The Detroit Tigers are in an interesting situation as the MLB Trade Deadline is slowly approaching, and while some would believe that Tarik Skubal could be on the table as a trade chip, that is not the case, but the Tigers will listen on another starter in Jack Flaherty, who is having a bounce back season.

“The Tigers won't trade Tarik Skubal but they'll listen on Jack Flaherty, who is having a strong season with Detroit,” Jim Bowden of The Athletic said. “Flaherty (3.22 ERA, 11.64 strikeouts per nine innings) could bring back a haul.”

Flaherty signed a one-year, $14 million contract with the Tigers in the offseason, so it makes sense for him to be a trade piece. If the Tigers are out of the picture when the trade deadline approaches, Flaherty could be attainable as a rental pitcher for a contending team. He could slot into the back end of a rotation or as a long man out of the bullpen in the playoffs.

So far this season, Flaherty has a 3-4 record with a 3.22 ERA in 12 starts, according to MLB.com. He is also sixth in MLB in strikeouts with 94, just two behind Skubal who has 96. It has been a resurgent season for Flaherty, who struggled in 2022 and 2023 in large part due to injuries. This season had put him in a position to get a better contract next offseason, especially if he makes an impact in a playoff run, whether that be for the Tigers or another team.

Tigers in limbo as trade deadline slowly approaches

The Tigers currently sit at 32-33 overall coming off of a series loss to the Milwaukee Brewers over the weekend, hoping to rebound against the Washington Nationals in a three-game series that starts this week. Currently, the Tigers are in fourth place in the American League Central, 10.5 games behind the Cleveland Guardians, six games behind the Kansas City Royals and 2.5 games behind the Minnesota Twins. The Twins are the last wild card team, and the Boston Red Sox are a half game ahead of the Tigers in the wild card standings.

The playoffs are still within reach for the Tigers, but they will need to play well over the next month and a half or so to stay in the race and avoid being sellers. That will decide what Detroit does with Flaherty. If they are within reach or in a playoff spot at all, it seems like Flaherty would stick around.

What could also play into this is that the Tigers have not been in contention in a long time. They have not made the playoffs since 2014, when they lost to the Baltimore Orioles in the ALDS, and have not finished over .500 since 2016 when they won 86 games. Detroit has brought up some young talent in recent years in an effort to try to contend. It would make sense that the organization does not sell if the team is in the conversation come the end of July.