The Detroit Tigers are being mentioned as a serious player for Tarik Skubal this offseason, but the fit comes with a big question mark: should they really go all-in for one arm when the roster still has so many cracks?
That tension has been building since a 2026 season that never settled into a smooth rhythm for Detroit. The club opened the year with World Series hopes, but the ride got rough fast, especially during a brutal five-win month in May.
Even so, the American League stayed wide open enough that the Tigers hovered around .500 and stayed in the mix for the division and the final wild card spot. In the end, though, blown saves were what buried them.
The trade deadline became a turning point. Skubal wanted the front office to buy, not sell. But after his final home start at Comerica Park, when he left in the seventh inning with a 7-1 lead and the game still turned into a loss, management chose a different path.
Detroit then moved its homegrown ace to the Los Angeles Dodgers and also sent No. 2 Casey Mize to the San Diego Padres. Since that deal, Skubal has made it clear he would love to come back to Michigan.
Now ESPN reporter Kiley McDaniel has put the Tigers in the mix again, naming them a “true contender” to sign Skubal this offseason along with the Dodgers and New York Mets. Those are heavy hitters with deep pockets, and McDaniel’s read puts Detroit right in the same conversation.
Still, the practical case against a reunion is hard to ignore. The Tigers have too many roster holes to patch before Opening Day, and the price tag on Skubal is enormous. McDaniel’s contract estimates vary depending on the length of the deal, but the smallest figure mentioned is four years and $176 million, which works out to $44 million per year.
Detroit clearly needs pitching help. At minimum, the club needs one more starter, and probably two.
Troy Melton was the only consistently strong starter this season, while Framber Valdez had his own share of meltdowns. The bullpen also needs serious attention after piling up 29 blown saves, which means two or three relievers should be added as well.
That’s the dilemma for the Tigers: they need to spend, but they can’t spend everything on one player. After the 2025 season, the front office was passive in free agency, and repeating that approach would set them up for the same kind of result in 2026. Even if Skubal somehow comes back, he can’t be the only move.
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