Wait… The Tigers Never Even Offered Tarik Skubal An Extension?

The Detroit Tigers currently employ one of the best pitchers on planet Earth.

And apparently they didn’t even try to extend him this winter.

Yes, seriously.

Story Breakdown

Tarik Skubal, the reigning back-to-back American League Cy Young winner, revealed that the Tigers never made him a long-term contract offer during the offseason.

Not a rejected deal.

Not a stalled negotiation.

Nothing.

“There is no offer,” Skubal said when asked about extension talks, adding that he’ll deal with contract discussions after the season.

Which means one thing.

Detroit’s ace is now staring directly at free agency after the 2026 season.

And this is not just any pitcher.

Skubal has been absolutely ridiculous the past two years. He won the AL Cy Young in both 2024 and 2025, led the league in ERA both seasons, and piled up more than 220 strikeouts each year.

In other words, the Tigers have a legitimate “best pitcher in baseball” candidate… and right now there’s nothing stopping him from testing the market.

To make things even more awkward, Skubal and Detroit just went through a massive arbitration fight earlier this year.

Skubal asked for $32 million.

The Tigers offered $19 million.

An arbitration panel sided with Skubal, giving him a record $32 million salary, the highest ever for an arbitration-eligible player.

So yeah… the relationship probably isn’t exactly warm and fuzzy right now.

Reaction & Commentary

Let’s be clear about something.

Teams let good players walk all the time.

But teams usually at least attempt to extend their generational ace.

Especially when that ace just won two Cy Young Awards in a row.

The weirdest part here is that Detroit actually looks like it’s trying to win.

They added Framber Valdez this offseason and brought back Justin Verlander, building what could be one of the best rotations in baseball.

So the Tigers are clearly pushing chips into the middle.

Except… apparently not with their best player.

It’s the baseball version of building a dream house and then forgetting to install the front door.

And you know every big-market team executive read this story and immediately thought the same thing.

“See you in free agency.”

Because if Skubal hits the open market as a 29-year-old, two-time Cy Young winner, the bidding war is going to be absolutely insane.

We’re talking $300 million type of insane.

Final Take

The Tigers still have time.

If Detroit wins this year and the vibes stay good, maybe both sides revisit extension talks after the season.

But if they don’t?

There’s a very real chance the Tigers just let the best pitcher in baseball walk straight into free agency.

And if that happens, the line of teams trying to sign Tarik Skubal might stretch from Comerica Park all the way to Los Angeles.