Tarik Skubal, the Detroit Tigers’ ace and two-time defending AL Cy Young Award winner, is set to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow that will keep him sidelined for months, manager A.J. Hinch said on Monday.

Skubal isn’t done for the season, but he is expected to be out two to three months following the surgery to remove loose bodies in his left elbow, ESPN reported.

Hinch called it an “easy process and procedure” while delivering the news, but it’s certainly a blow to the Tigers’ staff and Skubal personally that he is sidelined for months.

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Detroit pitcher Tarik Skubal watches during the Atlanta Braves game on April 29, 2026, at Truist Park in Atlanta, Ga. (Rich Von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire)

Skubal’s arm locked up during a bullpen session on Sunday ahead of his scheduled start against the Boston Red Sox on Monday night. Now, he will undergo the surgery, with Hinch providing no specific timeline for his return.

Skubal’s last start came in a 4-3 win over the league-leading Atlanta Braves this past Wednesday, where he allowed two runs on five hits across seven innings of work. He struck out seven Braves hitters during his outing.

TIGERS ACE TARIK SKUBAL WINS RECORD-BREAKING $32M IN ARBITRATION: REPORTS

However, in that game, Skubal was spotted rubbing his left arm, leading to Hinch and a Tigers trainer going to the mound to check on the pitcher. Skubal, though, remained in the game after tossing a warm-up pitch, and he went on to pitch seven strong innings.

As a result of Skubal being out, the Tigers recalled Ty Madden to the big leagues. Tyler Holton will also be making the spot start on Monday night, serving as the Tigers’ opener before Hinch needs to get creative with his bullpen.

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal reacts after giving up a hit against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minn., on Aug. 14, 2025. (Jesse Johnson/Imagn Images)

Skubal is the latest Tigers starter to be placed on the injured list, joining Casey Mize and Justin Verlander. That leaves Framber Valdez and Jack Flaherty as the only healthy starters at the moment.

For Skubal, the timing isn’t great, especially with impending free agency looming.

Skubal won a record-breaking arbitration case this offseason, where the Tigers were told to pay the left-handed ace $32 million for the 2026 campaign after they proposed a $19 million salary. The victory beat Juan Soto’s arbitration pay by the New York Yankees in 2024 by $1 million.

Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers between pitches during the Braves game at Truist Park in Atlanta on April 29, 2026. (Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)

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But, with no long-term deal in place for Skubal, the electric starter is set to be one of the top free agents after the season, unless he and the Tigers don’t figure something out before then. It seems unlikely that will happen at this point.

All teams interested in Skubal will be watching his recovery and eventual return closely. Until then, Hinch and the Tigers will need others to step up in the meantime for the starting rotation.

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By beating Chelsea 3-1 at Stamford Bridge on Monday, Nottingham Forest extended their unbeaten run in the Premier League to seven matches.

It moved them six points clear of 18th-placed West Ham, and restored their five-point advantage over Spurs in 17th.

Although not confirmed mathematically, the three points should be enough to seal Forest’s place in the Premier League next season.

After a season marred by three managerial changes at the City Ground, Forest will be indebted to Vitor Pereira if survival is achieved.

Since replacing Sean Dyche in February, the 57-year-old has lost only two of his nine Premier League matches in charge.

Pereira’s side are unbeaten in matches against Manchester City, Tottenham, Aston Villa, Sunderland and Chelsea.

In their past three games, Forest have remarkably scored 12 times and conceded just twice to improve their goal difference from -12 to -2. It could effectively act as an extra point at the end of the season.

Spurs, on the other hand, followed up a first Premier League win of 2026 last week by earning a vital victory against a much-changed Aston Villa side on Sunday night.

After three matchdays in the relegation zone, the win meant Spurs, last season’s Europa League winners, climbed out of the bottom three and leapfrogged West Ham.

Speaking on Monday Night Club, former Manchester City and Newcastle United goalkeeper Shay Given said: “It’s so tight now. It’s between two, realistically. The rest are home and dry. Maybe not mathematically, but they are done and dusted.

“It’s a huge week for Tottenham. Forget about the tactics, forget about the managers, forget about the boardroom. It’s about the result. It’s three points – the lift that will give the lads.

“Imagine them going into training today. A few weeks back, the Spurs stadium has been nearly empty towards the end of games. You could see them in the away end yesterday – the place was rocking.

“It’s just that feeling, the human feeling of ‘we’ve won a game of football. We’re out of the relegation zone. We’ve flipped with West Ham‘.”

