{"id":110228,"date":"2025-12-08T20:56:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T01:56:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=110228"},"modified":"2025-12-08T20:56:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T01:56:13","slug":"tigers-tarik-skubal-trade-landing-spots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2025\/12\/08\/tigers-tarik-skubal-trade-landing-spots\/","title":{"rendered":"MLB\u2019s Most Powerful Trade Candidate: Where Skubal Could Land"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/skubata01.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tarik Skubal<\/a> remains one of baseball\u2019s elite pitchers \u2014 a left\u2011handed ace, fresh off two dominant seasons, still under control for one more year, and a potential game\u2011changer for any contender. If the Detroit Tigers decide to trade him (for a mix of youth, control, and future upside), here are three landing spots that make sense \u2014 plus real player names\u00a0that could be involved in a trade in late 2025 \/ early 2026.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_103594\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-103594\" style=\"width: 741px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-103594\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"The Mets are early favorites to acquire Tarik Skubal if there's a trade this offseason.\" width=\"741\" height=\"494\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26595162_168400885_lowres-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 741px) 100vw, 741px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-103594\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jul 6, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal (29) throws a pitch during the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>Potential Landing Spots for Tarik Skubal If He&#8217;s Traded<\/h2>\n<h3><strong>New York Mets \u2014New Ace\u00a0in the Big\u00a0Apple<\/strong><\/h3>\n<h4 data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"698\"><strong data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"23\">Why It Makes Sense<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"698\">The Mets are operating in a win-now window and lack a true, durable No. 1 starter who can match up with the National League\u2019s elite arms. Skubal, a power lefty with two straight Cy Young Awards under his belt, immediately becomes the ace they\u2019ve been searching for. His strike-throwing, swing-and-miss profile plays perfectly at Citi Field, and his ability to dominate right-handed hitters gives New York exactly the kind of frontline presence they\u2019ve been missing since the prime Jacob deGrom years. With Skubal entering his final year of club control, the Mets have both the motivation and financial flexibility to <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2025\/11\/07\/mets-really-trade-tarik-skubal\/\" target=\"_self\">take a big swing<\/a> on an arm who can shift the balance of the National League East race.<\/p>\n<h4 data-start=\"700\" data-end=\"1153\"><strong data-start=\"700\" data-end=\"763\">Trade Package for Skubal<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p data-start=\"700\" data-end=\"1153\">\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/register\/player.fcgi?id=willia000jet&amp;utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-12-08_br\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jett Williams<\/a>, an elite up-the-middle athlete and top-tier position-player prospect who gives Detroit a potential cornerstone at shortstop or center field.<br data-start=\"927\" data-end=\"930\" \/>\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/sproabr01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-12-08_br\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Brandon Sproat<\/a>, a high-octane right-hander with mid-rotation upside and fast-track potential.<br data-start=\"1029\" data-end=\"1032\" \/>\u2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/t\/tongjo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-12-08_br\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jonah Tong<\/a>, a rising pitching prospect with strikeout stuff who could anchor the next wave of the Tigers\u2019 rotation.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1155\" data-end=\"1866\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\"><strong data-start=\"1155\" data-end=\"1174\">Why That Works<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1155\" data-end=\"1866\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">The Mets acquire a legitimate ace to front their rotation right now\u2014someone who can stabilize their pitching staff and elevate their postseason ceiling. Detroit, recognizing the value of trading Tarik Skubal at peak leverage, replenishes its system with a premium position-player prospect and two high-end arms who fit the franchise\u2019s long-term timeline. The Mets pay a steep but appropriate price for an ace entering his final year of control, while the Tigers convert one elite season of Skubal into a potential core for their next competitive window. The risk-reward calculus aligns cleanly for both sides, making it one of the rare blockbuster trades that fit each team\u2019s current trajectory.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&#8220;My job is to make this organization better, which means that I need to listen to every opportunity.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Tigers President of Baseball Operations Scott Harris joins <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/MLBTonight?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#MLBTonight<\/a> to talk Tarik Skubal and more from the <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WinterMeetings?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#WinterMeetings<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>MLB Network x <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SageUSAmerica?