Dodgers Land Two-Time Cy Young Winner Skubal
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- Tarik Skubal was traded from the Tigers to the Dodgers for outfielder Zyhir Hope and right-handers River Ryan and Brady Smith, with Hope and Ryan both ranked among top-50 prospects in ESPN's midseason rankings.
- Skubal, the back-to-back AL Cy Young winner at 29, posted a 2.79 ERA across 16 starts this season with 116 strikeouts and 14 walks in 96⅔ innings, and he's a pending free agent positioned for the richest contract ever given to a starting pitcher.
- Skubal underwent a less-invasive NanoScope procedure to remove bone chips from his left elbow in late April and returned in about six weeks, posting a 2.03 ERA in July.
- The Dodgers will slot Skubal as their Game 1 starter, joining a rotation that includes Yamamoto (making his own Cy Young case), Snell, Ohtani and Glasnow — all of whom are in varying stages of returning from injury.
- The Tigers had tried to build around Skubal by signing Framber Valdez to a three-year, $115 million deal, but the team collapsed — by late May they were tied with the Rockies for the worst record in the majors and finished seven games below .500.
- The Dodgers parted with outfield depth but kept consensus top-25 prospect Josue DePaula and Eduardo Quintero (ranked 45th), and retained all of their young MLB starting pitching in Justin Wrobleski, Emmet Sheehan and Roki Sasaki.
- Skubal got choked up addressing the media after the trade, saying: 'Going into the season, this isn't what I planned on doing... But circumstances change, situations change.'
Why it matters: The Dodgers, who already owned the highest run differential and second-best record in the majors, added a two-time Cy Young winner to a rotation with four other aces — making them clear favorites to become the first NL team to win three consecutive World Series. The Tigers received two top-50 prospects but lost a generational ace, and Skubal now waits three months to test free agency, where he could reset the starting-pitcher market.
