Fleet of Team USA pitchers silently followed the scorned Tarik Skubal plan in WBC

Given the circumstances surrounding his 2026 season — a reigning two-time American League Cy Young Award winner, early favorite to win a third, and going on to reset the free-agent market for starting pitchers in the offseason — Tarik Skubal's plan for the World Baseball Classic was always going to be scrutinized.

Entering the WBC, the plan was for Skubal to make a start for Team USA during pool play and then return to the Detroit Tigers. Simple enough. Sure, it would have been great to see Skubal make multiple appearances during the tournament, but had he just stuck to that plan without the charade of second-guessing his decision, no one would have really batted an eye.

Especially when there have been multiple pitchers who have taken a similar approach to Skubal.

Former Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Matthew Boyd left Team USA to ensure that he would be prepared for the Opening Day nod with the Chicago Cubs. Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha made an appearance for the USA before returning to camp with the team, and ditto for Ryan Yarbrough of the New York Yankees.

Tarik Skubals' WBC plan was always logical, but it turned into a charade that could have easily been avoided.

The fact that several pitchers parted with Team USA during the WBC in order to prioritize being prepared for the regular season validates the logic in Skubal's plan. That was never an issue. The only fix to the situation would be having the event take place sometime other than a month before Opening Day of the MLB season.

And yes, because it's Skubal, he's understandably going to get more attention than the other pitchers. Mostly because of the fact that he is a free agent next winter and could get paid over $400 million.

Outside of that, the reason Skubal's World Baseball Classic participation has become such an eye-rolling conversation is that he just can't stop talking about it.

Skubal made a decision, thought about changing his mind, but ultimately stuck to his choice. People are going to have something to say about that, especially with how Team USA has viewed the World Baseball Classic in comparison to the international teams. The conversation has become a burden, but it all could have been avoided if Skubal just tuned the noise out and did what he always wanted to do: focus on the start of the season.