Well, this is awkward.

Tarik Skubal has been a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers for all of about five minutes, and he’s already talking about going back to Detroit.

Okay, I’m exaggerating a little bit, but the timing of Skubal’s recent comments on Barstool Sports’ Pardon My Take podcast certainly caught my attention. The Tigers traded their ace to Los Angeles at the Trade Deadline, receiving three highly regarded prospects in Zyhir Hope, River Ryan and Brady Smith. Hope and Ryan were both ranked among MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 prospects at the time of the deal, giving Detroit a legitimate infusion of young talent in exchange for a pitcher who was going to reach free agency after the season anyway.

Then, less than a week after the trade, Skubal made it abundantly clear that his Tigers career may not be over.

Speaking on Pardon My Take, Skubal said:

“I would love to play my whole career in Detroit. I would love to. And hopefully those negotiations pick back up in November once the playoffs are done. And we’ll see where that goes. Hopefully they’re involved with everything, I would love to return. I’ve got nothing but good things to say about the City of Detroit and the manager, the coaching, the staff, the trainers, the teammates, it’s tough. And I’m going to try not to cry right now, but I love all those guys. So hopefully they’re involved in November and we’ll see what happens then.”

That doesn’t exactly sound like a guy who was thrilled to leave.

Skubal isn’t simply leaving the door cracked for a potential return. He’s practically standing in the doorway waving Detroit back inside. He’s eligible for free agency following the 2026 season, and based on those comments, it sounds like the Tigers will have every opportunity to make their pitch once November arrives.

The whole thing reminds me of Freddie Freeman’s first trip back to Atlanta after signing with the Dodgers. Freeman was so emotional throughout that weekend that it almost became uncomfortable to watch. It felt like everyone was waiting for someone to put an arm around him and ask, “Freddie…are you sure you actually wanted to leave?”

Skubal is giving me some of those same vibes.

Didn’t We Just Do This?

Here’s where things get really interesting. Detroit and Los Angeles have already run this exact play.

At the 2024 Trade Deadline, the Tigers traded Jack Flaherty to the Dodgers in exchange for Trey Sweeney and Thayron Liranzo. Flaherty went to Los Angeles, helped the Dodgers win the World Series and then became a free agent.

A few months later? Right back to Detroit.

The Tigers signed Flaherty to a two-year, $35 million contract, essentially turning one pitcher into two prospects, allowing him to go chase a championship in Los Angeles and then bringing him right back afterward.

That’s some pretty good asset management.

Could they actually do it again?

Because if Tarik Skubal genuinely wants to return to Detroit, the Tigers suddenly have an opportunity to pull off a significantly more impactful version of the Flaherty maneuver.

They traded Skubal because they were slipping out of contention and couldn’t afford to let one of baseball’s most valuable pitchers walk for nothing. In return, they landed Hope, Ryan and Smith. Hope immediately became Detroit’s No. 2 prospect after the trade, while Ryan slotted in at No. 4 and Smith at No. 10.

Now imagine Skubal comes back this winter. Detroit would essentially have loaned him to Los Angeles for a few months in exchange for three prospects.

Obviously, that’s an oversimplification. The Tigers don’t control what happens in free agency, and Skubal isn’t obligated to return simply because he wants Detroit involved in the conversation.

But if they actually pull this off? That’s a win.

The LeBron James Comparison

Oddly enough, this whole situation reminds me of LeBron James leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers the first time. Stick with me here…

LeBron’s departure for Miami was devastating for Cleveland at the time. Cavaliers fans certainly weren’t sitting around in 2010 thinking, “Don’t worry, guys. This is actually going to work out beautifully.”

But look at what happened while he was gone.

Cleveland landed three No. 1 overall picks between 2011 and 2014. Kyrie Irving became a franchise cornerstone. Anthony Bennett didn’t exactly work out, but he and Andrew Wiggins became the centerpieces of the trade that brought Kevin Love to Cleveland.

Then LeBron came home.

Suddenly, the Cavaliers had LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. Two years later, they completed the greatest comeback in NBA Finals history and won Cleveland’s first NBA championship.

I’ve always believed the Cavaliers don’t win that championship if LeBron never leaves in the first place.

His departure allowed Cleveland to accumulate assets it never would have possessed while consistently winning with him on the roster. Then, when LeBron returned, those assets helped create a roster capable of accomplishing something the first version of the Cavaliers never could.

Could Detroit be attempting its own baseball version of that strategy?

Trade Skubal when his value is enormous. Replenish the farm system. Let him spend a few months chasing a World Series ring in Los Angeles. Then reopen negotiations in November and try to bring him home.

If that’s actually the plan, I have to give Detroit credit. I still think the Tigers could have gotten more for arguably the best pitcher in baseball, but I digress.

There’s Just One Tiny $400 Million Problem

There’s an obvious problem with this dream scenario.

Money. A lot of it.

Skubal is already making $32 million in 2026 after setting an arbitration salary record. He’s a two-time reigning American League Cy Young winner, he’s still only 29 years old, and assuming he finishes the season healthy, he’s about to enter free agency as one of the most coveted pitchers we’ve seen reach the open market in years.

I’ve heard estimates placing his next contract somewhere in the neighborhood of $400 million.

Whether the bidding actually reaches that number remains to be seen, but the larger point is obvious: bringing Tarik Skubal back to Detroit isn’t going to require a nice hometown offer.

