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An offseason full of Tarik Skubal trade rumors has passed.
On Thursday, the Detroit Tigers' ace will take the mound for Opening Day. That doesn't mean that the saga is over, though.
Skubal is a back-to-back AL Cy Young winner who is entering into the final year of his contract with Detroit.
As any franchise in the Tigers' spot would do, they've explored their options.
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There's a scenario where they find a way to extend Skubal for record-setting money.
There's also a scenario where Skubal makes it to the end of this season, trying to pitch the Tigers to a World Series before potentially leaving for a $400 million contract in free agency.
There will remain the middle ground, though. Skubal could still get traded. It would be the Tigers' way of extracting some lasting value from him before he leaves town anyway.
That could depend on a couple of factors. One of those is simply whether the Tigers think they have any realistic chance of re-signing Skubal either during or after this season.
And if they don't, that brings up the second factor: contention. It'd be very hard for the Tigers to trade Skubal away if they're cruising into July with something like the best record in the American League.
But if the Tigers scuffle, the rumors will only intensify. A Detroit team that may not even make the playoffs would be one that would almost certainly have to try and trade Skubal away for youth and value.
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The odds of that might not be too great. With Skubal and Framber Valdez at the front of the rotation, and a strong batting lineup, the Tigers should be formidable. That may only make the Skubal questions more difficult as the season goes along.
Enjoy Opening Day with Skubal, Tigers fans. It's hard to know if there'll be another one.
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