Will the Tigers Trade Tarik Skubal? MLB Insiders Are Already Treating It As Inevitable.
The Detroit Tigers are going to trade Tarik Skubal. It is no longer a question of if. It is a question of when, where, and for how much.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Buster Olney have both reported in the last week that the Tigers are essentially certain to make their two-time Cy Young winner available at the August 3 trade deadline. The bidding war is expected to be the most aggressive since the Padres traded for Juan Soto in 2022.
The reasoning is hard to argue with. Skubal is a free agent after the season. He is represented by Scott Boras. The Tigers are not going to meet his asking price, which is expected to be in the seven-year, $300 million range. Detroit’s payroll situation does not realistically allow for a deal of that size, especially with Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson approaching their own expensive years.
That leaves trading him as the only way for the Tigers to get value back. Letting Skubal walk in October for a compensatory pick would be malpractice.
Skubal’s 2026 season has been more proof of why he is the most coveted pitcher in baseball. He returned from offseason elbow surgery in record time. He has not lost any velocity. He hit 99.9 mph with his fastball this month. He is striking out 11.4 hitters per nine and walking 1.8. His ERA is 2.41.
The list of teams that fit is long. The Dodgers are the betting favorite. They have the best farm system in baseball, the highest payroll, and an October-or-bust mentality that matches Skubal’s contract status. They also need pitching depth after Tyler Glasnow’s most recent setback.
The Yankees are circling. New York has the cap space and the desire to bring in an ace-level addition. Aaron Judge has reportedly been lobbying the front office.
The Braves, Brewers, and Blue Jays are all in the conversation. The Rays have a dark-horse offer ready to make. Any team within 10 games of a playoff spot is going to make the call.
The complication for any acquiring team is the rental nature of the deal. Skubal is going to test free agency. The team that trades for him gets two-plus months of one of the best pitchers in baseball, a playoff push, and a qualifying offer in October. That’s it.
For Detroit, the return needs to be massive. Think top-30 prospect, plus two top-100 prospects, plus a major-league-ready piece. The Dodgers’ system can absorb that. The Yankees’ can in a limited way. The Brewers cannot.
For Skubal, the trade is not actually the worst outcome. He gets to pitch meaningful games in October. He gets to audition for his free agency contract on a contending team. He gets out of the Tigers’ rebuilding situation that has clearly not progressed as quickly as anyone hoped.
For Detroit fans, the trade is going to hurt. Skubal is the only star they have had since Justin Verlander walked. He is a hometown-developed ace. He has been the face of the rebuild. Trading him is the front office admitting that the rebuild has not produced the contender they expected.
The countdown is on. Five weeks until August 3. The Skubal sweepstakes are going to dominate the headlines for every one of those days.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
