Extending Superstar Ace Must Be Top Offseason Priority for Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are onto the offseason after a second half run to the postseason that was one of the most unlikely in the history of baseball.
Trailing by 9.5 games at the beginning of the final week of August, Detroit went on an epic run and even defeated the Houston Astros in the Wild Card round two games to none. The biggest reason for the Tigers' success down the stretch, and really over the full season, was superstar ace Tarik Skubal. Establshing himself as arguably the best pitcher on the planet in 2024, Skubal was virtually unhittable, and if he took the mound, there was a great chance Detroit was going to win the ball game.
Skubal is all but guaranteed to be named the American League Cy Young after a season in which he posted an 18-4 record, a 2.39 ERA, and a staggering career-high 228 strikeouts over 192 innings in 31 starts. He is under team control currently for at least the next two seasons via arbitration, but the Tigers absolutely must get a long-term deal done with him before he hits free agency two years from now. If he does indeed hit the open market, there is virtually zero chance the team would retain him if he keeps up the level of play he is currently on. Zach Pressnell of FanSided says that getting a long-term deal done with Skubal now must be the top priority for Detroit this winter.
"They would have to cough up quite a bit of money to get the deal done," Pressnell wrote. "But if they don't they are basically allowing him to leave in free agency at the end of the 2026 season because there's no way that the Tigers could outbid teams like the Dodgers and Yankees if Skubal ever hits the open market."
The undeniable of reality in Major League Baseball is that when the best players in the league go to free agency, they usually sign with whoever the highest bidder is, and unfortunately for Detroit, they simply can't afford to be the highest bidder for the best pitcher in baseball. The Tigers have the advantage now in that Skubal is already under team control and they aren't competing against any offers other than their own if they want to lock him up.
Detroit would be extremely wise to simply give Skubal whatever he wants now, because it's almost certainly still going to be less than what the big market teams are going to be offering two years from now. If the 27-year-old ace continues to improve even further, the contract numbers could become mind-blowing.
