The calendar is about to flip to 2026, and the longer the MLB offseason drags on, the more likely it gets that the Detroit Tigers really are going to ride out the final year of Tarik Skubal's team control (and almost assuredly lose him in free agency next winter). Plenty of would-be contenders would no doubt love the chance to employ the best pitcher in baseball for next season, but he means more to Detroit than anyone else, and it's clear that no suitor has come close to what the Tigers are looking for to even consider moving on.
So let's help them out a bit. It's possible that the Tigers are just flatly uninterested in a Skubal deal, but they have to know that they're about to lose him one way or the other. Check enough boxes, and you'll at least get their attention — provided, of course, that you can meet the following requirements.
What would the Tigers need back in a Tarik Skubal trade?
Priority No. 1: At least one controllable starter
This is the absolute non-negotiable. Beyond Skubal, the Tigers have little in the way of promising starting pitching moving forward. Guys like Casey Mize, Reese Olson, Troy Melton and Sawyer Gipson-Long have all flashed rotation potential, but none have been consistent enough (or healthy enough) to be counted on as long-term building blocks. And while this is a promising farm system, it's long on position players but relatively short on impact arms.
Of course, there's no replacing quite possibly the best pitcher on planet Earth right now. But if the Tigers do decide it's in their best interest to trade Skubal now rather than lose him for nothing next winter (setting aside for a moment the logic behind that decision), they must get at least one pitcher who can anchor their rotation for years to come. Anything else would be malpractice — and cripple their contention window.
Which teams can fill the need
The New York Mets jump out as the most obvious fit here; young righty Nolan McLean might be the single juiciest piece the Tigers might be able to get in return for Skubal, if David Stearns were willing to make him available. And, much as it pains me to say it, you also can't discount the Dodgers, as Los Angeles can dip into its stock of MLB arms (Tyler Glasnow, Emmet Sheehan) or high-profile prospects (Jackson Ferris, River Ryan).
In the second tier of potential suitors — read: teams who might realistically be willing to pay Skubal what it'll take to keep him around long term — the Boston Red Sox have plenty of young pitching to choose from, highlighted by Connelly Early and Payton Tolle. And while the New York Yankees don't have the deepest farm system, their strength happens to be in their arms, with Elmer Rodriguez, Carlos Lagrange, Bryce Cunningham and Ben Hess all ticketed for a big-league rotation at some point in the next year or two.
Priority No. 2: An MLB-ready bat (preferably in the infield)
Offering up an impact pitcher to take Skubal's place is table stakes. But if you really want to convince Detroit that moving on from their ace might actually be worth their while, you're also going to have to give them something on the other side of the ball. The Tigers weren't a bad offense in 2025, ranking 12th in team OPS, but they also weren't a particularly fearsome one, as their no-show in the ALDS against the Seattle Mariners laid bare. There are pieces to get excited about here, both in the present (Riley Greene, Kerry Carpenter, Colt Keith) and future (shortstop prospect Kevin McGonigle, outfield prospect Max Clark), but more firepower is needed to truly take off.
It would help if that firepower came in the infield. McGonigle is ticketed for the left side of the infield, and Keith seems like a keeper, but precious little is settled on the dirt for long haul. But really, any big bat should grab Detroit's attention.
Which teams can fill the need
It brings me no pleasure to report that we're going to have to talk about the Dodgers again. Among potential Skubal suitors, arguably the two bets position player prospects available are both outfielder's in L.A.'s system: Josue de Paula and Zyhir Hope, both of whom have already made it to Double-A at 20 years old.
The Dodgers aren't alone here, though. The Mets have outfielder Carson Benge and infielder Jett Williams, the Yankees have infielder George Lombard Jr., the Red Sox have Franklin Arias, the Phillies have Aidan Miller. Heck, the Mariners could bowl Detroit over with Lazaro Montes and Colt Emerson, in an alternate universe in which Seattle would actually pay up for Skubal.
Added bonus: Pitching upside to dream on
Replacing Skubal in the short term is a must. But the biggest organizational weakness for Detroit moving forward might be their lack of organizational pitching depth. Seriously: It can be hard to find any Tigers pitching prospects to get particularly excited about, as hardly any of them even crack the team's top 10 right now. The only way it would make sense to move Skubal is if it could take a huge step toward transforming the whole system, and adding as many lottery tickets as possible would help immensely in that goal.
After all, pitching development can be a crapshoot. Skubal was a ninth-round pick out of Seattle University who struggled mightily over his first two years in the Majors, until he took off and became a two-time Cy Young winner. The best way to improve your odds is to get as many bites at the apple is possible, and that means acquiring as many interesting traits as possible. If the hope is to rebuild Skubal in the aggregate, that means coming away from a deal with not just one but multiple pitchers who can take up rotation spots for years to come.