Tarik Skubal confirmed his greatness in 2025.
The left-handed ace for the Detroit Tigers won his second consecutive American League Cy Young Award on Wednesday, outpointing Boston Red Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet and Houston Astros right-hander Hunter Brown in voting conducted by the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Skubal becomes the first pitcher to win back-to-back Cy Young Awards since Jacob deGrom in 2018-19 and the first AL pitcher since Pedro Martinez in 1999 and 2000.
Skubal finished 13-6 with a 2.21 ERA and 241 strikeouts in 195 innings, leading the AL in both Baseball-Reference WAR (6.5) and FanGraphs WAR (6.6) while also leading qualified pitchers in ERA, strikeout rate (32.2%), lowest walk rate (4.4%), OBP allowed (.240) and OPS allowed (.559).
Using a blistering fastball that averaged nearly 98 mph and one of the best changeups in the game that limited batters to a .154 average and registered 110 of his strikeouts, Skubal did not give up a run in 12 of his 31 starts, the most scoreless starts of at least six innings in Tigers history and the most in the majors since Adam Wainwright in 2014.
Skubal recorded double-digit strikeouts in 10 outings and pitched the most dominant game in the majors in 2025 when he pitched a two-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts against the Cleveland Guardians on May 25, requiring only 94 pitches. His game score of 96 was the best in the AL in 2025 and matched Sonny Gray for highest in the majors.
A ninth-round pick out of Seattle University in 2018, Skubal had Tommy John surgery in college and some injuries early in his MLB career after reaching the majors in 2020, but with good health and improved fastball command, put everything together the past two seasons, going 31-10 with a 2.30 ERA while leading the AL both seasons in ERA.
But his season ended in disappointment when for the second straight year he started Game 5 of the American League Division Series, only to see the Tigers lose both games. This postseason, against Seattle, he gave up one run in six innings with 13 strikeouts and left with a 2-1 lead, but the Mariners eventually won 3-2 in 15 innings.
Skubal has one season left until he reaches free agency. If the Tigers can't sign him to an extension -- his agent is Scott Boras, and Boras clients rarely sign extensions this close to free agency -- the Tigers might entertain trade possibilities this offseason.
He is one of five Detroit pitchers to win the Cy Young Award, joining Denny McLain (1968 and 1969), reliever Willie Hernandez (1984), Justin Verlander (2011) and Max Scherzer (2013).
