Mets Inquired About Tarik Skubal Trade

An MLB insider revealed that the New York Mets were in talks with the Detroit Tigers about a potential Tarik Skubal trade.

Oct 10, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; (Editors note: Alternate crop) Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal (29) throws against the Seattle Mariners during the third inning during game five of the ALDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

When there is blood in the water, the sharks begin to circle. Such is the case when MLB’s best starting pitcher is up for grabs, and one insider revealed that the New York Mets were one of those sharks that were interested in Tarik Skubal’s services.

In his Thursday column for the New York Post, Jon Heyman named the Mets and the New York Yankees as two teams that kicked the tires on a potential Skubal deal with the Detroit Tigers. It should come as no surprise that the two New York teams were involved: few teams have the assets or the wallet to take on a generational talent like Skubal.

https://t.co/c48lE3IV7L MLB notes: Mets, Yanks don’t think they can meet Skubal trade price plus notes on Bellinger, Tucker, Ohtani, Hoerner, Donovan, Phillies, Red Sox

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 23, 2026

In an offseason where starting pitching options were slim, talks of a Skubal trade continued to make their rounds. At first, Skubal was linked to the Los Angeles Dodgers, one of those few teams with both the assets and cash to take the pitcher on. But those talks died down, and with the Dodgers making the splash signing of Kyle Tucker, they are likely backing out of the race unless Skubal becomes available midseason.

The Mets obviously have good reason to be interested: Skubal is the reigning back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner, becoming the first pitcher to win consecutive Cy Youngs since former Met Jacob deGrom did it in 2018 and 2019. He has a relentless arsenal of pitches and can overpower batters, routinely hitting over 100 mph with his fastballs. He is, by most measures, the best pitcher in the world right now, and his sky-high asking price is certainly justified.

Read More: Why the Mets Should Reunite with this Starting Pitcher in Free Agency

Skubal and the Tigers are believed to still be far apart in discussions for what would be one of the biggest, if not the biggest contract for a pitcher in MLB history. Despite this, Heyman believes that the Tigers are now leaning towards keeping their ace, and even added that Detroit is looking to add another starting pitcher ahead of spring training.

For the Mets, the asking price for Skubal was simply too high. Everyone knows that money is not a barrier for Steve Cohen, as one only has to look at the contracts that were handed out last year to Juan Soto and last week to Bo Bichette. Rather than deplete their farm system, the Mets opted to trade for Freddy Peralta instead; while the price of two top prospects (Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat) was still steep, trading for Skubal would have cost even more than that.

Tarik Skubal lands at number 8️⃣ on MLB Network’s Top 100 players list 👏

Thoughts?⤵️ pic.twitter.com/rBPCEevgmQ

— SleeperTigers (@SleeperTigers) January 23, 2026

If the Tigers struggle and Skubal becomes available midseason, it’s unclear whether the Mets would be interested or even have the assets to entice Detroit. Framber Valdez remains unsigned, but his group is seeking a longer-term deal, which the Mets have shied away from under Stearns, especially for pitchers. For now, Mets fans should be thrilled with the additions of Peralta and Bichette, and view the interest in Skubal as what it was: a big market team checking in on a potentially available superstar player.

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