WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- If left-hander Tarik Skubal's first two spring outings showed his potential for dominance, his first Grapefruit League start served as a lesson in competing.

Facing five regulars from Houston's World Series team, Detroit's No. 4 prospect was chased with two outs in the third inning of a 2-1 walk-off loss at FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.

Skubal permitted one run on four hits with two walks and three strikeouts. Of his 51 pitches, 32 went for strikes. Following an 11-pitch first, the Astros made him work -- 27 pitches in the second and 13 pitches in the third -- before being pulled after back-to-back batters reached.

"It's all about trying to figure it out," said Skubal, MLB Pipeline's No. 46 overall prospect. "In the third inning, I felt really good, so I'm proud of myself. I wish it didn't take two innings, but I think I need to get better at taking [on] one hitter and then finding whatever it is. I'm going to do some thinking when I go back in there and figure out what mental cue or something like that to get me back on track."

The 23-year-old learned how to compete without his best stuff, which includes a trio of above-average-or-better secondary pitches (slider, curveball, changeup). Skubal, whose fastball has reached 98 mph this spring, maxed out at 96 mph to strike out Josh Reddick in a seven-pitch battle to end the second inning.

Still, Skubal felt as though his fastball was missing its late jump. He turned to his curveball -- with a tinkered grip -- just three times. He felt out of sync without his usual sharpness.

"It's still about pitching," manager Ron Gardenhire said. "Just keep pitching, not throwing. When you don't have your best stuff, then you start figuring it out. He got a better feel once he went along, which is normal. These are big moments for those young guys. They've been over here and seen this stuff, but these are big moments facing a real good hitting team over there. Got out a little goosey and tried to throw it a little bit too hard, but ultimately, at the end, he settled in there and he got his breaking ball where he wanted it to. I thought he did a really nice job."

In his previous two spring appearances -- against NAIA title hopeful Southeastern University and the Red Sox -- Skubal threw four scoreless and hitless innings, with eight strikeouts and one walk.

Skubal, who is not yet on the 40-man roster, is projected to begin the season at Triple-A Toledo. But he has certainly turned heads in camp, with his fastball being named one of the nastiest pitches by his teammates.

"One of the things we've seen from him is great mound presence and maturity," general manager Al Avila said. "He goes out there and pitches like he's been doing it all his life, and this is the first time he's done it at the Major League level. That's one thing that's very impressive. It's been pretty impressive from most of the guys that we have been bringing up from Double-A, from last year to big league camp. I would say for me, other than obviously his fastball, curveball and changeup, that's one of the things that has impressed me. Of course that's the separator."

Getting work in
• Ivan Nova pitched four scoreless innings in an intrasquad game at the Tigers' Spring Training complex in Lakeland, Fla., on Monday. Nova, who is projected to slot into the back end of the rotation, allowed two hits and struck out four on 60 pitches (40 strikes). The 33-year-old right-hander also has thrown eight frames across four Grapefruit League appearances (9.00 ERA).

• Catcher Jake Rogers (Detroit's No. 10 prospect) went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer and a walk.

Up next
The Tigers return to Lakeland, Fla., to host the Pirates on Tuesday. Projected Opening Day starter Matthew Boyd will make his third spring appearance at 1:05 p.m. ET at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. The game can be seen live on MLB.TV or listened to on Gameday Audio.