DETROIT — AJ Hinch didn’t want to give away the game plan before the game Tuesday, but he also didn’t want everyone to freak out if Tarik Skubal came out of his season debut a little earlier than might be expected.
The plan all along was to make it a piggyback start for Skubal and rookie Reese Olson. And, of course, he didn’t want the Athletics to know that ahead of time. So, he had to talk in code.
“This is kind of like a late March, early April start for him,” Hinch said. “He’s coming off a major injury and a conservative ramp back. He’s not going to go nine innings. He’s not going to throw a no-hitter or set any personal records.”
