The Detroit Tigers extended a qualifying offer to Tarik Skubal on Wednesday. The one-year contract is worth roughly $22 million. Major League Baseball's deadline for clubs to make such offers passed the same day, and the two-time American League Cy Young Award winner is widely expected to reject it.

The offer guarantees Detroit draft-pick compensation if Skubal signs elsewhere. Under the rules of the collective bargaining agreement, a player has 10 days to accept or decline. Skubal is represented by Scott Boras, whose clients rarely accept qualifying offers and who has long signalled that the left-hander would test the open market.

Skubal, 30, won the AL Cy Young in 2024 and 2025 and became the most coveted pitcher in this winter's free-agent class. Rival executives and analysts at outlets including ESPN and The Athletic have projected a record deal for a pitcher, potentially surpassing the $325 million Yoshinobu Yamamoto received from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Several other clubs also tendered offers to their leading free agents before Wednesday's deadline, according to MLB.

The decision ended any lingering doubt that Detroit would let its ace leave without a return. The Tigers' front office, led by president of baseball operations Scott Harris, failed to agree a long-term extension with Skubal before he reached free agency. Losing him would leave a significant gap at the front of a rotation that carried the club through consecutive postseason runs.

The market opens under an unusual cloud. The current collective bargaining agreement between MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association expires on 1 December, and both sides have warned of a possible work stoppage. Agents and team executives have indicated that the threat of a lockout could compress the signing window, pushing elite free agents such as Skubal to decide quickly or wait until a new deal is struck.