It’s going to require one of the largest pitching contracts in baseball history. That’s where the entire conversation changes. Wanting Detroit is one thing. Wanting Detroit when the Dodgers, Mets or another big-market organization puts an enormous contract on the table is something entirely different.

Money talks. Especially when we’re talking about hundreds of millions of dollars.

But Detroit Has Shown It Will Spend

Before we dismiss the possibility entirely, however, there’s an important piece of evidence working in Detroit’s favor.

Framber Valdez.

Last offseason, the Tigers signed Valdez to a three-year, $115 million contract. That’s an average annual value of roughly $38.33 million. At the time the deal was signed, it established a record AAV for a left-handed pitcher.

That’s not small-market spending. That’s Detroit looking at one of the best pitchers available and writing a serious check.

For comparison, Zack Wheeler carries a $42 million AAV with Philadelphia. Jacob deGrom‘s deal averages $37 million annually, while Gerrit Cole sits at $36 million. Valdez’s $38.33 million average puts him squarely among baseball’s highest-paid pitchers.

So let’s say Detroit offered Skubal something in that neighborhood. At $40 million annually, an eight-year contract gets you to $320 million. Nine years gets you to $360 million. Ten years gets you to $400 million.

And that’s where the conversation becomes much more complicated.

I’m far more comfortable paying an elite pitcher $40 million per season than I am guaranteeing that pitcher $400 million over a decade. Pitchers break. That’s the unfortunate reality of modern baseball, and long-term contracts for arms carry enormous risk.

But Skubal isn’t just some really good starter.

We’re talking about a pitcher who won back-to-back Cy Young Awards and developed into the face of Detroit’s pitching staff. The Tigers drafted him in the ninth round in 2018, developed him, watched him recover from flexor tendon surgery and eventually saw him become arguably the best starting pitcher in baseball.

Those guys don’t come around very often.

If you’re ever going to make an uncomfortable financial commitment, this is probably the player who makes you consider it.

Does Skubal Want Detroit Enough to Make It Work?

That’s ultimately the question.

Skubal’s comments certainly sound sincere. This wasn’t the standard athlete answer of, “I loved my time there and I’ll always appreciate the fans.” He specifically said he hopes negotiations resume in November. He specifically said he hopes Detroit is involved. He specifically said he would love to return.

He became emotional talking about the coaches, trainers and teammates he left behind. That’s meaningful.

It doesn’t guarantee anything, but it gives Detroit something most teams entering a bidding war don’t have: the player already wants to be there. That matters.

The Tigers don’t have to sell Skubal on Detroit. They don’t have to convince him he’ll like the city. They don’t have to introduce him to A.J. Hinch or explain the organization’s philosophy. They don’t have to wonder whether he’ll fit inside the clubhouse.

He already knows all of that. More importantly, he apparently misses it. That’s a pretty good starting point for negotiations.

Detroit Could Have Its Cake and Eat It Too

That’s why the Skubal trade may eventually look very different than it did when it happened.

At the time, Detroit was trading away its ace. The Tigers were 2.5 games out of a Wild Card spot, but the organization decided to cash in its biggest expiring asset rather than gamble on either reaching October or watching Skubal leave for nothing.

It hurt. Trading a back-to-back Cy Young winner is supposed to hurt.

But if Skubal returns? Suddenly Detroit has its ace and three additional prospects it didn’t have before. Zyhir Hope, River Ryan, Brady Smith…and Tarik Skubal. Plus the prospect returns they got from the Padres in reurn for Casey Mize. That’s the baseball equivalent of hitting undo after collecting your trade return.

Again, there are no guarantees. Free agency has a funny way of changing people’s plans when enormous dollar figures start appearing on pieces of paper.

The Dodgers know that better than anyone.

And considering Skubal is currently pitching for an organization that has shown essentially no hesitation about spending whatever is necessary to acquire elite talent, Detroit isn’t exactly competing against a coupon-clipping operation.

That’s the part that would make me nervous if I’m a Tigers fan.

Come Home, Tarik

As a baseball fan, I hope this happens. I’ve become increasingly concerned about the financial divide in Major League Baseball, and watching another superstar inevitably gravitate toward one of the handful of organizations capable of treating the luxury tax like a minor inconvenience isn’t particularly exciting to me.

Tarik Skubal belongs in Detroit.

That’s where he developed. That’s where he became a star. That’s where he won his Cy Young Awards. That’s the fan base that watched a ninth-round Draft pick transform himself into the most dominant left-handed starter in the sport.

And apparently, that’s where he wants to be.

Maybe Skubal spends the next few months helping Los Angeles chase another World Series championship, walks into free agency with a ring on his finger and then follows the Jack Flaherty blueprint right back to Comerica Park.

If that happens, Scott Harris will deserve a ton of credit.

Detroit will have turned a few months without Skubal into three legitimate prospects without actually losing Skubal long-term.

It’s almost too perfect.

Of course, there’s a massive pile of money standing between the Tigers and that outcome.

We’ll find out in November how badly Detroit wants its ace back—and perhaps more importantly, how much Skubal’s love for Detroit is worth once the Dodgers and the rest of baseball start writing numbers on the board.

Until then, Tigers fans can do something they probably didn’t expect to be doing so soon after watching their ace get traded.

Hope (no, not Zyhir).

Because Tarik Skubal may be wearing Dodger blue right now, but based on his own words, a pretty big part of him still seems to be wearing the Old English D.