The Dodgers have pushed themselves into a corner faster than anyone expected, and that makes Detroit’s side of the Tarik Skubal trade look awfully good right now.
In Game 2 of the NLCS, Los Angeles failed to cash in on a stream of Brewers mistakes and miscues, then lost 7-4 to fall behind 2-0 in the series. Milwaukee, the most fundamentally sound team in baseball, handed the Dodgers openings. The Dodgers never took them.
The bigger problem is still staring them in the face: the offense. Shohei Ohtani looks like a broken man, and the clutch hits just aren’t there. Even with four runs on the board, LA managed only three actual hits over nine innings.
That puts a sharp spotlight on the price the Dodgers paid at the deadline. They brought in Skubal for three months with one goal in mind - another championship run - and they have already gotten 2 2/3 innings from Yoshinobu Yamamoto in one game and five innings from Skubal in another.
Skubal was chased in Game 1 after five innings, while Yamamoto was removed after throwing 75 pitches and allowing three runs. Against Milwaukee, one of the best postseason pitchers of all time couldn’t survive the Brewers’ plan.
Logan Henderson, the pitcher Milwaukee was not willing to send to Detroit in trade talks, outdueled Yamamoto. That matters because the Brewers were in the Skubal mix too, but backed away when the cost got too steep.
They caught heat for playing it safe. Now they’re in a position to ask whether that caution might have preserved their season.
There’s a strange kind of satisfaction in all of this for Tigers fans. If the Dodgers don’t complete the three-peat, Detroit can almost claim a win from the deal.
Maybe the prospects in the trade never amount to much. Maybe the Tigers never know whether keeping Skubal would have changed their own path.
But the Dodgers made the move to chase another title, and right now it’s the Brewers who are winning without him.
And with Los Angeles down 2-0, there may not even be a Game 5 for Skubal to rescue. The Dodgers could end up having gone all in for nothing.
For a franchise with a loaded prospect pipeline, that may not sting the same way it would for others. But from Detroit’s perspective, it still looks like a victory.
In Other News...
AJ Hinch Is Reshaping The Tigers In A Way Fans Will Notice
AJ Hinchs offseason imprint on the Tigers is starting to show in the sort of places fans notice once spring rolls around. The coaching staff has already been reshaped, with the club moving on from first base coach Anthony Sanders and assistant pitching coach Juan Nieves as part of a broader overhaul under the manager, a sign that Hinch is not treating this as a light touch-up but as a real reset around the edges of the dugout.
The changes come as Detroit also keeps an eye on the pipeline, where minor leaguers in the Arizona Fall League are getting early looks and the organizations long-term picture is still taking shape. Outfield prospect Zyhir Hope has opened with a promising start there, while trade chatter around Tarik Skubal at the deadline showed how much interest the Tigers can draw when other clubs start calling, even if the bigger deal never quite came together. [Read more 🡒]
Tigers Fans Just Got Another Reminder Why Zyhir Hope Matters
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Hope has already started to separate himself in the AFL, where he is producing at a steady clip and showing the kind of bat that has made him such an intriguing part of the system. Through five games, he has five RBIs and an .873 OPS, a strong opening stretch that keeps his momentum rolling as the Tigers monitor his development closely. [Read more 🡒]
Tigers Face A Big Max Clark Decision Before His Price Climbs
The Tigers have spent the past couple of years building around a young core, with Riley Greene, Dillon Dingler, Spencer Torkelson and Hao-Yu Lee all part of the conversation as the organization pushes toward a longer competitive window. Kevin McGonigle already has his eight-year deal, and that has naturally sharpened the focus on the next wave of players who could be locked in before their price tags rise.
Max Clark is now right in that discussion, especially after his first season offered the kind of all-around promise teams dream on from a premium young player. Detroit has every reason to think about a long-term extension sooner rather than later, and the question is how aggressive the front office wants to be while Clark is still early in his major league story. [Read more 🡒]