2025 Fantasy Baseball: Tarik Skubal Profile, Preview, Predictions
Detroit Tigers ace pitcher Tarik Skubal was one of the top fantasy baseball producers in 2024. Can he build upon that success in 2025 or will he see a downtick in efficiency?
Tarik Skubal, DET (ADP – 14.0)
Skubal missed the first three months of 2023 with his elbow recovery. He had a 4.06 ERA over his first 44.1 innings, with eight walks and 50 strikeouts. His arm reached ace status over his final six starts (4-1 with a 1.25 ERA and 52 strikeouts over 36.0 innings). On the year, Skubal had the best command (1.6 walks per nine) and strikeout rate (11.4) of his career. Even with success, he left room for growth with his value in strikeouts vs. lefties (two walks and four strikeouts over 40 at-bats).
The fans voted Tarik Skubal as the top starting pitcher heading into next season. Do you agree?#Top10RightNow - 8pm ET on MLB Network pic.twitter.com/I48O9XEYRw
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) January 14, 2025
Stardom was in Skubal’s left arm last season, leading to him winning the Cy Young Award in the American League. He led the league in wins (18), ERA (2.39), and strikeouts (228) while tossing a career-high 192.0 innings (87 more than in 2023). Skubal allowed more than three runs in five of his 31 starts. When at his best, opposing teams scored one run or less in 17 games, accounting for 14 of his wins. His arsenal played well vs. right (.204 BAA) and left (.186 BAA) batters.
His average fastball (97.0) was the best of his career. Skubal dominated with five different pitches (four-seamer – .199, changeup – .215, sinker – .208, slider – .165, and curveball – .143). He repeated his walk rate (1.6), but his strikeout rate (10.7 per nine – 30.3%) regressed slightly from 2024 (11.7 – 32.9%.
Fantasy Outlook: After battling a left elbow injury (flexor tendon surgery) in 2022 and 2023, Skubal developed into a foundation ace last year. The Tigers have control of him for two more seasons, but they must win more games to take advantage of his left arm. His jump in innings pitched could be a red flag. The Tigers have an over/under of 83.5 wins in 2025. With 32 starts, he looks poised to win 15 games with a sub-3.00 ERA and 225 strikeouts.
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With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.