Framber Valdez meltdown has Tigers searching for answers after Twins series

The Detroit Tigers had high hopes coming into the 2026 season, and while Kevin McGonigle’s early success provided a nice sugar high, that high has faded after the last few games. Ace Tarik Skubal had a rough outing against the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday, which was followed by a bad start from Framber Valdez. It leaves the Tigers searching for answers.

Valdez allowed an alarming eight earned runs in five innings of work, including six allowed in the first inning alone. He deserves credit for hanging in there and at least grinding out five innings to give the Tigers a chance in a game they ended up losing 8-6, but it is a concerning start to the year nonetheless.

Valdez’s meltdown follows Skubal’s worst start of the young season. He allowed four earned runs and did not make it through the fifth inning. To add insult to injury, Minnesota’s social media team wasted no time trolling him. 

Tigers have to be at least mildly worried after bad start to season

One positive to all of this is the fact that other than these last two starts, Skubal and Valdez have been masterful. The consistent left-handed sinker-baller Valdez, who signed with Detroit in the offseason after spending his entire career with the Houston Astros, allowed only one earned run in his first two starts, pitching 12 total innings and looking very much up to the role of co-ace that president of baseball operations Scott Harris and the Tigers cast him in.

As for Skubal, fresh off two straight AL Cy Young Awards with many thinking he will take home his third consecutive, he was dominant in his first two outings, allowing only one earned run in 13 total innings pitched.

Skubal and Valdez are going to be just fine. Fans can just chalk it up to two weird days in Minnesota in April that everyone will have forgotten about by the end of the season.

Even the offense shouldn’t be worried about too much. They rank 14th in MLB with 53 runs scored and they figure to be a middle-of-the-pack offense for much of the season, which is fine assuming their pitching staff lives up to its billing as one of the best in baseball.

Still, there is no easy way to completely sugarcoat a 4-9 start to the season. Even the most optimistic of fans will have doubt creep in about the team’s chances.

The worst-case scenario would be if the pitching staff gets hit with multiple injuries or just simply isn’t as good as everyone thought it was going to be. Success for the 2026 Tigers is predicated entirely on pitching. Without that, the house of cards may crumble.

It’s not time to hit the panic button just yet, but after a rough couple of days in Minnesota, it is time to dial up the worry just a notch.