SEATTLE (AP) — Tarik Skubal was terrific. And he was long gone when the season ended for the Detroit Tigers.
Skubal struck out 13 in six dominant innings in Game 5 of the AL Division Series at Seattle on Friday night. But the Tigers were eliminated when Jorge Polanco singled home J.P. Crawford in the 15th inning, giving the Mariners a 3-2 victory.
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Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal throws during the first inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal (29) reacts after Seattle Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor hit a double during the second inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal wipes his face during the third inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal throws during the first inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal throws during the first inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Skubal did his part with Detroit on the brink of the franchise’s first appearance in the AL Championship Series since 2013. The ace left-hander allowed one run and two hits in what turned into baseball's longest winner-take-all postseason game by innings.
“It’s incredible. He kick-started us in such a good direction,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “He missed a ton of bats. Again, if you’re not a fan of the Tigers and you haven’t watched Tarik start after start after start, you’re going to see why he gets the love he does, because he’s incredible.”
Skubal, who won the AL Cy Young Award last year, also started Detroit's 3-2 loss in Game 2. He struck out nine in seven innings, but he surrendered two runs on Polanco's two homers.
Skubal was even better in the series finale.
Seattle jumped in front when Josh Naylor doubled, stole third and scored on Mitch Garver's sacrifice fly in the second. But Skubal took over from there.
He had a streak of seven consecutive strikeouts, setting a postseason record for a single game. The streak ended when Naylor lined to center for the first out of the fifth.
“Skubal was as advertised,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “He did what he does. He had a really good fastball again tonight and mixing his changeup well, had us off stride, and we had to fight for everything.”
The 28-year-old Skubal struck out Cal Raleigh on a 100.9 mph fastball on his 99th and final pitch of the night.
Hinch said it was an “easy decision” to take out Skubal at that point.
“After the fifth, I checked in on him how he was doing physically and emotionally, and we both knew that he had one left,” Hinch said. “You know, he emptied his tank and obviously was emotional coming off the mound, and I think that signals exactly where we were in the game. He gave us everything he could.”
It was reminiscent of Skubal's performance during the AL Wild Card Series at Cleveland, when he struck out 14 while pitching 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball in the Tigers' 2-1 victory in Game 1.
He became the first player in MLB history to record at least 13 Ks in a game twice in the same postseason, according to STATS.
Skubal went 13-6 during the regular season with an AL-low 2.21 ERA. He ranked second in strikeouts with 241.
He was in the same position a year ago, with a chance to pitch the Tigers into the ALCS by winning Game 5 of the Division Series. But he gave up a tiebreaking grand slam to Lane Thomas in the fifth inning of a 7-3 loss at Cleveland.
“He’s an emotional leader,” Hinch said. “He’s someone who brings it on the field. You see it every five or six days. And we’ve asked a lot out of him this season, but specifically this postseason, every five days. You want the ball in his hand, and you want him to represent your club.”
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Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal throws during the first inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal (29) reacts after Seattle Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor hit a double during the second inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal wipes his face during the third inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal throws during the first inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal throws during the first inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Seattle Mariners, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
ADEN, Yemen (AP) — The United Arab Emirates said early Saturday it had withdrawn all its troops from Yemen.
The move comes after days of airlifts by UAE military aircraft following an order to withdraw from anti-Houthi forces in Yemen following Saudi Arabia pushing back against the advance of Emirati-backed separatists there.
“The UAE forces follows the implementation of a previously announced decision to conclude the remaining missions of counter-terrorism units,” a Defense Ministry statement said. “The process has been conducted in a manner that ensured the safety of all personnel and carried out in coordination with all relevant partners.”
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
ADEN, Yemen (AP) —
Yemen 's separatist movement on Friday announced a constitution for an independent nation in the south and demanded other factions in the war-torn country accept the move in an escalation of a confrontation that has pitted Gulf powerhouses Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates against each other.
The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council depicted the announcement as a declaration of independence for the south. But it was not immediately clear if the move could be implemented or was largely symbolic. Last month, STC-linked fighters seized control of two southern provinces from Saudi-backed forces and took over the Presidential Palace in the south's main city, Aden. Members of the internationally recognized government — which had been based in Aden — fled to the Saudi-capital Riyadh.
