The Detroit Tigers reportedly haven't gone down the road of trying to keep Tarik Skubal atop their rotation in the long run.
In an exclusive interview with USA Today's Bob Nightengale in the lead-up to his start for Team USA at the World Baseball Classic, Skubal said that the Tigers didn't make him a long-term offer over the winter. And that they didn't negotiate with his camp after the two sides filed different salary figures in arbitration.
“There is no offer," Skubal said. “And there won't be an offer until the end of the season… My focus is on playing baseball and winning this year. I’ll deal with the contract stuff at the end of the year, and then we'll kind of see. And that’s fine. It’s their decision."
Skubal, coming off back-to-back Cy Young award-winning seasons, will enter free agency after the 2026 campaign if he doesn't reach a deal with Detroit, but he reiterated that his focus remains on the field.
“That’s where my focus is, trying to win a World Series for the city of Detroit, the team that drafted me in 2018," Skubal told Nightengale. “The Tigers fans are excited, they’re really invested in this club, and so are we. There’s a different energy in camp this year about the guys that we brought in and additions that we've made, and there's a true belief and trying to win a World Series. I think that's awesome."
But as long as Skubal remains unsigned in the Motor City, the summer ahead will undoubtedly be full of speculation about where MLB's top southpaw may land on the open market.
Beyond Detroit's unwillingness to engage on a long-term deal, the seeds of disagreement over Skubal's value were sown this off-season in the arbitration process.
The two sides didn't reach an agreement on a 2026 contract before the early January deadline to exchange figures. Skubal filed for $32 million, and the Tigers filed at $19 million — setting up a historic hearing.
Skubal eventually beat Detroit in the process, setting an arbitration record with his $32-million payday.
The 29-year-old is coming off a pair of dominant seasons that have him positioned to set more records in free agency. In 2024, he won the American League Triple Crown, pacing the circuit with 18 wins, a 2.39 ERA and 228 strikeouts.
He was potentially even better in 2025, punching out 241 batters in a career-high 195.1 innings of 2.21-ERA ball.
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