With all of their injuries this past season, the Atlanta Braves have already said that one of their biggest priorities this offseason will adding starting pitching. It is true that guys like Spencer Schwellenbach and Reynaldo Lopez should be healthy by Opening Day 2026 with Grant Holmes having a shot as well and Atlanta is also expecting big things from Spencer Strider, Chris Sale, and the surprisingly effective Hurston Waldrep as well. However, one potential blockbuster move could completely change everything about the Braves’ 2026 plans.

After the Tigers were eliminated from the playoffs, it did not take long for the chatter around Detroit to turn to the future of Tarik Skubal.

Skubal has been arguably the best pitcher in baseball over the last couple of years and he is also set to become a free agent after the 2026 season. Given how the Tigers let guys like Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer leave town, most were already expecting Skubal and his agent Scott Boras to test the free agent market.

However, things appear to be escalating when it comes to Skubal and the Tigers. According to a report from MLB insider Jon Heyman, Skubal and Detroit are $250 million apart in contract talks at the moment. With both Detroit seemingly lowballing Skubal and Skubal wanting to get a premium, Jomboy’s Chris Rose and Trevor Plouffe seem to think that Skubal could be traded this offseason.

If Skubal is indeed made available in trade talks, the Braves absolutely need to get involved.

Braves need to be in the bidding if Tarik Skubal is indeed available in trades

While the details matter here, the simple idea of Atlanta going after Skubal makes loads of common sense. The Braves need more starting pitching and want to compete at a high level in 2026. Skubal is the prohibitive favorite to win his second straight Cy Young this season and will likely remain among the Cy Young favorites for the foreseeable future assuming he stays healthy.

Every single team in baseball would love to have a guy like that including the Braves.

Of course, there are some caveats here. We don’t know that Tigers would actually be willing to trade Skubal, although Detroit general manager Scott Harris didn’t exactly squash the possibility recently.

If they are willing to trade Skubal, they will probably ask for a king’s ransom including big league ready talent. Skubal only having one year of team control left would suppress the cost a bit, but one cannot help but think that the Kyle Tucker trade which saw the Astros end up with Isaac Paredes, Cam Smith, and Hayden Wesneski.

The other issue is what the Braves’ plan would be if they managed to strike a trade. It isn’t like Scott Boras isn’t still going to be asking for a record deal and the Braves generally don’t deal with Boras as a result.

However, Skubal appears to be a generational talent that should terrorize opposing hitters for years to come. Assuming the trade for Skubal could also involve getting some significant salary off their books, Atlanta should at least strongly entertain the idea of giving him a long-term extension in this hypothetical world.

It may seem like a pipe dream that the Braves could pursue Skubal and there are other teams (Red Sox, Dodgers, Orioles, Mets, etc.) that are better positioned to get a trade and/or long-term deal for Skubal done than Atlanta. However, you can’t decide when top talent becomes available most of the time and in Skubal’s case, the Braves would be best served to make a real effort if/when he is made available.