However, it is not all doom and gloom for the Hammers despite their precarious position.

They have actually improved significantly in the past three months and, since suffering back-to-back defeats in January, have only lost four of their past 14 Premier League matches.

But if any club are aware that it can sometimes be too little, too late, then it is West Ham.

The east Londoners have the unwanted record of accumulating the most points in the final eight games of the season (15) of any side to be relegated from the Premier League.

In more recent times, Newcastle United – the last team to be relegated from the Premier League with 36 points or more – hold the record for the longest unbeaten run at the end of a season (six games) by a team relegated to the Championship.

If Forest, Spurs and West Ham maintain their current run of form, one of the three could end the season with a similarly unwanted place in the Premier League record books.

Moses Itauma was originally set to return on July 25 in London, however the announcement of Anthony Joshua’s ‘warm-up’ fight against Kristian Prenga on the same date in Saudi Arabia has forced a change.

Itauma was last out in March when he became the first man to stop American heavyweight Jermaine Franklin. It was the 14th win, and 12th knockout, of the young Brit’s campaign so far, as his team steadily builds up the levels in preparation for an inevitable world title run.

The Franklin fight was postponed from January due to Itauma suffering a bicep tear in training camp. Had it gone ahead as planned, he could have guaranteed three fights in 2026. That is still possible, however he has now been forced to move from July to August due to a date clash with former unified champion Joshua, who is fighting this summer with a view to then announcing his long-awaited clash with Tyson Fury for the end of the year.

Speaking on the Ariel Helwani show, promoter Frank Warren confirmed that his young charge will now move to August 8, and that the show will still be at London’s O2 Arena. Itauma will headline, and there are talks ongoing with potential opponents but nothing is signed yet.

Itauma is ranked number one with both the WBA and WBO, five with the IBF and two with the WBC. He has been called out by WBA Regular champion Murat Gassiev, which could be a significant bout if Super champ Oleksandr Usyk soon vacates the belt.

The 21-year-old may soon be called as mandatory challenger for the WBO belt, as per president Gustavo Olivieri, currently held by Fabio Wardley. Wardley defends his title against Daniel Dubois this weekend in Manchester. If he retains, it is unlikely his next defence will be against Itauma, as both men share the same trainer in Ben Davison. Should Dubois win to become a two-time champion, that fight sells itself.

Outside of the immediate title picture, Itauma’s team will also be happy with a top contender who can present a different style or level of danger as he continues to develop.

The Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini story is the loudest but also the quietest story in the NFL, depending on where one looks and who one talks to. Over the past couple of weeks, the style of coverage has been the biggest story beside the story, as fans and pundits have begun to ask questions about why the story isn’t as public as it is.

In a Sunday post on X, NFL expert Tony Farmer floated a theory that Russini could do a lot more damage than running too many stories about her would initially indicate. Farmer didn’t offer any evidence in the video clip, but compared the potential situation to the Epstein files.

“I compare it to the Epstien Files,” Farmer said. “When people started looking for stuff about Epstein, other people’s names were dragged into it. All of a sudden, Bill Gates has gotta answer questions.

“Maybe, that’s some of the reason we’re seeing ESPN, that’s 10% owned by the NFL, not wanting to talk about this story, because when we start looking into Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini, other people might get pulled into this situation.”

The Epstein files seemed to reach far beyond what anyone expected initially. If Russini has as much dirt as a reporter who spent years behind the curtain, upsetting her might be the last thing some in the media world may want.

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NFL analyst doubles down on Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini coverage

Tony Farmer didn’t leave his thoughts on the Mike Vrabel-Dianna Russini only in video form. The analyst made a text-only post on Sunday, the same day as the video, expanding on his thoughts about the situation with Drake Maye’s coach and Dianna Russini.

“Vrabel’s conflict was the fact that she was one of 50 COTY voters,” he posted. “Russini’s conflict is the fact that he is her journalistic source. ESPN’s conflict is its 10% owned by the NFL and Russini is their former employee. Specific journalists (Zolak, etc.) conflicts = friendship with Russini and Vrabel.

“The NFL’s conflict is that this situation can harm its credibility.”

The comments indicate that Farmer will continue to speak on the issue until the story is concluded. Considering the size, scope and potential of the story, don’t expect radio silence any time soon.

New England Patriots fans wait to learn what’s next for Russini, if and when she speaks publicly about what happened and where she will be hired next. Many believe her career has another act, but the question is where and how her next chapter will begin.

What’s next for Russini?