What every Tarik Skubal trade suitor can offer Detroit that others can’t

The Detroit Tigers and Tarik Skubal are $13 million apart with their arbitration filings, with Skubal asking for $32 million and the Tigers stuck at $19 million. There could not be a clearer indicator that any hopes of a long-term union are moot. Skubal will be a free agent next winter, free to demand a historic nine-figure deal from all of MLB’s richest teams. Detroit will get punked.

Rather than letting Skubal leave for nothing, it would behoove Detroit to explore the trade market. Even a year of Skubal should be enough to wrench multiple top prospects away from a contender. The Tigers’ World Series odds will take a hit, sure, but it should set them up far more sustainably for the future.

What is Detroit’s asking price for Skubal?

Jim Bowden of The Athletic reports that Detroit’s asking price is so high that, “it is unlikely a trade happens unless Detroit lowers its sights significantly.”

With rumors of a $250 million gap between Skubal’s extension demands and what the Tigers are willing to offer, however, something has to give. Detroit can justify running it back for one final postseason push, but frankly, the Tigers are just not positioned well enough to ignore the downside of keeping Skubal as a lame duck.

We’ve seen similar circumstances with uber-talented, soon-to-be free agents in the recent past. Kyle Tucker cost the Cubs a top prospect and an All-Star third baseman. The Yankees cleaned out their farm system for a year of Juan Soto. Sure, teams will have their limits with Skubal’s departure imminent, but Detroit can expect a hearty return. They just need to be realistic about the situation at hand.

As such, let’s dive into realistic suitors — and an advantage each suitor can wield to tempt the Tigers into a deal.

New York Mets

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Mets’ advantage: Skill and versatility

The New York Mets’ farm system remains one of the strongest in the National League, even after the Freddy Peralta trade. While New York seems far less inclined to hand over the necessary assets for Skubal after acquiring Peralta, Steve Cohen is an ambitious man and there’s nothing to prevent the Mets from entertaining new contracts for both star pitchers in 2027.

Jonah Tong offers Detroit a potential day-one replacement in the rotation, but most teams can entice Detroit with young arms. That becomes a game of preference. What separates the Mets’ farm system is the breadth of skill and discipline. New York’s pipeline is rife with hitters who just understand the fundamentals of the game — smart swing decisions, smart on the bases, and versatile on the field.

Brett Baty can start at third base for Detroit or keep learning the corner outfield ropes. He finished this past season with 18 homers and a .748 OPS. Carson Benge, Jacob Reimer and A.J. Ewing are all Double-A or higher, and while their power tools need fine-tuning, each of them can work deep into counts and produce a high rate of healthy contact. Each of them can also slide between multiple positions, infield and outfield. That should appeal to a Tigers team whose success is rooted in fundamentals and optionality.

New York Yankees

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Yankees’ advantage: Big boppers

The New York Yankees are well-equipped to put forth a competitive offer, even if Detroit seems reluctant to accept their terms. We know the Yankees can get aggressive when the moment demands it, as seen with the Soto trade and their subsequent efforts to re-sign him. Skubal will cost a lot next winter, but he won’t cost $765 million.

The Yankees have a couple MLB arms in Luis Gil and Will Warren, plus a few pitching prospects in Elmer Rodríguez, Carlos Lagrange and Chase Hampton, who could all appeal to Detroit as imminent successors to Skubal’s innings on the mound. What really separates the Yankees, however, is the high-upside nature of their offensive prospects.

Jasson Domínguez has spent a few years toiling on the MLB roster without an everyday role, to generally negative reviews. But it’s easy to forget that he’s 22, and Domínguez still generates the sort of exit velocity and raw pop a team in Detroit’s position should covet. Then there’s Spencer Jones, who put up 35 home runs and 29 stolen bases across Double-A and Triple-A last season. He’s a legitimate centerfielder (for now), and while the strikeout rate is alarming, Jones’ raw potential is undeniable. George Lombard is a jack of all trades and still New York’s top prospect, with impressive speed and defensive versatility on top of a rapidly developing hit tool.

Chicago Cubs

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Cubs’ advantage: Surplus of MLB-ready talent

All five players listed above could be on the Tigers’ 26-man roster next season. If not at the beginning, then as midseason call-ups. The Chicago Cubs would be trading from a surplus, essentially. The Edward Cabrera trade cut into the Cubs’ depth a little bit, but with all nine positions filled on the MLB roster, Chicago does not have a ton of clear avenues for its top hitting prospects.

Kevin Alcántara is especially appealing as a toolsy centerfielder with elite speed and power. He’s blocked by Pete Crow-Armstrong at his most valuable position — with Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki both staples in the corners, at least short term. The Cubs simply cannot clear the runway for Alcántara.

Matt Shaw, Chicago’s former No. 1 prospect, came on strong late in the season, but the Alex Bregman signing bumps him off of third base. Unless the Cubs line up a deal for Nico Hoerner in the next couple weeks, Shaw will probably spend his age-25 season as a utilityman off the bench. Not exactly a role worthy of his talent. Detroit needs a starting third baseman.

