The Detroit Tigers have emerged as one of baseball’s top teams, heading into Monday with a 43-24 record and holding a seven-game advantage over the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central. While several factors have contributed to their success following last year’s playoff run, the most significant may be Tarik Skubal’s rise into a legitimate ace.
Skubal, last season’s American League Cy Young Award winner, is making a strong case to win it again this year with a 6-2 record and a 2.16 ERA over 83.1 innings.
However, his contract situation is becoming a concern, as he’s scheduled to hit free agency after the 2026 season. Securing a contract extension for the left-hander should be a key priority for Detroit, and general manager Jeff Greenberg acknowledged that during a recent MLB Network Radio interview.
“Obviously he’s an elite talent with an elite competitive edge,” Greenberg said. “He’s always working to improve… As for a possible extension, [Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris] and I have discussed it since we arrived. One of our core goals is to acquire, develop, and retain top-tier talent. Those conversations will remain private.”
Extending Tarik Skubal Should Be Tigers Top Priority Going Forward
Although Greenberg didn’t provide details about contract talks with Tarik Skubal, he did emphasize that the Tigers are interested in keeping him long-term — a wise move considering how dominant Skubal has been since returning from flexor tendon surgery in 2023.
Over the past three seasons, among starters with at least 20 starts, the 28-year-old leads all in FIP (2.23) and WHIP (0.891), ranks second in strikeout-to-walk ratio (8.17), and is third in ERA (2.43).
He’s likely headed for another All-Star selection this summer. While Detroit hasn’t handed out major contracts recently, they’ve shown a willingness to spend — signing Javier Báez and Jack Flaherty, and pursuing Alex Bregman in free agency.
Negotiations with Skubal, however, will be shaped by a volatile pitching market. Recent deals — Max Fried’s eight-year, $218 million contract and Corbin Burnes’ six-year, $210 million pact — set a high benchmark.
Fried is currently competing with Skubal in the Cy Young race, boasting an 8–1 record and a 1.78 ERA for the Yankees. Meanwhile, Burnes suffered a season-ending elbow injury that casts doubt on his 2026 availability for the Diamondbacks.
Big-money arms like Gerrit Cole, Blake Snell, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto have also had injury issues, underscoring the risk of massive pitching investments. For the Tigers, any offer to Skubal will likely begin around Fried’s contract numbers. Still, they must weigh his prior arm troubles. Skubal’s current dominance may ease those concerns, but Detroit will need to tread carefully as they consider locking in their ace for the long haul.
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