Tarik Skubal Reveals Where He Wants to Sign in Free Agency

When the Los Angeles Dodgers traded for reigning two-time Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal ahead of the deadline, they knew they were trading for a rental.

Skubal is set to hit free agency in a couple months, and his agent, Scott Boras, is known to take his clients to the open market to maximize their value.

With that being said, the Dodgers likely felt confident in their chances of retaining Skubal long-term. Financially, they'd have no issues competing with any offer. On the field, they're the reigning two-time World Series champions and now had a two-to-three month head start in potential negotiations.

It may not be that simple, though.

On Friday, "Pardon My Take" released a podcast episode with Skubal that occurred after the trade deadline.

Skubal detailed the emotional exit he had from Detroit, and blatantly said he'd love to return there when he hits free agency.

"I would love to play my whole career in Detroit. I would love to. And hopefully those negotiations can pick back up in November," Skubal said. "Hopefully they're involved with everything. I would love to return. I got nothing but good things to say about the city of Detroit and the manager, the coaching, the staff, the trainers, the teammates. Yeah, it's tough."

"I love all those guys," he added. "So hopefully they're involved in November."

It was tough to say goodbye to Detroit for Tarik Skubal pic.twitter.com/VUqFWAHDkK
— Pardon My Take (@PardonMyTake) August 7, 2026

Skubal has made it known time and time again how much he loved Detroit and wanted to win a World Series with the Tigers. However, the front office — at least to this point — has been unwilling to pay him what he deserves.

Just last offseason, Skubal went to arbitration with Detroit with a $13 million difference in valuation. Skubal asked for $32 million; the Tigers offered $19 million. Arbitration ruled in favor of Skubal.

Moreover, Boras told The Athletic that after 2024 — Skubal's first Cy Young campaign — the Tigers offered a four-year, $75 million contract extension. Boras believed it should have been an eight-year deal.

This offseason, Skubal is expected to get north of $300 million and potentially surpass Yoshinobu Yamamoto's $325 million contract, which is the richest for a pitcher in MLB history.

It would be difficult to imagine Detroit suddenly ponying up the money to land Skubal. However, it's always a possibility, especially if the new Collective Bargaining Agreement changes the financial structure of the sport (although Skubal would be wise to sign before Dec. 1, ensuring he maximizes his value before any potential CBA changes).

As for the Dodgers, they likely don't love hearing Skubal say he wants to return to Detroit after trading away three top prospects to land him. Having said that, the reason they were able to get Skubal for what felt like a toned-down package was his impending free agency.

The Dodgers made the trade — sending outfielder Zyhir Hope and right-handed pitchers River Ryan and Brady Smith — to Detroit, knowing full well they may not have Skubal for more than two to three months.

At the same time, they'll use those two to three months to try to convince Skubal that the grass is always greener in Los Angeles.

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