What a Tarik Skubal trade package could look like for the Mets

What could a potential package look like for the Mets to satisfy the Tigers and acquire one of the best pitchers in baseball?

Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal throws against Mariners during the first inning of ALDS Game 5 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The New York Mets are going to be in the market for starting pitching this offseason, and there may not be a bigger pitcher potentially available than Detroit Tigers' ace Tarik Skubal.

With reports circulating that Skubal and Detroit are almost $250 million apart in extension talks, there is buzz that the Tigers will listen to offers for the reigning AL Cy Young winner to maximize a potential return in a trade.

There's a gap of "close to $250 million" in contract negotations between Tarik Skubal and the Tigers, per @JonHeyman

Skubal is a free agent after the 2026 season pic.twitter.com/tDoBq7YXsU

— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) October 16, 2025

There may not be a better pitcher in the game this side of Paul Skenes than Skubal, who went 13-6 with a 2.41 ERA this season, striking out 241 batters in 195.1 regular season innings. Skubal also delivered a memorable postseason performance for the Tigers in Game 5 of the American League Division Series, striking out 13 batters in six innings of the winner-take-all affair in Seattle that Detroit eventually lost in 15 innings.

THIRTEEN STRIKEOUTS FOR TARIK SKUBAL! #ALDS pic.twitter.com/ArpFHX3DSQ

— MLB (@MLB) October 11, 2025

The gap in extension talks leaves Detroit with three options for Skubal: either pay up and meet agent Scott Boras' asking price, let the situation ride with the option to trade Skubal at the deadline if the season goes poorly, or move him now to maximize a potential return. The third option would certainly intrigue the Mets, who have more motivation to land an ace than most other big market teams since poor starting pitching sunk their 2025 season.

On Baseball Night in New York, @WillSammon reports on Tarik Skubal, how involved the Mets could be if he's made available, and how this trade could compare to the one the Orioles did with the Brewers for Corbin Burnes last offseason

▶️ Tri-State @Cadillac pic.twitter.com/w9EoexMEQu

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) October 17, 2025

We have seen several teams move aces with one year of club control before free agency, including Milwaukee shipping Corbin Burnes to Milwaukee prior to the 2024 season while Boston acquired Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox prior to this season. Burnes was a pure rental for the Orioles, who made little effort to retain him in free agency outside of a qualifying offer, while the Red Sox immediately extended Crochet after surrendering a strong prospect package to acquire him.

Read More: Unexpected Mets player could be key piece in Tarik Skubal trade, per insider

What a Mets trade package for Tarik Skubal could look like

Even with Skubal entering his walk year, a potential trade package for him could be very expensive. Will Sammon of The Athletic has reported that the Tigers are expected to seek at least two top shelf starting pitching prospects and a top position player prospect in a potential package.

Some early offseason thoughts on Mets/Skubal/pitching: https://t.co/qGAZQG9K1f

— Will Sammon (@WillSammon) October 18, 2025

With Nolan McLean off the table in a potential offer, satisfying Detroit's demands here would mean the Mets would likely have to part with both Brandon Sproat and Jonah Tong on the pitching side while including someone like Jett Williams or Carson Benge on the position player side. All but Sproat rank inside the Top 50 prospects on MLB Pipeline, which would make this a rich return for the Tigers.

The Mets would likely not want to burn all of their top prospects in a Skubal deal, but they could fit the Tigers' desire for big league help now since Detroit would likely still want to try contending even if they move their ace. Adding big league pieces to the trade could reduce the prospect cost and give the Tigers more pieces to immediately stay competitive in a winnable American League Central.

With McLean off the board, the Mets could likely offer to substitute David Peterson into the package for one of Tong or Sproat. Peterson did have a rough finish to the season after hitting a career high in innings; however, he earned a spot on the All-Star team thanks to his great first half, which would offer the Tigers some upside in their rotation right now. While Peterson has one year of club control left like Skubal, the cost to extend him in Detroit would be far more reasonable than Skubal's demands if money is a significant factor.

