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The Chicago Cubs have been one of the most explosive teams this offseason, upgrading their roster to be one of the top teams in the National League. However, they are one blockbuster move away from truly being one of the top contenders in the MLB.
Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer proposes they solve that by trading with the Detroit Tigers for their two-time Cy Young, Tarik Skubal.
The trade would look like this:
Cubs get: LHP Tarik Skubal
Tigers get: INF Matt Shaw, RHP Jaxon Wiggins (MLB No. 58), OF Ethan Conrad
“Like the Orioles, the Cubs have already been one of the offseason's big winners, but right now they feel more like a team built to win the NL Central than one ready to knock off the Dodgers. A trade for Skubal would change that conversation. He'd immediately become the No. 1 in a rotation that doesn't have a clear pick for the role as of now. And after Cubs starters fanned only 7.5 batters per nine innings in 2025, it would be nice to have a strikeout god like Skubal as a Game 1 starter in October,” Rymer wrote.
This past season, Skubal posted a 13-6 record, a 2.21 ERA, 241 Ks, a WHIP of 0.891 in 195 innings pitched, and won back-to-back Cy Youngs. He’d instantly become Chicago’s franchise star, and would be the leader of the team.
The only catch with this trade is the Tigers might not buy into it. They’ve made it known that if they were to shop Skubal, they’d need a proven MLB-ready pitcher in return to take his place.
If the Cubs can offer one of their star arms, preferably one of the younger ones with control for Detroit, then this partnership could work. Hopefully, the Cubs craft something soon before Spring Training comes.
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