The Boston Red Sox and other contenders could have an opportunity to make a monumental splash this winter.
The Detroit Tigers remain “engaged” with teams on trade talks for Tarik Skubal, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney. However, the insider noted that the Tigers have an “enormous” asking price for the back-to-back American League Cy Young Award winner.
“He could be the biggest difference-maker for a new team in ’26, and Detroit would have to get significant value in return to do this,” Olney wrote. “The Tigers can end the conversation at any point by announcing they’re keeping him.”
Detroit would understandably want a huge package for Skubal, who finished the 2025 season with a 2.21 ERA and 241 strikeouts in 195 1/3 innings. The southpaw went 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA in 2024.
It’s not every day a team entertains the possibility of trading such a dominant superstar, but Skubal has one more year under team control before he can seek a massive payday. His agent, Scott Boras, has a reputation for taking star players to free agency rather than locking down an extension.
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The Tigers could shop the 29-year-old before he can walk, but that contract situation may deter teams from meeting their demands. Then again, a Skubal blockbuster could reshape MLB’s power structure in 2026.
A year after acquiring Garrett Crochet, the Red Sox have stood out as a potential fit for Skubal. Those odds might have decreased after they landed Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo, but it’d certainly be tempting to form MLB’s scariest one-two rotation punch.