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@SageUSAmerica<\/a> <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Ug0LOvWJ7i\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/Ug0LOvWJ7i<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MLBNetwork\/status\/1998194886257057974?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 9, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3><strong>New York Yankees \u2014 Ace Upgrade for a Team in Win-Now Mode<\/strong><\/h3>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Why It Makes Sense<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Yankees have the payroll flexibility and a competitive window where a frontline starter could make a big difference. A strikeout\u2011heavy lefty like Skubal fits Yankee Stadium\u2019s profile well and gives them a rotation ace capable of supporting October runs.<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Trade Package for Skubal<\/strong><\/h4>\n<ul style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<li>A mid\u2011tier but MLB\u2011ready pitching prospect from the Yankees\u2019 system (for example, one of their recent draft or minor\u2011league arms).<\/li>\n<li>A younger controllable arm or position\u2011player prospect (not necessarily elite, but with upside) \u2014 think of someone from their 2025\u201326 minor\u2011league pool rather than top-tier untouchables, possibly young OF bat <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/register\/player.fcgi?id=doming002jas&amp;utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-12-08_br\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jasson Dominguez<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Why That Works<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Yankees acquire a frontline starter for now; Detroit regains controllable young talent, without the Yankees having to part with their top untouchable stars. The risk\u2011reward balance works for both sides under current roster realities and system depth constraints.<\/p>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Atlanta Braves &#8212; A Rebuilding\u2011to-Contender Franchise<\/strong><\/h3>\n<h4>Why It Makes Sense<\/h4>\n<h4 style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Braves have a deep, cost\u2011controlled farm system with several high-upside arms and position-player prospects. They are always in win-now mode, and adding a left\u2011handed ace like Skubal would give their rotation the kind of edge that could carry them deep in the playoffs.<\/h4>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Trade Package for Skubal<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/smithaj01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-12-08_br\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">AJ Smith-Shawver<\/a> \u2014 right\u2011handed pitching prospect from Atlanta\u2019s 2025 top\u201110 list.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/register\/player.fcgi?id=camini000cam&amp;utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-12-08_br\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cam Caminiti<\/a> \u2014 high-upside left\u2011handed pitching prospect, near the top of Atlanta\u2019s system<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/b\/baldwdr01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2025-12-08_br\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Drake Baldwin<\/a> \u2014 a young catcher\/position\u2011player who could eventually provide value at the big\u2011league level.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Why That Works<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Skubal gives the Braves an immediate ace to anchor the rotation; in return, Detroit (or his current team) acquires multiple controllable, high-upside pieces \u2014 two arms (righty and lefty) and a bat\/position prospect \u2014 offering both depth and future upside.<\/p>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>The Last Word<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Using actual 2025 farm\u2011system names (like Smith\u2011Shawver,\u00a0Caminiti, and Baldwin), the trade scenarios above become much more believable. Tarik Skubal\u2019s value is elite, and several contending clubs \u2014 especially those with deep, controllable systems \u2014 have both the motivation and the roster structure to consider giving up a major return to trade for him.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Main Photo Credit: \u00a9 Junfu Han \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tarik Skubal remains one of baseball\u2019s elite pitchers \u2014 a left\u2011handed ace, fresh off two dominant seasons, still under control for one more year, and a potential game\u2011changer for any contender. If the Detroit Tigers decide to trade him (for a mix of youth, control, and future upside), here are three landing spots that make [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5710,"featured_media":101763,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"695","footnotes":""},"categories":[11,21,1071,22,5,35],"tags":[6439,28709,28640,28943,2970,5905,29121,3082],"class_list":["post-110228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tigers","category-braves","category-mlb","category-mets","category-yankees","category-news","tag-aj-smith-shawver","tag-brandon-sproat","tag-cam-caminiti","tag-drake-baldwin","tag-jasson-dominguez","tag-jett-williams","tag-jonah-tong","tag-tarik-skubal"],"modified_by":"Lewis Masella, Site Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5710"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=110228"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":110491,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110228\/revisions\/110491"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}