Rangers-Nationals MacKenzie Gore deal shows why Tigers can't trade Tarik Skubal

The Texas Rangers just sent five prospects to the Washington Nationals for MacKenzie Gore.

Not a Cy Young winner. Not an ace in his prime coming off a historic season. Not a pitcher who’s carried a team on his back in October. Just MacKenzie Gore — a very good left-hander with flashes of dominance, two years of control, and a second half of last season where he posted a 6.75 ERA.

And even that cost Texas a five-for-one package headlined by the No. 12 overall pick in last year’s draft in Gavin Fien.

Now zoom out for a second and ask yourself the question Detroit Tigers fans keep circling back to: What would Tarik Skubal cost?

Because if Gore — a pitcher who finished last season 5–15 with a 4.17 ERA — commands five prospects, then Skubal doesn’t command a haul. He commands a franchise-altering ransom.

If this is the price for MacKenzie Gore, then Tarik Skubal is untouchable

Skubal isn’t just better than Gore. He’s in a different universe. He’s more durable. He’s more dominant. He’s already proven he can be the best pitcher in baseball over a full season (twice). He’s the rare left-hander who pairs elite velocity with elite command and elite swing-and-miss. He’s the kind of arm organizations spend decades trying to develop and often never do.

So when fans or pundits casually float “Well, maybe the Tigers should trade Skubal if they get blown away,” deals like this one are the cold splash of reality.

There is no proper value.

If Gore gets five prospects, Skubal gets… what? Eight? Ten? Twelve?

And even then, what are you really getting? A pile of probability. A stack of lottery tickets. A handful of players who might pan out — if everything breaks right.

That’s the paradox of elite pitching in today’s game. The better the arm, the more impossible it becomes to trade him. Not because teams don’t want him. But because no team can realistically pay for him without gutting itself.

The Rangers could stomach giving up five prospects because Gore isn’t the foundation of their identity. Skubal is for Detroit. He’s not a luxury. He’s the proof of concept.

The Tigers have spent a decade rebuilding credibility. Skubal is the living embodiment of that effort paying off. He’s the reason young hitters believe they’re playing meaningful games. He’s the anchor around which everything else finally makes sense.

Trading him wouldn’t be a baseball move. It would be a philosophical one — an admission that no matter how good things get, the Tigers will always flip their best asset before it fully blooms.

And if this is the market for Gore? Then Tarik Skubal isn’t just expensive. He’s untouchable.