The talk of the trade deadline period so far has been what the Detroit Tigers will do with back-to-back reigning American League Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal. The expectation is that Detroit will indeed trade him to a contender for a haul of prospects.
The Tigers have fallen out of contention. While Skubal will make his return from the injured list on Saturday, Detroit has played miserably in his absence, which has led to the trade speculation.
On Foul Territory, former Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets manager Buck Showalter talked about the situation, but shared an interesting take on what he thinks the Tigers should do with their ace.
“He’s pretty special. Before you start entertaining thoughts of moving him, you’re always looking for that guy, and you’ve got him” Showalter said. “I know you can get a lot back, but who’s making the decisions on what is fair to get back for him? The world’s full of those four or five for ones that end up with a backup catcher, utility infielder and a long reliever and a fourth outfielder. You don’t impact guys. Very seldom do you get them.”
“You’re always looking for that guy, and you’ve got him.”
Is it Best for Tigers to Keep Tarik Skubal?
While on the surface, this take is going to get a lot of criticism, it’s actually a fair argument. Not often do teams actually end up with true impact players when they trade away their top talent. Often times, the players that teams get in return don’t live up to their expectations, so Showalter’s case is interesting.
The Tigers have arguably the best starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. At the same time, the American League is weak this year, and while the Tigers are 28-40, they are only 5 1/2 games back of the third wild card spot with plenty of time left in the regular season.
The Tigers also have gone on late-season runs. They were sellers at the 2024 trade deadline, but came back from 12 games below .500 to earn a wild card spot. While it may be unlikely, Detroit can still potentially snatch a wild card spot this year and go into the postseason with both Skubal and Framber Valdez at the top of its rotation.
At the same time, the Texas Rangers hold the third wild card spot and are a game under the .500 mark, so there is still at least a little bit of hope for the Tigers to turn things around, especially in a weak American League.
The Case Against Keeping Him
While Showalter makes a strong case, there is also a strong case to trade him. The Tigers are well under .500, Skubal is in the final year of his contract, and Detroit can bring back a lot of top prospects.
If the Tigers hold onto him and miss the playoffs, then they’ll essentially lose him for nothing more than a compensation draft pick. That would be similar to the mistake the Los Angeles Angels made with Shohei Ohtani in 2023, and if the Tigers can avoid that, then moving him makes sense as well.
Tigers’ Tarik Skubal Situation Gets Unique Take from Buck Showalter