Tarik Skubal says he’s glad the keyhole at Comerica Park is gone after Tigers asked for input

DETROIT AP The Detroit Tigers are wrapping up their first homestand with a subtle change on the field at Comerica Park putting grass over a strip of dirt that used to be between the pitcher s mound and batter s box AL Cy Young and Triple Crown winner Tarik Skubal mentioned he s glad the squad got rid of the keyhole making the lefty s sightline the same as it is in every other ballpark in Major League Baseball I might get a few heat for this but they demanded what we thought of it and I revealed I didn t really like it Skubal disclosed Wednesday morning before a series-ending event against the New York Yankees I wasn t a fan of it Obviously I understand from a fan perspective It s unique and stuff but just from a visual perspective it s so much different Detroit was the last crew in the majors to have the throwback feature which was common in the s and early s in their ballpark that opened in after leaving Tiger Stadium The Arizona Diamondbacks also had a keyhole at Chase Field before removing it in when they changed their playing surface from grass to synthetic turf The Tigers also made major renovations in the seating area behind home plate removing a tunnel that was mostly used by umpires and installing state-of-the-art chairs that allow fans to heat or cool their seats I m a fan of having no tunnel Skubal disclosed I m glad it s gone It makes it feel pretty clean back there While Skubal commented the front office sought for his input following the season and he gave his strong opinion two other pitchers on the staff absolutely shrugged their shoulders when demanded about the new-look view and an All-Star outfielder insisted he didn t even realize the keyhole was gone They urged a couple guys but it didn t bother me right-handed reliever Will Vest revealed It just doesn t really move the needle too much for me When lefty Tyler Holton is on the mound he stated he s locked in on the catcher s target with or without a path of dirt in front of him I think if you re noticing things like that you re ostensibly not focused on what you need to be focused on Holton revealed Riley Greene meanwhile insisted he didn t know the keyhole was gone until a reporter requested him about it on Wednesday I m going to be honest I didn t even notice it Greene commented Somebody communicated me that it was being taken out and I was like Oh cool I m ostensibly not even going to notice it And I haven t even noticed it AP MLB https apnews com hub mlb Source