CLEARWATER, Fla. >> Here’s how locked in Tigers ace Tarik Skubal was Saturday in his penultimate spring start at BayCare Ballpark.

He’d just struck out Bryce Harper on three pitches, ending five strong innings against the Phillies’ A-lineup and he made a beeline for home-plate umpire Dan Iassogna. The Phillies had tied the score in that inning thanks in part to an infield single awarded to Brandon Marsh after the first-base umpire Jen Pawol called obstruction on Skubal at first base.

“I just wanted to clarify the rule at first base,” Skubal said. “Why was he safe? I had the ball and touched the bag. That’s not obstruction. I could’ve tagged him if I wanted.”

Skubal wasn’t looking to get the call overturned. He wanted to know what recourse he would have if this happened in season.

“I just asked, ‘I understand this is spring training but how could we overturn this in-season?’” Skubal said. “That’s an out and that run doesn’t score. I understand it’s spring but in-season, I don’t want runs to score if we’re up 2-1.”

The game ended in a 2-2 tie, as it turned out.

“Tarik was confused and he was right,” Tigers manager AJ Hinch said afterward.

Skubal was in strike-throwing beast mode against the Phillies. He threw first-pitch strikes to 16 of the 20 batters he faced. Of his 68 pitches, 57 were strikes.

“This organization preaches that, I believe in it and I do it,” Skubal said. “That’s who I am when I’m on the mound. Strike one, strike two and then we’re getting guys out early and often.”

The fourth inning was the epitome of pounding the zone. He struck out Kyle Schwarber on three pitches. He got J.T. Realmuto to ground out in two pitches and struck out Nick Castellanos on three pitches, the last a 100.1 mph heater.

Eight pitches, eight strikes.

“That’s almost an immaculate inning,” Skubal said. “That’s what I want to be on the mound.”

He couldn’t miss the zone even when he wanted to, literally. On the Castellanos strikeout, he was trying to get him to chase and threw it over the middle. And then with Harper, he got two whiffs on sliders up and over the plate.

“Two of those to Harper were horrendous,” Skubal said. “But it works sometimes when you throw it in such a bad spot.”

The Phillies scratched six singles and two runs off him, but he struck out seven with no walks. He got 16 misses on 43 swings and 14 called strikes. His four-seam and two-seam fastballs were averaging 97 mph. He threw 15 change-ups and 14 sliders and the sliders were coming in hot, 91 mph, 2 mph firmer than last year.

Adrenalin was a factor.

“I was letting it rip,” he said. “You can put that lineup up against anybody in the league. That’s one of the best lineups in the game, one of the best teams in the game. When you come out on the road in spring and see where you’re at against really good hitters, that’s always a great opportunity. It’s competitive and I like that.

“I like to get the juices flowing with opening day coming up.”

Keith locked in

Somehow, Colt Keith has managed to grind through this camp without much external fanfare, rare since him moving from second base to first base was such a topical storyline early on.

He got two opposite-field hits off Phillies starter Zack Wheeler on Saturday, including a two-out, two-run double in the first inning. Both hits had exit velocities in excess of 100 mph.

“He had two really good swings,” Hinch said. “Probably the best day offensively of any of our guys against an elite pitcher.”

The hits raised his spring average to .306. He also had a couple of tough reads at first base. In the second inning, Castellanos hit a chopper between first and second. Keith ranged too far to his right and had to scamper back to the bag, just beating Castellanos.

Then in the fifth, on the play Skubal contested at first base, with a runner on first, he fielded Marsh’s chopper on the grass. His first move was to go to second but he hesitated and hastily reversed his body and flipped it to Skubal.

“He should’ve played that ball exactly the way he played it,” Hinch said. “Just because of the way that chopper was. The one ball (Castellanos’) he was late on was the one too close to Gleyber (Torres, second baseman), but he still got back.

“These are full-speed reps and he’s starting to make more and more adjustments just with his footwork around the base and the timing of it. He has to trust his first read, which has mostly been correct.”

Hinch was asked if he was impressed that Keith hasn’t taken the stress of learning a new position into the batter’s box with him.

“I don’t know how much stress it is,” Hinch said. “It’s just that it’s new. I think everyone is wondering if he’s worked up about it and he’s not. At least not to me or to Joey (Cora, infield coach). It’s just a new experience for him.

“But the one thing I’ve learned about Colt in the year I’ve managed him is that nothing is going to distract him away from his at-bats. He’s pretty locked in.”

Game bits

Right-handed reliever Brenan Hanifee continues to impress. He threw two scoreless innings, 27 pitches, 16 strikes, and every pitch was firm with movement. His sinker and four-seamer were ringing at 96-97 mph.

He was throwing his change-up at 90 mph and his slider at 89. “Hanifee has been amazing,” Hinch said. “His ball is moving all over the place and he’s had pretty good command. I wasn’t going to let him go two innings but he was so efficient, we kept wanting him to build his pitch count and his endurance. He’s been sort of understated at times, but he’s been as dominant as anyone in our pen.”

… The offensive struggles continue for third baseman Jace Jung. He went 0 for 3 with a strikeout and is now 4 for 36 in the spring and not squaring many balls up.