Through no fault of his own, Tarik Skubal has become the center of discussion around Major League Baseball.
Skubal spent his entire career with the Detroit Tigers and, over the last four seasons, has turned himself into one of the best pitchers in baseball. Thanks to the Collective Bargaining Agreement and its handling of a player’s first six seasons, he’s been paid well below market salaries for a pitcher of his caliber. But Skubal’s ready to reach free agency after this season, providing his first opportunity to finally cash in on his hard work and success.
Despite the Tigers’ playoff appearance in 2025 and their willingness to spend to try and reach the postseason in 2026, a series of bad breaks, injuries, underperformance, and poor bullpen performance put them well under .500 heading into July. Given the higher prices teams are willing to pay for talent midseason, and the middling return organizations receive if a player leaves in free agency, the Tigers faced a choice. Keep Skubal, hope their season turns around, and potentially watch him leave for just a draft pick this winter, or trade him to a contender for top prospects, years of control, and the certainty that you haven’t let your star leave for nothing.
DODGERS REPORTEDLY ACQUIRE ACE TARIK SKUBAL FROM TIGERS IN TRADE THAT STIRS UP MLB WORLD
Tarik Skubal #29 of the Detroit Tigers celebrates as he leaves the field in the fifth inning during Game 2 of the Division Series presented by Booking.com between the Detroit Tigers and the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field on Monday, October 7, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Lauren Leigh Bacho/MLB Photos via Getty Images) (Lauren Leigh Bacho/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
They traded him. Makes sense, right? Sure, if they’d picked a different team.
But because Detroit chose the offer from the Los Angeles Dodgers, Skubal has unwittingly become a villain around the league. Even worse, he echoed the position shared by players across baseball, like Bryce Harper and Manny Machado, that the Dodgers are not bad for the sport because their owners are willing to accept lower profits in exchange for winning more games.
Many have assumed that the trade means Skubal will spend the rest of his career in Los Angeles. A complete misunderstanding of how midseason trades for free agent rentals work, and an inaccurate assumption that the Dodgers automatically keep every player they trade for.
Well, maybe they’ll be happier hearing what Skubal had to say about his upcoming free agency and leaving the only team he’s ever known.
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“I would love to play my whole career in Detroit. I would love to,” Skubal explained in an interview with Pardon My Take. “And hopefully those negotiations can pick back up in November once the playoffs are done. We’ll see where that goes. Hopefully they’re involved with everything. I would love to return.”
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Tarik Skubal celebrates as he walks back to the dugout during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Melissa Tamez)
Skubal also said that his departure was emotional, even as someone who doesn’t get emotional easily.
“You start saying goodbye to teammates…a lot of those guys are my best friends,” he added. “It’s a bunch of men, and I’m crying. I hate crying. I don’t cry a lot.”
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He too felt that the Tigers had a legitimate chance at winning a championship after signing Framber Valdez, Kenley Jansen and bringing back Jack Flaherty and Justin Verlander, among others.
“This wasn’t the way the season was supposed to go. Going into the offseason, [with] the people that we acquired through free agency and who we signed, I’m like, ‘This is the World Series team,’” Skubal said. “This is the team that I’m gonna go and win a World Series and beat anybody. It doesn’t matter what’s going on.”
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So even after making his first start with his new team, and incorporating the fact that he was traded away, Skubal wants to return to Detroit. Guess everyone can put down their pitchforks now, right?
Well, no, of course not, because that’s not how fans think or operate. But Skubal is correct about what this trade actually means and how the open free agency market works.
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tarik Skubal sits on the bench during the eighth inning of an MLB game against the Boston Red Sox at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. (Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
The Dodgers could approach Skubal and his agent, Scott Boras, with an extension offer for the remainder of the regular season. They also have a five-day exclusive negotiating window the day after the World Series ends, before free agency starts. But for a player like Skubal, who’s expected to get between $300-400 million, reaching the open market carries immense value. More teams bidding increases prices, after all. Especially with big market teams like the Mets or Giants desperate for pitching and capable of making big salary commitments.
So while it’s possible he signs with LA, it’s unlikely. But the point is that, should Tigers ownership decide they’re willing to spend in to bring him back, there’s a near certainty they’ll have the opportunity. That’s how free agency works. And it’s why the wailing and gnashing of teeth over this trade was always an exaggerated overreaction.
The Dodgers traded for Yu Darvish in 2017, and let him leave. They traded for Manny Machado in 2018, and saw him sign with San Diego. They traded for Trea Turner and Max Scherzer in 2021, only for Scherzer to leave after that season, while Turner went to Philadelphia in free agency in 2022. They traded for Jack Flaherty in 2024, and he signed with the…Detroit Tigers after winning a World Series in LA.
In fact, outside Tommy Edman, they’ve never re-signed a player brought in via midseason trade. And Edman is hardly the type of superstar player fans associate with the Dodgers.
Skubal knows that Boras is known for taking advantage of the open market. He knows there’s every possibility that he’s simply a rental for LA in hopes of a three-peat. And by the way, even after the trade, the Tigers are one of the hottest teams in baseball.
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They’ve won seven of their last 10 games, have passed several teams and are now just two games back of the third wild-card spot in the American League, and three and a half out of first place in the division. They’re tied for the best run differential in the AL at +85, and just got top prospect Jackson Jobe back from Tommy John. Imagine if they make a run to the playoffs, bring in Zyhir Hope and River Ryan, and sign Skubal back anyway. Well, none of that would matter because the Dodgers would still have “ruined baseball” regardless.