Tarik Skubal offers intriguing comment on future as trade speculation swirls after Tigers’ ALDS exit

Let the Tarik Skubal trade rumors fly.

The Tigers’ ace offered an interesting response after the heartbreaking ALDS Game 5 loss to the Mariners on Friday night when asked whether he’ll talk to the team about his or the Tigers’ future.

Skubal now has just one year left on his contract after Detroit could not hold the one-run lead he exited with following six dominant innings in the 3-2 loss in 15 innings in Seattle.

“My job is to play,” Skubal said, per the Detroit Free Press. “That’s not my job — to do anything other than play. Those questions should be asked toward the front office and the people that make those decisions, but my job is to go out there and play.”

That sound you now hear is general managers around the sport — Mets, anyone? — picking up their phone to check in with Detroit president of baseball operations Scott Harris to see if Skubal is available this offseason.

Teams will wonder if Detroit could be willing to move Skubal should it believe he will not sign an extension with the franchise before hitting free agency.

Skubal is represented by Scott Boras, whose clients usually head to free agency rather than sign extensions, and the southpaw who turns 29 next month is arguably the best pitcher in the sport.

Detroit likely would receive more by trading Skubal with one year left on his deal than it would receive in the receive draft compensation it would receive if the lefty rejected the qualifying offer.

The Tigers’ front office realistically should have an idea of whether it can retain Skubal or if there is no chance for him to return for 2027.

Detroit reportedly low-balled Skubal in previous extension talks, per the Detroit Free Press.

The reigning AL Cy Young winner who may win his second straight this winter should command an average annual value in line with the largest in the sport’s history, with recents deals — excluding Shohei Ohtani — ranging in the high 30s to lows 40s in terms of millions per season.

Detroit’s 2025 Opening Day payroll, meanwhile, was just $143.2 million and ranked 17th, per USA Today.

Harris previously pushed back against the idea that the Tigers had a window to win a title with Skubal.

“I think this idea of a window is an illusion,” Harris said after the July 31 trade deadline, per the Detroit Free Press. “I’m not looking at this as a window. It doesn’t mean that I’m shorting the present for the future by any means, but this whole idea of a window is not really filtering into my head because it’s my job to get to the postseason every single year if I can.”

If Friday night marked Skubal’s last appearance with the team, he went out in dominant fashion.

Skubal struck out 13 batters and allowed just one run on two hits in six innings, exiting with a 2-1 lead before the Tigers immediately squandered that lead.

The Tigers lost both of his ALDS starts despite the lefty striking out 22 batters in 13 innings and tallying a 2.08 ERA, and he went 13-6 with an AL-best 2.21 ERA in the regular season.

Should he stay in Detroit, Skubal made it clear he expects the team to contend.

Said Skubal: “I think the World Series should be the standard from everyone in this organization.”