Tarik Skubal Trade Package Questioned by MLB Insiders After Dodgers and Tigers' Deadline Deal

After the Los Angeles Dodgers sent three prospects to the Detroit Tigers to acquire ace Tarik Skubal, many around MLB were surprised by the final price to land the back-to-back reigning AL Cy Young Award winner.

The Dodgers sent outfielder Zyhir Hope and right-handers River Ryan and Brady Smith to the Tigers to acquire Skubal. The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya reported that he received text messages from "rival evaluators" after the deal was announced, saying, "That's all?" and "I'm shocked."

Jon Heyman of The New York Post also reported that rival executives weren't impressed by the package Detroit accepted for Skubal:

The MLB trade deadline is on Monday at 6 p.m. ET, so the Tigers didn't have to rush to accept an offer from the Dodgers. ESPN's Alden Gonzalez reported that the Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays "were all in on Skubal to some extent." The Brewers were considered "the favorites among that group" because of their strong farm system, but the Dodgers "were the clear front-runners all along."

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported that Hope, Ryan and Smith are all "highly regarded" prospects, so Detroit "did well" in its trade with Los Angeles. However, Rosenthal added that other teams "could have parted with better prospects for Skubal," but they "decided against it, allowing the Dodgers to dunk on the industry again."

According to Gonzalez, Hope "brings explosive power from the left side, top-tier speed and an ability to handle center field." He recorded 23 home runs and 18 home runs while hitting .293 for the Dodgers' Double-A affiliate. Ryan recorded a 1.33 ERA in four major-league starts in 2024, but he's currently working his way back to form after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Smith has a 3.88 ERA in 19 starts at the Class-A level this year.

The Tigers are certainly hoping that all three prospects will become impact players in the future, but it seems like they could have received even more if they had waited just a little longer to trade Skubal.