On Friday, Saudi warplanes bombed camps and military positions held by the STC in Hadramout province as Saudi-backed fighters tried to seize the facilities, a separatist official said. It was the latest direct intervention by Saudi Arabia, which in recent weeks has bombed STC forces and struck what is said was a shipment of Emirati weapons destined for the separatists.
Ostensibly, Saudi Arabia and the UAE and their allies on the ground in Yemen have all been part of a Saudi-led coalition fighting Iranian-backed Houthi rebels who control the north in the country's decade-long civil war. The coalition's professed goal has long been to restore the internationally recognized government, which was driven out of the north by the Houthis. But tensions between the factions and the two Gulf nations appear to be unraveling the coalition, threatening to throw them into outright conflict and further tear apart the Arab world's poorest country.
The head of the STC, Aidarous al-Zubaid, issued a video statement Friday saying that the constitution his group issued would be in effect for two years, after which a a referendum would be held on “exercising the right to self-determination for the people of the South.” During those two years, he said, the “relevant parties” in north and south Yemen should hold a dialogue on “a path and mechanisms that guarantee the right of the people of the South.”
He said that if the other factions don't agree to his call or if they take military action, “all options remain open.”
The 30-article “constitution” proclaimed the creation of “the State of South Arabia," covering the same territory of the former People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen, the independent southern state that existed from 1967-1990.
It seemed to be the most overt move yet by the STC toward its long-proclaimed goal of independence. In the confusion that has reigned in the south in recent weeks, it was not clear what practical impact it would have. But the declaration could set back efforts to avert an outright conflict between the separatists and the rest of the Saudi-led coalition.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday that the country was dealing with the situation “with restraint, coordination, and a deliberate commitment to de-escalation, guided by a foreign policy that consistently prioritizes regional stability over impulsive action.”
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen demands the withdrawal of the STC-linked Southern Shield forces from the two governorates they seized, Hadramout and Mahra, as part of de-escalation efforts. The STC has so far refused to hand over its weapons and camps.
Saudi-backed fighters, known as the National Shield Forces, advanced on two STC-camps in Hadramout, said a senior STC official, Ahmed bin Breik, a former governor of the province. The separatist forces refused to withdraw and in response, Saudi planes struck the camps, he said.
Mohamed al-Nakib, spokesperson for the STC-backed forces, said the strikes caused fatalities, without providing details. The Associated Press couldn’t independently verify that claim.
He told the AP later Friday that “intense clashes” erupted between his forces and the National Shield forces across several areas of Hadramout.
It was not clear if the Saudi-backed forces succeeded in retaking the camps.
Salem al-Khanbashi, the governor of Hadramout who was chosen Friday by Yemen's internationally recognized government to command the Saudi-led forces in the governorate, said the move to reclaim the camps was “not a declaration of war and is not seeking an escalation.” He said it was a “pre-emptive measure to remove weapons.”
In a post on X, the Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed al-Jaber, said the kingdom had tried “all efforts with STC” for weeks "to stop the escalation" and to urge the separatists to leave Hadramout and Mahra, only to be faced with “continued intransigence and rejection from Aidarous al-Zubaidi."
Al-Jaber said the STC had not permitted a Saudi delegation's jet to land in Aden, despite having agreed on its arrival with some STC leaders to find a solution that serves “everyone and the public interest.”
Yemen’s Transportation Ministry, aligned with STC, said Saudi Arabia on Thursday imposed requirements mandating that flights to and from Aden International Airport undergo inspection in Jeddah. The ministry denounced the decision. There was no confirmation from Saudi authorities.
ِA spokesperson with the transport ministry told the AP late Thursday that all flights from and to the UAE were suspended until Saudi Arabia reverses these reported measures.
Khaled reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.
Yemeni workers chat at a popular market in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
A Southern Yemen soldier of Southern Transitional Council (STC) stands at a check point, in Aden, Yemen, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo)
A Yemeni rides his motorbike under a banner honoring Houthi leaders who were killed during Israeli airstrikes, in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
Supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags during a rally, in Aden, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo)
Supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags during a rally, in Aden, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo)
Southern Yemen soldiers of Southern Transitional Council (STC) at a check point, in Aden, Yemen, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo)
