#tarik-skubal

#tarik-skubal

The Tigers hired Scott Harris as president of baseball operations in September of 2022. The team was in a rut at that point, having not made the playoffs since 2014. They finally pulled out of rebuilding mode by making the playoffs in 2024 and 2025.

I'm just saying that when you see the "mystery team" come out of the woodwork in public reporting, potentially being sourced from the agent side, it means it's Last Call time. It means (maybe) that the Pirates have the best financial deal on the table, but Valdez does not want to sign in Pittsburgh. It means he and his agent want the preferred team(s) to get over the hump and add a few dollars or no-trade clauses or whatever to get things done.

If there's one team willing and able to give outfielder Kyle Tucker the $400 million he seeks in free agency, it's the Toronto Blue Jays, according to many of the agents, executives and managers at baseball's annual winter meetings this week. And if there's one team with the capability to both trade for and extend Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, according to insiders, it's the Los Angeles Dodgers.

There's never been any indication Skubal and the Tigers were close on a contract extension, nor is there a sign the team's willingness to trade him has changed. Steve Adams and I differ on the likelihood of an offseason trade happening. In a discussion last week, Steve pegged the chances of a Skubal trade this winter at 0.25%. I'm more in the range of 5-10%.

Tarik Skubal is entering his last year of arbitration and trending towards the largest pitching contract in history if he stays healthy. Jon Heyman of The New York Post wrote this evening that Skubal could seek a deal of at least $400MM. Heyman reports that Detroit's extension offer last offseason was shy of the $170MM which Garrett Crochet received from the Red Sox in April.

CLEVELAND -- Tarik Skubal tied a franchise postseason record with 14 strikeouts and the Detroit Tigers defeated the Cleveland Guardians 2-1 on Tuesday in Game 1 of their AL Wild Card Series. Will Vest recorded the final four outs for Detroit, surviving a tense ninth inning after Cleveland star Jose Ramirez got hung up between third base and home for the second out.

The Tigers pitching staff led by reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, who is coming off a bit of a scare when leaving his last start early, and closer Will Vest. The offensive is powered by Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson with a solid supporting cast. As a team, they had six representatives in the 2025 All-Star Game - four position players and two pitchers.

The Guardians have won six games in a row and 11 of their past 12 to storm back into the conversation for a spot in the postseason. That includes taking the first two games of a three-game set against their division rival in Detroit, but now if they're going to complete the sweep and extend their winning streak they'll need to take down the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner.