Did Tarik Skubal Make his Final Start as a Tiger?
By William Gilhooly
Sportz Nation - 7/30/2026
Tarik Skubal has been steadfast in his desire to remain with the Detroit Tigers ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
"I think we have a chance to win a World Series," Skubal said last Thursday. "I've said that since spring training. That's never changed. That belief in this team has never changed throughout the season."
"Going into spring training, the whole offseason, I've never been more motivated to try to win a World Series for this city, the team that drafted me in 2018 and helped develop me. That's always been the goal, and that will never change unless I'm told I'm on a different team."
Following surgery on his left elbow to remove a loose body, an injury that sidelined him for roughly five weeks, Skubal has returned in dominant form. Since coming back, he has posted a 2.87 ERA while striking out 71 batters over 53 1/3 innings. Despite missing significant time, he still ranks among the American League leaders with 116 strikeouts in 96 innings.
Skubal appeared to be cruising through six innings Wednesday against the Baltimore Orioles, allowing just two hits while striking out six. But the outing unraveled in the seventh, when Baltimore scored five runs. Three of those runs were charged to Skubal as the Orioles rallied for a 10-9 victory.
Despite the back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner's desire to remain in Detroit, there is a very real chance he has made his final start in a Tigers uniform.
Detroit came out of the All-Star break on a high note, winning six of its first eight games to pull within five games of first place in the AL Central and 3 1/2 games of the final AL wild-card spot. The Tigers built on a 15-11 June and a 14-9 July, reminding many why they entered the season as one of the preseason favorites to win the American League pennant.
For a time, it appeared the odds of Detroit trading Skubal were shrinking by the day.
However, a 1-4 stretch — including a split with the last-place Kansas City Royals and a series loss to another potential seller in Baltimore — has caused many around baseball to reconsider whether Detroit could become a seller before the deadline.
The Tigers now sit six games out of first place in the division and 4 1/2 games behind the final wild-card spot. According to Baseball Reference, they have a 13.2% chance of reaching the postseason.
Ken Rosenthal from The Athletic has reported that several teams planned to contact Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris following Detroit's recent skid. Among the clubs expected to inquire about Skubal are the Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays.
The impact of a potential trade would be enormous, with some executives comparing it to Randy Johnson's move to the Houston Astros in 1998 or CC Sabathia's trade to the Brewers in 2008.
While moving Skubal would signal that Detroit is prioritizing its future, it would not necessarily mean the Tigers are giving up on 2026. A return featuring controllable major league talent or prospects ready to contribute immediately could strengthen a pitching staff that has struggled with depth while still allowing Detroit to remain competitive in a relatively weak American League.
The recent promotion of top prospect Max Clark, the organization's No. 1 prospect and the No. 13 prospect in baseball, also provides hope that the Tigers' lineup could receive an immediate boost down the stretch.
Wednesday's outing also marked another milestone for Skubal, who recorded the 1,000th strikeout of his Tigers career.
If it was indeed his final appearance in a Detroit uniform, it was a fitting one. For years, Skubal has carried the weight of the franchise, emerging as one of baseball's premier pitchers while giving the Tigers a chance to win nearly every time he has taken the mound.
Few pitchers possess both the physical ability and competitive drive to shoulder that kind of responsibility.
If Skubal is dealt to a contender with a deeper pitching staff, it would be fascinating to see how much more dominant he could become with a lighter workload. But that's never been his focus.
Instead, he's staying in the moment.
For now, Tarik Skubal is still a Detroit Tiger.
"I don't even want to speculate, to be honest," Skubal said when asked whether he would be disappointed if Wednesday's outing turned out to be his last start in Detroit. "I try to live where I'm at right now. Right now, I'm a Detroit Tiger. I don't really want to speculate a ton on what's happening or what the future holds, because I don't know."
-William Gilhooly
Comments