Bob Wojnowski: There's still a way for Tigers to resolve Tarik Skubal saga

DETROIT — Let’s start with the extreme viewpoints, just for fun.

The Tigers are being cheap and short-sighted, making offers way below market value for their generational star. On the other side, Tarik Skubal’s agent, Scott Boras, is being greedy and pompous, practically mocking the Tigers.

Somewhere in the middle lies the truth. And somewhere — maybe — lies a solution.

The ongoing arbitration process reveals the chasm, in short form. With Skubal due to become a free agent after this season, the sides are $13 million apart in their one-year offers. The Tigers offered $19 million. Boras declined to negotiate and requested $32 million. The sides can talk until the hearing in early February and if they don’t reach an agreement, an arbitration panel will pick one or the other. Right now, it’s a lot of pointless posturing and pettiness.

The gap between the long-term offers is much larger, depending on which fanciful numbers you believe. Boras often speaks in pun-riddled code, while the Tigers don’t speak at all. Spring training begins in three weeks, and that’s when any notion of trading Skubal should be tabled until the July 31 deadline. Even then, he should only be dealt if the Tigers have fallen out of playoff contention.

But somewhere, there has to be a narrow path for compromise, because if Skubal leaves as a free agent, the Tigers lose their greatest asset for nothing, and nobody truly wins. Oh, Skubal might win a fat $300-400 million contract and land in Los Angeles or New York. He’d also lose a legacy by leaving the franchise that found him (in the ninth round in 2018), developed him and helped him become a two-time Cy Young winner.

Maybe that connection isn’t worth as much to Skubal. Or, maybe owner Chris Ilitch and president of baseball operations Scott Harris can make it worthwhile with the type of aggressive effort fans have been craving.

Is there compromise?

Let’s operate on the assumption Skubal likes it here and appreciates manager AJ Hinch and renowned pitching coach Chris Fetter, as well as the environment. Skubal has expressed his appreciation many times, and not long ago, went on a public Detroit sports tour, joining fans at Lions, Pistons and Red Wings games.

The Tigers aren’t going to meet Boras’ alleged demand of a $400 million, eight-year contract, if that’s even real. Nor should they. Ilitch may not have the swash-buckling fervor of his father, which is unfortunate in some cases, but in this case, it’s hard to argue against the business sense.

Ilitch is a businessman more than a sportsman, but I think deep down, he’d like to reverse that. He’s extremely successful running Ilitch Holdings, which includes Little Caesars Pizza, as judged by revenue. In sports, you’re judged by victories and championships, and with his Red Wings also poised to join the revival, it’s a fine time to strike.

There’s one reasonable option that could satisfy the sports and business sides. How about this: Ilitch offers Skubal $250 million over six years, which would tie the Phillies’ Zack Wheeler for the largest average annual value ($42 million) ever awarded a pitcher. It wouldn’t hit Boras’ purported dream number, but it wouldn’t damage his hard-ass reputation. It wouldn’t even push the Tigers’ payroll (15th in the majors) into the top 10.

Competitive benefit: Obvious. The Tigers would remain playoff contenders, and perhaps World Series contenders, almost every season that Skubal, 29, pitches and remains healthy.

Business benefit: Ilitch would fulfill a pledge he made at the start of the rebuild, that the Tigers would spend “when the time was right.” With back-to-back playoff appearances and a stocked farm system, the time sure looks right. It would be an admirable (and honorable) stroke of boldness, and if Skubal continues on his Hall of Fame path, the revenue possibilities from ticket sales, jersey sales and playoff games would be ratcheted.

There’s risk, of course. But it’s shared risk, and if it takes a couple of sweeteners to placate Boras — maybe an opt-out after two or three years for Skubal — it’d be worth the attempt.

Harris’ vision to keep building from within would gain some heft. The Tigers’ current plan is to enter the season with their ace and virtually the same everyday lineup, with possible openings for elite prospects such as Kevin McGonigle and Max Clark.

The idea is to cash in on a one-year World Series window, which is a longshot. Expecting to trade Skubal for a bounty from a cash-rich contender — you can count such suitors on one hand — is also a longshot.

You know what their highly-rated farm system is missing? Elite pitching. If they don’t keep Skubal, they should sign another free-agent starter — Astros’ Framber Valdez, Blue Jays’ Chris Bassitt, Lucas Giolito of the Red Sox are available — or they could blow a prime opportunity to win the weak AL Central.

Numbers game

Skubal isn’t the bad guy in this, at least not yet. But he did hire Boras, who proudly wears the snout and spouts the loopy limericks. It’s Boras’ job to extract every last dollar for his client without making Skubal look bad. Naturally, Boras doesn’t mind making the Tigers look bad, which historically hasn’t been difficult.

So he conjures up interest whenever convenient. He seemingly had Alex Bregman on the verge of a free-agent deal with the Tigers last year, but added an opt-out clause to entice the Red Sox to sign him. Bregman recently opted out and signed with the Cubs for $175 million over five years.

Can I prove the Tigers were useful fools in that episode? No. But Boras did what he does as a ruthless dealmaker, and will try to drum up more leverage for Skubal. The difference now is, the Tigers also have leverage.

Skubal would take all the risk if he pitches one season for a meager sum ($19 or $32 million) and then hunts a long-term contract just as baseball’s collective bargaining agreement expires Dec. 1. Labor negotiations are expected to be long and contentious as owners again seek methods of cost containment, while the players association tries to maintain freedoms in free agency and salaries.

Choosing sides is pointless because both are playing the loathsome numbers game that’ll likely push baseball to a work stoppage. If the Skubal saga is the story that dominates an offseason, embittering both sides and alienating fans, then maybe the sport needs to take a break.

Skubal isn’t just a pricey pawn here. He’s a member of the MLBPA executive subcommittee, and if he wins his arbitration case, he’d land the largest amount ever awarded.

He’s the main reason the Tigers have made the playoffs two years in a row and advanced one round each time. He’s also had two elbow surgeries — the last in 2022 — and his 100-mph left-handed delivery limits how deep he pitches into games.

He threw the first complete game of his career last season and topped 100 pitches only three times. In today’s bullpen-dominated game, that’s not unusual. However, his exit after six innings of the decisive Game 5 against Seattle in the ALDS is still hotly debated. Skubal departed with a 2-1 lead after delivering his 99th and final pitch at 101 mph to strike out Cal Raleigh. The Mariners tied it in the bottom of the seventh and won it in the 15th inning.

Innings and pitch counts may be artificial limits, but they’re mutually agreeable because the Tigers and Skubal have the same interest in keeping him healthy. If that was a delicate component when Skubal was making $10 million last season, imagine what it might be if several hundred million is at stake.

Skubal already is on the short list of all-time Tiger icons. That doesn’t mean he’ll be a longtime Tigers icon, which is too bad. Posturing and pandering aside, Ilitch and the Tigers can make a profound statement, and should exhaust all avenues to try to make it happen.