Detroit Tigers All-Star pitcher Tarik Skubal continues to hear his name in trade rumors, specifically those linking him to the Baltimore Orioles. The degree of how interested the Tigers are in letting go of Skubal is difficult to tell exactly, but it appears to be favoring the side of Detroit ultimately keeping the Cy Young contender in the fold past Tuesday's trade deadline.
For what it's worth, Detroit reportedly sent a scout recently to watch the Orioles' affiliate Triple-A team presumably to gauge their potential targets for a possible Skubal trade.
In any case, talks between the Tigers and the Orioles involving Skubal are not dead yet.
“Sources: The Tigers and Orioles are remaining in contact on a possible Tarik Skubal trade, but there’s no deal close at this hour. Baltimore continues to look for a top-of-the-rotation arm,” posted Jon Morosi of the MLB Network on X (the social media platform formerly known as Twitter) Monday morning.
Morosi also mentioned 26-year-old outfielder Kyle Stowers, who is currently playing for Triple-A Norfolk but has seen action for 19 games in the big leagues with the Orioles this season, as an intriguing potential target by the Tigers if they are to let go of Skubal.
“Kyle Stowers, 26, is one of many names who could factor into this conversation. He started in center field yesterday for Triple-A Norfolk and has nothing left to prove in the minor leagues. He has a .797 OPS in limited action at the
@MLB level this season,” Morosi said.
Amid the rumors involving the Orioles and Skubal, Jon Heyman of the New York Post brought to light Baltimore's interest in another star pitcher in San Francisco Giants hurler Blake Snell, who just had one of the best performances by a starter this season. (Snell pitched six scoreless innings with just two hits allowed and 15 strikeouts in a 4-1 home win over the Colorado Rockies last Saturday.)
“Orioles, with new, wealthier, win-oriented owner (and great prospect stash), are aiming high and are among teams to check on Blake Snell. Crochet and Skubal (on the off chance he’s available) are also potential fits,” posted Heyman on X.
The Tarik Skubal saga continues for the Tigers, Orioles
Detroit has good reasons to say no to the temptations of letting Tarik Skubal go in exchange for good farm talent or MLB-ready assets. For one, the Tigers are looking to contend for at least a division title as soon as the 2025 MLB season. Winning the American League Central division is closer to a pipe dream than to reality for Detroit at this point as the team is 12 games behind the Cleveland Guardians, but next year could be a very different story for the Tigers.
The Orioles, on the other hand, will get a big boost if they land a pitcher of Skubal's caliber. They already are fifth in the big leagues overall with a 3.71 starters ERA and ninth with an 8.8 starters WAR, per FanGraphs.
So far in the 2024 campaign, Skubal has a 12-3 record across 21 starts. He also owns a 2.35 ERA to go along with a 2.57 FIP and a stellar 179 ERA+ through 130.0 innings.
Skubal, who will be turning 28 in November, is playing on a one-year deal he signed with the Tigers last January for $2.65 million. He has two more years of arbitration-eligibility left and can be expected to score a big contract in the offseason.
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