MLB insider puts nail in coffin of the biggest trade Tigers could make

The MLB trade deadline is such an interesting time in sports because nobody really knows what's going to happen. Not even the players and executives have a clear idea of the trades that can and will be made until they're finalized, and the players are jumping on planes to move across the country.

With that in mind, it makes sense how the rumors emerged that the Detroit Tigers would be dangling their ace, Tarik Skubal, as a potential trade piece before the deadline.

I mean, Skubal has been incredible. He would easily net one of, if not the biggest prospect return that we will see this year. There may not be a better pitcher in the game of baseball at the moment, so given the fact that he still has 2.5 years of team control left, Detroit would be able to net a huge return for him.

But it makes absolutely no sense to lose a player of his caliber with that much team control left.

MLB insider pours cold water on the idea of a Tarik Skubal trade

MLB insider Jeff Passan was asked on X/Twitter to speak on the true dominance of Tarik Skubal this year. Here's what he has to say:

"OK. Tarik Skubal has been the best pitcher in baseball this season. He’s the favorite to win the AL Cy Young — which I picked him to do before the season. Any talk about him being traded is silly. And if he’s available, he should absolutely start the All-Star Game for the AL," Passan posted to X/Twitter Thursday morning.

Passan is exactly right and the fact that the rumors were ever even started is ridiculous to begin with. Detroit will be looking to compete with Skubal on the roster, even tying to extend him long-term over the next few seasons.

Skubal, 27, has posted a 2.37 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP across 110 dominant innings in 2024. The southpaw's Baseball Savant chart continues to prove his dominance, with Skubal ranking among the top 10 percent in the league in xERA, fastball velocity, whiff percentage, strikeout percentage, walk percentage and hard hit percentage. No, that's not a typo.

To explain that kind of production without the fancy analytics, Skubal throws hard, misses bats, doesn't walk people and doesn't give up hard hits while striking out 30 percent of the hitters he faces.

And there were rumors that the Tigers would trade this guy?