The MLB offseason is underway, and Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal has found himself in several trade rumors. Whether it’s rumors linking him to the New York Mets or another team, the gossip around Skubal has been nonstop.
A move to the Mets has been the loudest rumor, considering the market and the team would be able to pay him the contract he’ll command. Moreover, an NL executive stated that the Mets make sense for Skubal.
“I think the Mets will go hard after him,” the executive told Mark Feinsand of MLB.com in an article published on November 12. “They have to make the playoffs next year.”
Nonetheless, Skubal has come out and done his best to put out all of these rumors during his November 20 appearance on “Foul Territory.”
“I think with the way social media is, it’s hard not to see things about yourself, especially when it’s talking about trades and all those hypotheticals,” Skubal said. “… It’s not going to impact the way I’m going to work out or the way I’m going to throw or prepare to get my body ready to go for another season. So it’s all out of my control. I think as a player you don’t really like it—unless you want to be traded, but that’s a whole different situation.
“But it’s not like I want to be traded. So it does make you wonder, ‘Hey, why am I in these conversations to begin with?’ It doesn’t really impact anything that I’m going to do day-to-day, and I try to just stay off of it and not look at it. That’s how I’ve handled it at the trade deadlines in years past, and it seems to work for me.”
MLB Insider Doesn’t See Tigers Trading Tarik Skubal
Moreover, Jon Heyman of the New York Post is echoing Skubal’s remarks. Heyman recently noted that he doesn’t expect the Tigers to trade their ace this offseason, even with just one year remaining on his current contract.
“A year ago, the Tigers made an offer,” Heyman said on November 19 during a live stream for Bleacher Report. “It was less than $80 million for four years. They were looking at two free-agent years at the time. I mean, that really was never going to get it done. I’m not really sure. It’s a smart front office. I’m not sure what they were intending to do there.
“Obviously, [Garrett] Crochet got double that right after, and Skubal was never going to sign anything like that anyway. I do think the Tigers will gauge the market. Do I think they’re going to trade them? Still doubtful. I wouldn’t rule it out. I would hold on to them because they are a good team.”
Does Tarik Skubal Want to Stay With the Tigers?
Skubal seems eager to remain in Detroit for the long haul. Still, it’s a two-way street, and the Tigers will need to be prepared to pay their No. 1 starter what elite pitchers earn.
His agent, Scott Boras, is expecting another offer from the Tigers, whether it comes from president of baseball operations Scott Harris or owner Christopher Ilitch.
“We talk a lot. Through the concourse of the offseason, we’ll continue to discuss,” Boras said on November 12 at the general manager meetings before Skubal won the 2025 AL Cy Young Award (h/t Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press). “Our point of view is we always listen. We’re prepared to listen to about anything that Chris or really Scott has to say. We’ll just see how it goes.”
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