The salary arbitration panel rules in favor of Tarik Skubal, who will receive $32 million from the Tigers in 2026
The star left-handed pitcher of the Detroit Tigers, Pull Skubalwill receive $32 million this year after a three-person salary arbitration panel ruled in his favor Thursday on the team’s proposed $19 million salary, sources told ESPN.
The victory for Skubal, 29, a two-time American League Cy Young Award winner, not only surpasses the record salary for a player in the arbitration system by $1 million, but also surpasses the previous mark of $19.9 million awarded by a panel.
It’s unclear how this decision will affect Skubal’s future, which has been clouded by questions about a potential trade from the Tigers before he becomes a free agent at the end of this season. The signing by the Tigers of the best free agent available, Framber Valdezwith a three-year, $115 million contract, hours after Skubal’s hearing ended Wednesday, gave Detroit one of the best second starters in Major League Baseball, or a backup ace if the arbitration decision changed Detroit’s stance, which has been to start the season with Skubal.
Salary arbitration took center stage this winter due to the stark disparity between Skubal’s request and the Tigers’ counteroffer. The system allows players with between three and six years of service in the Major Leagues to propose a salary, generally based on previous comparables. While more than 90 percent of arbitration-eligible players settle their cases, Skubal was determined to try to overcome the limits of the system.
The tactic worked. Relying on a rarely used provision in arbitration, which allows players with more than five years of service and so-called “special achievements” (consecutive Cy Youngs qualify) to compare their salaries not only to those of the arbitration system, but to those of all major league players, Skubal based his argument on the salaries of starting pitchers who have surpassed $40 million.
The panel found his argument compelling enough to revolutionize the generally stable and linear officiating system, although few players can match Skubal’s excellence.
Juan Soto He held the previous record for an arbitration-eligible player when he signed a $31 million contract with the New York Yankees in 2024, the same season that Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.., set the mark for the panel’s highest prize, at just under $20 million.
David Price He previously held the record salary for an arbitration-eligible pitcher with his $19.75 million deal with Detroit in 2015, a figure below which the Tigers filed a lawsuit against Skubal. Jacob deGrom received the largest raise for an arbitration-eligible pitcher ($9.6 million) in 2019, going from $7.4 million to $17 million in a deal with the New York Mets.
Skubal, who agreed to a $10.15 million deal with the Tigers last winter, far surpassed the previous record raise, a clear victory for the players. Skubal is a member of the eight-member executive subcommittee of the MLB Players Association, the most powerful players’ bloc, and with the collective bargaining agreement set to expire Dec. 1 and an MLB lockout virtually certain without a new deal by then, some saw the case as a litmus test for the expected battle ahead.
Few players can bet better than Skubal. He returned from flexor tendon surgery in 2023 and dominated immediately, predicting a 2024 season in which he struck out a league-leading 228 batters in 192 innings with a 2.39 ERA, an 18-4 record and a unanimous Cy Young victory. He followed up with an even better performance in 2025, going 13-6 with a 2.21 ERA with 241 strikeouts in 195.1 innings, being the bulwark of a team that reached the postseason for the second consecutive year.
Skubal, one of 12 pitchers to win two consecutive Cy Young Awards and one of 23 pitchers to win the award multiple times, is expected to seek a contract worth at least $400 million in free agency. The highest total contract for a pitcher belongs to Yoshinobu Yamamotoof the Los Angeles Dodgers ($325 million), and future Hall of Fame members, Max Scherzer y Justin Verlanderhold the record for average annual value ($43.3 million).
Information from Jorge Castillo, from ESPNwas used in this note.
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