Jupiter, Fla. — He still has three more starts this spring, but to this point, Matthew Boyd has made it just about impossible for the Tigers to deny him a spot in the rotation.
The left-hander was dominant Tuesday in the Tigers 7-1 spring win over the Marlins. He went five innings — the first Tigers starter to finish five innings — allowed three hits, with no walks and five strikeouts. He threw 60 pitches, 46 of them strikes — and 13 of the strikes were swings and misses.
Here’s the telltale stat: He threw a first-pitch strike to 15 of the 17 batters he faced.