The Mets could also offer Detroit a young major league infielder to help address the Tigers' needs at second and third, where Gleyber Torres is set to become a free agent and incumbents Zach McKinstry and Colt Keith formed a rather average platoon at third. SNY's Andy Martino has reported that the Tigers have shown interest in Brett Baty, who had a solid year for the Mets and could fill either spot at a cost-effective price.

On the Mets and Tarik Skubal (via @martinonyc) https://t.co/tLQJVgWKfG pic.twitter.com/JA5j39wVUu

— SNY (@SNYtv) October 17, 2025

While Baty is someone the Mets value as a potential answer at third base for the long haul, they could afford to deal him given their numerous options at third base. Mark Vientos entered the year as their third baseman, Ronny Mauricio is also capable of playing the position, and the team has another intriguing prospect in Jacob Reimer, who is coming off a strong season for Double-A Binghamton.

Putting in a young position player on the major league roster would also mean the Mets likely don't have to include both Benge and Williams in the deal. Their preference would probably be to offer Williams; Benge can help fill a more immediate hole in center field as soon as this season, while the Mets have plenty of potential options to cover second, including established big leaguer Jeff McNeil in the final year of his contract.

The Yankees, Dodgers and Phillies would appear to be less motivated to pursue Skubal than the Mets, but other teams could try and swoop in to beat the Mets' offer for the pure value play of having a year of Skubal in his prime to help them make a postseason push. As such, the Mets would also likely need to add another prospect to the package from the Top 15 of their system, perhaps someone like slugging outfielder Ryan Clifford or a second-tier pitching prospect like Jack Wenninger.

As a result, a potential package could look something like this:

Mets Receive	Tigers Receive
LHP Tarik Skubal	LHP David Peterson, 3B Brett Baty, RHP Jonah Tong, 2B Jett Williams, OF Ryan Clifford

While you could quibble with which prospects you include in the package or try to replace Baty with someone like Vientos or Mauricio, this is the kind of talent haul it would likely take to pry Skubal away from Detroit. This deal gives the Tigers elite prospect capital on par with the Crochet trade along with big league ready players who can help them stay relevant in the American League Central right now, extending their contention window with an ascending young core.

Parting with this much talent is a big risk, since Skubal has only one year of club control left and is almost certain to test free agency with Boras as his agent. Mets' owner Steve Cohen would likely sign off on this deal with every intention to outbid anyone else for Skubal's services in the winter of 2026-27, but it remains to be seen if president of baseball operations David Stearns views this outlay of talent as worth it for one guaranteed year of Skubal.

Stearns has made big deals in the past, including a blockbuster that brought Christian Yelich to Milwaukee, but he has been notably hesitant to guarantee big money for an ace. The Mets did make a huge offer to Yoshinobu Yamamoto two years ago, setting the terms of a $325 million contract that the Los Angeles Dodgers ended up matching, but Yamamoto was 25 when he was posted as a free agent.

Skubal will pitch next season at age 29 and enter his age-30 season when a new deal begins, which is notable since Stearns avoided more expensive long-term commitments to older pitchers last winter like Burnes, Blake Snell and Max Fried. Shipping out four players who could help the Mets this year and handing out a huge contract after the season is a huge risk, but it remains to be seen if Stearns thinks this is the proper utilization of his resources.

There will be other pitchers available on the trade market that could help the Mets, such as Minnesota's Joe Ryan or Milwaukee's Freddy Peralta, who wouldn't cost nearly as much in player assets as Skubal. Stearns could also embrace the free agent market and simply spend money to bring in a proven top of the rotation arm like Houston's Framber Valdez, which would allow him to keep his trade chips available for another opportunity.

None of those options are as good as Skubal, however, and the Mets will have both Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto in their primes for a short window. If Stearns feels that the Mets have an opportunity to build a top rotation on the fly and Skubal is better than any of his other options, there is a chance the Mets pull the trigger on a deal like this at some point this winter.