Tigers best pitching plan of attack vs Astros for Game 2 of Wild Card series

On Tuesday, the Tigers took Game 1 of the Wild Card series against the Astros following another characteristically excellent start for Tarik Skubal and a three-run rally in the second inning. Jason Foley and Beau Brieske had Detroit in a high-wire act in the bottom of the ninth, but the Tigers pulled out of it with the win to put the rest of the series in their favor.

The Tigers do technically have two other starters on the roster in Casey Mize and Reese Olson, but AJ Hinch promised "pitching chaos" after Skubal's start, which definitely made it sound like he wouldn't be asking either to make traditional starts. Sure enough, Tyler Holton was officially announced as Detroit's starter/opener for Game 2.

Holton came in during the bottom of the eighth on Tuesday to close it out after Will Vest threw 24 pitches through 1 2/3 innings. Kyle Tucker grounded out on Holton's second pitch to end the inning, and the Tigers went to Foley in the ninth to preserve Holton for Wednesday.

So Holton's still fresh, but there's no way the Tigers ask him to go more than three innings. If chaos is on the books like Hinch promised, who's going to follow Holton?

Tigers to start Tyler Holton in Wild Card Game 2 against Astros, with "pitching chaos" to follow

Holton threw 45 pitches, a season high, on August 17 during a three-inning bulk relief appearance, but otherwise never exceeded 40. He only had four three-inning outings, one of which was a start. Hinch will keep a close eye on his pitch count and probably not let him go over 40, which would hopefully give the Tigers around three innings of work.

It's likely Reese Olson will be the next man up, and that he'll be tasked with giving the Tigers more length. Olson is also still somewhat fresh off the IL after missing two months with a shoulder strain, but he reached four innings in his last regular season appearance and threw 72 pitches, giving up two runs.

After Olson is where it'll get a little tricky, and whoever comes out for the eighth and ninth could be a gametime decision. However, Brieske, Foley, and Vest all seem to be off the table. The Tigers still have plenty of options, but our best guess would be Brenan Hanifee in the eighth and Sean Guenther in to close. Hanifee has a been a multi-purpose guy since he was called up in August but hasn't closed since Aug. 7, coming in more often for the seventh or eighth innings. Guenther's closed four times and has only given up one earned run in that role.

Depending on the score in late innings and who the closer will have to face in the ninth inning (the 7-9 Astros hitters bat right, left, and right, and Guenther is a lefty), the Tigers could also go to righty Jackson Jobe to wrap it up.

Hinch promised chaos, so this is only a rough estimation of how things might shake out. There's always the possibility Hinch opts for a spot reliever like he did on Tuesday with Holton as he continues to go for matchups.

The Tigers' offense will face Detroit native and Wayne State grad Hunter Brown as they look to put this series in the books and advance to the ALDS against the Guardians. Let's pack it in here and give yourselves a day off on Thursday, boys. We love the chaos, but it's better to get a bit of a break from it.