The Detroit Tigers have one of Major League Baseball's best overall pitchers in Tarik Skubal, but there's a very real chance that his days with the organization could be numbered.
As losses have piled up for the Tigers, the possibility of Skubal being traded this summer, a few months before entering free agency, has become more and more real. On Wednesday, USA Today's Bob Nightengale shared a column predicting what will happen this summer with the biggest stars potentially on the trade block. For Skubal, Nightengale predicted that he will be on the way out of town.
"The Tigers, 37-49, have been one of baseball’s biggest disappointments, but as badly as they’ve performed, the American League stinks to the high heavens, and they are just 6.5 games out of a wild-card berth," Nightengale wrote. "Do they ride it out and hope that Skubal’s return gets them back into contention, or do they sell him to the highest-bidder and stock their farm system, knowing they’re not going to re-sign him as a free agent, anyway? If nothing else, Skubal has quieted any doubts that he’s fully recovered from his elbow surgery, striking out nine while yielding just one hit and one earned run in six innings in his last start Tuesday against the New York Yankees, hitting 99 mph on the radar gun.
"Prediction: Skubal will go, with Atlanta being the favorite according to rival executives, but this decision likely will go down to the final days, if not hours, before the deadline."
The fact that Nightengale not only said he thinks Skubal will go, but that the Atlanta Braves are viewed as the favorite to land him, certainly makes the possibility of a move sound real.