Tigers poised to crush Tarik Skubal's latest dream (unless they act fast)

While the 2023 World Baseball Classic's Team USA was absolutely packed with offensive superstars — Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Bobby Witt Jr., Kyle Tucker — the pitching staff was far less stacked. Clayton Kershaw was initially slated to participate but pulled out during spring training, so Team USA had to depend on the the likes of Lance Lynn and Merrill Kelly.

The 2026 team has started to come together; Aaron Judge is confirmed as captain under manager Mark DeRosa. Other players have also started expressing their interest, including Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, who said, "It's been brought up. I would love to play. But if they wanted me to play, I would have to have some conversations with my agent (Scott Boras Agency) and the team and see what their stance is on all this."

Skubal would be a no-brainer to lead Team USA's rotation, but the Tigers have every reason not to let him. Teams were hesitant to let their players, pitchers in particular, go the last time around because of the risk of injury and the long MLB season ahead, and 2026 marks Skubal's last year under team control. The Tigers aren't going to want him to risk it — unless, of course, they extend him.

Tigers have less than zero incentive to let Tarik Skubal compete in 2026 World Baseball Classic unless they extend him

The Skubal contract extension conversation is ongoing, and the Tigers did reportedly throw out a number that he wasn't impressed by this offseason. No doubt things will intensify through this season and next if he continues to perform at this level, but fans would certainly rather see a deal completed as soon as possible.

It's going to be hard for the front office to negotiate with Scott Boras, who could be in Skubal's ear discouraging him from taking an extension unless it's exorbitant. Boras likes his players to test free agency and bully teams into offering massive contracts, and there are plenty of clubs who would jump at the opportunity to swipe Skubal away from Detroit.

Extensions for Boras clients aren't unheard of, though, and the Tigers should still be working behind the scenes to get something done. Of course, if they did extend him and then let him participate in the WBC, there would still be risk of injury involved, but they'd probably feel better about allowing it if they weren't at the risk of losing him for what could be his last year with the team.