The Los Angeles Dodgers have been tied to Tarik Skubal for a while, and the chatter only picked up as the trade deadline drew closer. But for all the noise surrounding the Detroit Tigers ace, the Dodgers may not actually be in the mix.
According to MLB insider Jon Heyman of The New York Post, Los Angeles is reportedly "not in" on the Skubal sweepstakes.
"Either way, Skubal needs to go. The real question is where.
The stacked Dodgers, for now at least, are believed 'not in.' And baseball breathes a hopeful Cy of relief over that," Heyman wrote.
That would mark a notable departure from the way the Dodgers have chased big names in recent seasons. At the same time, the club has generally preferred to build out its roster in the winter rather than make a major splash at the deadline.
There’s also a straightforward baseball reason this might not be a fit right now: the Dodgers already have a loaded rotation. Even with several key starters missing time because of injuries, they’ve still managed to dominate on the mound this season.
Help is on the way, too. Tyler Glasnow is expected back, and Blake Snell should eventually return from the injured list after dealing with an elbow issue. Both would be major boosts to the staff.
With Snell and Glasnow joining Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Justin Wrobleski and others, the Dodgers would once again look stacked for October. That kind of depth could make a Skubal pursuit unnecessary, even with the left-hander standing among the best pitchers in baseball and coming off two straight American League Cy Young awards.
The Tigers, meanwhile, are not shaping up like the playoff team many expected a year ago, which has fueled speculation that Skubal could be dealt rather than risk Detroit losing him in free agency this offseason.
Still, trade talks can change fast. The Dodgers could always revisit the idea.
For now, though, the front office appears more focused on getting stars back healthy than paying premium prices to add another one.
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