skubal’s elite changeup.
His fastball reached 99 mph in Spring Training. He’s working on using his curveball to freeze batters gearing up for his velocity.
Skubal took the loss for the Tigers on Opening Day last year at Dodger Stadium. A pair of homers saddled him with four runs over five innings along with a walk and two strikeouts. He lost his first two starts last season, both on the West Coast, then went 10-0 with a 1.62 ERA over his next 16 outings.
Pivetta Gets the Opening Day Start for San Diego
Nick Pivetta was named the Padres’ Opening Day starter. Pivetta posted the best season of his career last year. He then earned the nod in Game 1 of the postseason.
Pivetta is somewhat familiar with the Tigers from his time in the American League. Pivetta owns a 2.33 ERA in five career outings against Detroit.
It was a bit of a rough spring for Pivetta, who dealt with some early arm fatigue and posted poor numbers overall. In 17 starts at Petco Park last season, Pivetta posted a 2.36 ERA with a 0.86 WHIP.
Possible Lineups
Top prospect Kevin McGonigle could become the leadoff hitter before long for the Tigers. It would not be surprising if manager A.J. Hinch eases him into the big leagues with a lower spot in the order for now.
The Tigers and Padres would be happy enough if their seasons were to end with a 1984 World Series rematch. At the very least, their 2026 seasons will start that way.