Jorge Castillo of ESPN reported that a trade for Detroit Tigers starting pitcher and two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal “is likely.” That comes on the heels of Scott Harris telling MLB Network that “I don’t believe in untouchable players at any level,” (h/t ESPN).
Skubal is entering the final year of his contract and the Tigers organization may be more inclined to trade him at the peak of his value rather than watching him walk away next offseason and receiving nothing in return.
That report opens up an opportunity for teams in need of starting pitching to make a blockbuster deal that could set them up as playoff and World Series contenders for the foreseeable future.
No team needs one of those deals more than the New York Mets, who traded Brandon Nimmo and allowed star first baseman Pete Alonso and closer Edwin Diaz to sign elsewhere within a 48-hour span this week. Relentless frustration from fans and media alike have defined the organization’s offseason to this point, with owner Steve Cohen and president of baseball operations, David Stearns, facing severe backlash.
A trade for a player like Skubal, who is arguably the best pitcher in baseball right now, would calm some of the dissatisfaction and set the Mets up at a position of need.
As it stands now, the Mets would enter the 2026 season with David Peterson, Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong, Brandon Sproat, Sean Manaea, and Clay Holmes as their starting rotation.
While McLean, Tong, and Sproat have shown flashes of brilliance in the minors and in their limited major league outings, they are still largely unproven entities as starters. Manaea settled in at times but injuries prevented him from ever achieving the success he had in 2024 and Clay Holmes exceeded expectations in his first season as a starter, but one could argue he would be better served as a set-up reliever, a role he knows well.
Skubal would provide the Mets stability at the front end of the rotation and the team has plenty of young players and prospects to send to Detroit in return, without hurting its future, thanks to its solid drafting and development. Tong, loved by several teams, is one such player.
Stearns has thus far proven hesitant to spend on big money, lengthy contracts but Skubal, at 29, is in the prime of his career and coming off an award-winning season in which he finished 13-6 with a 2.21 ERA and 241 strikeouts. He is the definition of the type of player you trade for now, get the most you can from him for the next three-to-five years, and compete for championships.
The Mets have other needs, particularly in the outfield and, suddenly, at first base, but getting the starting pitching situation in order will go a long way in allowing a team that is still star-studded to realize their potential and bring a championship back to Queens for the first time in 40 years.