Tarik Skubal's Cy Young statement reinforces Tigers' necessary next move

Let’s just get this out of the way: Tarik Skubal winning his second straight American League Cy Young Award is one of the most incredible, cathartic, long-overdue moments in modern Detroit Tigers history.

The homegrown ace who carried a rebuilding franchise back into the national conversation, Skubal is everything Detroit fans have been waiting for since Justin Verlander. And yet, as that trophy hits the shelf, there's one person smiling even wider than Skubal himself –– his agent, Scott Boras.

You could feel it the second the award was announced, with Skubal earning a remarkable 26 of 30 first-place votes. Somewhere, deep in the Boras Corporation bunker, a cork popped. Two consecutive Cy Youngs? That’s not a stat line; it’s a blank check. And Boras knows exactly where to cash it.

Translation: Detroit, get your wallet out.

This is where Tigers fans grit their teeth. Because they’ve lived through the Boras Experience — the endless leverage wars, the strategic leaks, the tug-of-war between hope and heartbreak. J.D. Martinez. Max Scherzer. Even Prince Fielder’s orbit had Boras fingerprints on it. And every single time, it ends the same way: With Boras reminding everyone that sentiment doesn’t sign contracts — dollars do.

That’s the gut punch for Tigers fans because for the first time in a decade, Detroit has its guy again. A homegrown ace, molded through the rebuild, one of the few who truly feels like part of the city’s comeback story. And just as Skubal has become the face of hope, here comes Boras — the man who can turn that hope into fear faster than a “sources say Dodgers are interested” tweet.

Tarik Skubal's second straight Cy Young win puts Tigers on the clock to get a deal done

Make no mistake: this isn’t just about Skubal’s payday. It’s about whether the Tigers are finally serious. Chris Ilitch has promised to spend “when the time is right," and the time is unmistakably now. You don’t let a back-to-back Cy Young winner walk out the door because of an “organizational budget philosophy.” You back up the truck and make him the cornerstone of a new era –– and if you don't, Boras will make sure the world knows exactly who blinked first.

Boras will use this to play the Tigers like a fiddle — the “Tarik loves Detroit, but…” lines, the thinly veiled jabs about “commitment to winning,” the slow drip of national rumors –– and the worst part is that he's good at it. He wins every time.

That leaves Tigers fans in an uncomfortable position, beaming with pride while bracing for chaos. Skubal just joined Verlander on the short list of Tigers immortals, but every pitch he throws from this point forward will come with an unspoken question: Will Detroit actually keep him?

So enjoy the moment, Tigers fans. Celebrate your ace. But don’t kid yourselves — this Cy Young trophy doubles as a business card for baseball’s most powerful agent. Boras just got another weapon –– and if history tells us anything, the next few months are going to test Detroit’s patience, pocketbook and pride like never before.