If the Detroit Tigers do trade Tarik Skubal, it will be on their terms. The front office does not care about the optics of an arbitration staredown, however poor they may look. Skubal is a two-time AL Cy Young winner and, arguably, the best starting pitcher in baseball. If he were to reach the open market, the bidding would start at $400 million, assuming MLB hasn't instituted a salary cap by then.
With that in mind, Skubal is likely to hit free agency no matter what. That makes trading for him intimidating, but he's not the first rental of his caliber to hit the block. The New York Yankees have been here before, which makes them an intriguing trade fit should their rotation become the immediate need most the media believes it to be.
Would the New York Yankees consider trading for Tarik Skubal?
The Yankees rotation is among the best in the American League when healthy, but it's also made up of oft-injured players who could go down at any moment. Heck, even Gerrit Cole, arguably the ace of this staff, won't pitch until midseason at best. Carlos Rodon and Max Fried have an extensive history on the injury list. The same can be said of the recently-acquired Ryan Weathers, who had a stint on the 60-day injured list just last season with a lat strain. Are you sensing a theme?
Starting pitcher | 2025 ERA |
|---|---|
Gerrit Cole | -- |
Max Fried | 2.86 |
Carlos Rodon | 3.09 |
Ryan Weathers | 3.99 |
Cam Schlitter | 2.96 |
On the surface, that looks just fine. The Yankees pitching staff also features players like Luis Gil and Will Warren, who should get turns over the course of a 162-game season as well.
All winter long, Yankees pundits have signaled that this team needed more pitching depth. They got just that when acquiring Weathers, but this staff is held together by tape. It's why Skubal's name will be linked to the Yankees until he's sent elsewhere.
Yankees have been here before with Juan Soto
In December of 2023, the Yankees traded for then-Padres outfielder Juan Soto. The need was greater, as New York's lineup was lacking far more than their current pitching staff. But Soto was on a contract year and carried a similar risk, which ultimately came back to bite the Yankees when he signed a record-breaking deal with the New York Mets.
So, would the Yankees take on an expensive rental once again? While losing Soto was painful, the Yankees did win the pennant in 2024, and could've been a real threat to the Dodgers and Blue Jays last season had he re-signed. With Skubal in tow, even for a year, the Yankees would be a formidable foe to any contender, especially in the wide-open American League. But the cost has to be worth the potential gain, and starting pitching is at a premium in this trade market. For reference, here is what the Yankees traded for Soto a couple of years ago.
The Padres also received catcher Kyle Higashioka in this trade.
The reason this Soto trade is brought up once again is because his considerable cost is similar to what the Tigers would want in return for Skubal. Of course, they would likely not be throwing in a player like Grisham to sweeten the pot, but you get the point. Detroit wants MLB-ready depth, essentially trading Skubal for the sum of his parts. Here's what that might look like.
What would a Yankees trade for Tarik Skubal look like?
Mock trades always made me some enemies, but I'll do my best. I will point out that, again, this trade scenario is merely based on what the Yankees paid for Soto. It is not necessarily what they would dangle for Skubal if given the opportunity.
In return for Soto, the Yankees traded one proven MLB pitcher (King), a top-100 pitching prospect (Thorpe) and two mid-tier prospects/young players. While the latest MLB Pipeline team rankings have yet to be released, Arias and Rodriguez project to land somewhere in the mid-teens to early-twenties. That's not a bad return.
But the issue in trading Skubal is that no return feels like enough. Sure, Gil won the AL Rookie of the Year in 2024, but he also had an expected ERA just shy of five after his return from a lat injury last season. Which version of Gil would the Tigers be acquiring? Rodriguez is 22 and pitching in Double-A. He has electric stuff, and would undoubtedly serve as a centerpiece of this deal. Arias and Rodriguez, while talented, are lottery tickets at this point in their careers. Arias plays shortstop, while Rodriguez is an outfielder.
Would the Yankees make this trade?
It depends how much the Yankees value Gil. Assuming they understand his value has diminished – and that they'd be acquiring a year of rights for the best pitcher in baseball – I would guess they'd be willing to let him go. The real question is are the Yankees and Brian Cashman willing to deal Elmer Rodriguez, who projects to be at worst a middle-of-the-rotation starting pitcher down the road. Even if that doesn't come in New York, Cashman could choose to hold onto Rodriguez and trade him for an MLB-ready starter with some contractual control, rather than Skubal, who is sure to enter free agency.
Verdict: Yes, but barely
Would the Tigers make this trade?
The Tigers are said to have an outrageous asking price for Skubal. It wouldn't shock me if that asking price is even higher than what the Yankees paid for Soto. Thus, I don't believe Detroit would make this trade, even if they should. What Scott Harris and the Tigers front office doesn't realize is that they will not receive fair value for Skubal. If they wanted to achieve that goal, then they should've dealt Skubal last July, when he had two postseasons left to give an acquiring team. Now, given the arbitration battle and spring training rapidly approaching, expect the Tigers to hold onto Skubal until the deadline.