The question on everyone's minds this offseason is whether the Detroit Tigers will trade two-time Cy Young starting pitcher Tarik Skubal.
With one year remaining on Skubal's contract, the other 29 MLB organizations might doubt the Tigers will sign the left-hander to a historic extension.
The New York Mets are one club that could show interest, and Tim Capurso of Sports Illustrated predicts it would take four of their top prospects to complete a deal.
Capurso included pitching prospects Jonah Tong, Brandon Sproat, and Jack Wenninger, along with middle infielder Jett Williams, in the trade idea.
"New York would likely have to part with at least three top-10 prospects and another highly touted young arm," Capurso wrote.
"In this deal, the Tigers, starving for young pitching prospects in their farm system, land two MLB-ready arms in Tong and Sproat, as well as a promising youngster in Wenninger. Williams, who may not have a clear path to the majors after the Marcus Semien deal, could find an easier lane to the majors in Detroit."
Which team wins this trade?
Trading Skubal now would surely disappoint every Tigers fan. But they may be more disappointed if he departs from Detroit in free agency next winter.
If the Tigers move their ace, they would need assurance that whoever they receive in return will produce at the Major League level in the near future. Acquiring the Mets' prospects would be a building block towards remaining in contention in the American League.
Skubal would become the undisputed ace of the Mets, but it wouldn't automatically make them the favorites in the National League. Plus, they'd be giving up a lot of their future for one year of Skubal.
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