Jaxon Wiggins has immaculate stuff on the mound. Brandon Birdsell exhibits elite command, with a deceptive release. Moisés Ballesteros posted an .868 OPS over his first 57 MLB at-bats, but Cason Kelly blocks him at catcher and Michael Busch blocks him at first base. Is Chicago prepared to relegate him to DH at age 22? All this shapes up in favor of a blockbuster with Detroit.

Baltimore Orioles

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Orioles’ advantage: Position surplus

Not unlike the Cubs, the Baltimore Orioles are at a crossroads with a lot of talented young players right now. While Baltimore lacks the pitching talent to offer Detroit an immediate Skubal replacement, their breadth of quality young bats is unparalleled. If the Tigers want to upgrade their lineup in the most profound of ways, Baltimore is probably their best trade partner — and that’s without even putting Jackson Holliday or Samuel Basallo on the table.

Dylan Beavers posted a .775 OPS across his first 35 MLB games last season. Coby Mayo is a major power source at the corner infield spots, but his path is blocked after the Pete Alonso signing. Heston Kjerstad posted a .746 OPS with six home runs across his first 52 MLB games in 2023 and 2024, but a bumpy 2025 has left him in the lurch, especially with Taylor Ward taking over left field.

The Tigers have the potential to amass a lot of plug-and-play bats in a trade with Baltimore, all primed for breakouts in a new city. Factor in talented longer-term projects like Ike Irish, Baltimore’s 2025 first-round pick, and Detroit can choose its path. The O’s cannot help the Tigers with support on the mound, but if Detroit sees other avenues, internal or external, to replace Skubal, the O’s start to hold major appeal as a trade partner.

Boston Red Sox

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Red Sox’ advantage: Premium pitching

The Boston Red Sox have put an emphasis on run prevention this offseason, which has meant a significant investment in the pitching staff. Trades for Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo, as well as the signing of Ranger Suárez, leave Boston with the deepest rotation in the American League. To the point that it blocks the immediate pathway for Connelly Early, Payton Tolle and several quality arms coming up through the pipeline.

If Detroit’s top priority with a Skubal trade is to expand its pitching staff, Boston feels like the best trade partner. It’s fair to wonder if the Red Sox even want to entertain Skubal at this point, but few run prevention measures would be more successful than hammering opponents with Garrett Crochet, Skubal, Gray and Suárez in October.

Early put up a 2.33 ERA in four MLB starts last season and feels like he could be Detroit’s Opening Day starter, if needed. Tolle is probably a bit further away, but his fastball is nasty and he operates with a fiery passion. He’s not far off from regular MLB appearances either. Brayan Bello finally hit his stride in 2025 and already has ample big-league experience under his belt. The flamethrowing righty put up a 3.35 ERA in 29 appearances (28 starts) for Boston last season.

The Red Sox aren’t without quality bats to offer up either. Kristian Campbell might be the odd man out of Boston’s prospect ‘big three’ with Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer. Franklin Arias, their No. 1 prospect currently, is a well-rounded contributor at a premium infield position. Boston has already poured so many resources into its rotation, but Skubal is well within their grasp if Craig Breslow wants to go big.

Los Angeles Dodgers

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Name	Position	Age
Josue De Paula	OF	20
Zhyir Hope	OF	21
Emmet Sheehan	RHP	26
Dalton Rushing	C	24
Alex Freeland	SS/3B	24

Dodgers’ advantage: Deepest farm system

Several outlets consider the Los Angeles Dodgers’ farm system the class of MLB, which is just another feather in that organization’s ever-expanding cap. There’s no end in sight to L.A.’s dominance, and we know that front office is willing to put up the money for star talent. Even if the Dodgers refuse to move off of Tyler Glasnow, refuse to dangle Rōki Sasaki, other teams will have trouble keeping up in a bidding war.

L.A.’s top two prospects, outfielders Josue De Paula and Zhyir Hope, should both crack the Majors within the next couple years. De Paula might be the most complete hitter in his age bracket. Hope packs major power from the left side and operates with a higher swing IQ than most 21-year-olds with his toolkit.

The Dodgers also called up former top prospect Dalton Rushing last season, but he’s a catcher stuck behind Will Smith for the foreseeable future. Detroit has a quality backstop of its own in Dillon Dingler, but there will just naturally be more opportunities to hit in Detroit — whether it’s the occasional move to first base, a trial run in the outfield, or some DH reps. Alex Freeland also made a quiet MLB debut in 2025, but his sound plate approach and defensive value at a premium position ought to appeal to Detroit, where he can start at shortstop or third base from day one.

Let’s assume that L.A. keeps Rōki Sasaki off-limits after his brilliant postseason in the closer role. The Dodgers still have 26-year-old Emmet Sheehan, who posted a 2.82 ERA in 15 starts. He could end up as Detroit’s top arm by this time next year. Rerouting Glasnow to a third team isn’t out of the equation either, and L.A. has more intriguing arms populating the farm system. It really is unfair.