Tigers trade ace Tarik Skubal to Dodgers

Chris McCosky, The Detroit News on Aug 2, 2026

Published in Baseball

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Tarik Skubal’s reign in Detroit is over.

The Tigers traded the two-time Cy Young winner to the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday night in exchange for right-handed pitchers River Ryan and Brady Smith and outfield prospect Zyhir Hope.

Multiple sources confirmed the trade to the Detroit News.

Skubal and Casey Mize, also a target of trade rumors, left the dugout in the second inning Saturday night and went back to the clubhouse. Earlier in the day, the Dodgers had pulled Hope out of his scheduled start at Double-A Tulsa.

Skubal and Mize both did their early throwing, Skubal throwing his between starts bullpen.

But he acknowledged the possibility that his start Friday night at Comerica Park was likely his last as a Tiger.

“Hopefully they feel like I’ve given everything to this team and to this city because I truly have,” he said.

Skubal, despite missing five weeks after having a loose body in his elbow arthroscopically removed, posted a 2.79 ERA and 0.910 WHIP in 16 starts this season. In his seven seasons in Detroit, he was 61-42 with a 3.04 ERA in 153 games (150 starts). He got his 1,000th strikeout in his last start against the Orioles.

He’s 2-1 in six postseason starts with a 2.04 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 39 innings.

“The organization never gave up on me," Skubal said Friday. "AJ (Hinch, manager) always had my back and that’s something I’ve appreciated. It’s been a helluva ride. I wouldn’t change anything. I wouldn’t change one bit of it, just my whole story, my whole life. It’s what make me what I am.”

Skubal is expected to be the most sought-after free agent on the market this offseason, which is why, after the Tigers had fallen farther out of the playoff chase, president Scott Harris began fielding offers. But he didn't start doing that until this weekend.

Here's what the Tigers got back:

— Ryan, 27, was pitching in Triple-A in his first year back off Tommy John surgery. He is a starting pitcher and was 3-1 with a 4.95 ERA. He's averaging 10.2 strikeouts and just two walks per nine innings. He was an 11th-round pick of the Padres and pitched in four games with them in 2024.

— Smith, 21, was the Dodgers' third-round pick in 2023 and made it to High-A this season.

— Hope, 21, was the Dodgers' No. 5-rated prospect (No. 25 in MLB). He was slashing .293/.369/.530 with an .899 OPS at Double-A Tulsa, with 23 home runs and 87 RBIs.