Tarik Skubal had not even thrown a pitch Friday night before Detroit made its feelings pretty clear.

As Skubal walked to the bullpen mound around 6:32 p.m. ET to begin warming up for his first start at Comerica Park as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, fans throughout the ballpark rose to their feet and applauded the former Tigers ace.

Then came the real moment.

After Skubal completed his bullpen session and began walking back toward the Dodgers dugout, the Tigers played a video tribute to Skubal on the Comerica Park scoreboard.

As you can see in the video below, Skubal appeared emotional (biting his upper lip) as he made his way toward the dugout, while the still-filling stadium gave him another warm ovation.

It was exactly the kind of reception that had become one of the biggest questions surrounding Skubal’s emotional return to Comerica Park.

For all the debate about whether Detroit fans would cheer or boo Skubal, there did not appear to be much uncertainty during the pregame introductions.

They cheered.

The Tigers’ official social media account added to the moment by welcoming Skubal back with an orange heart.

Friday marks Skubal’s first game against Detroit since being traded to Los Angeles earlier this month. He spent his entire Major League career with the Tigers before the deal, developing into a back-to-back American League Cy Young Award winner.

The emotional reception was hardly unexpected. Skubal had already acknowledged how much returning to Detroit would mean to him, while the Los Angeles Times detailed the significance of his first trip back to Comerica Park as a Dodger.

Detroit had already revealed the lineup that would face its former ace Friday night.

But before the competition began, the Tigers and their fans gave Skubal a moment to remember.

And judging by his reaction, it meant something.