Yankees hit with 2 hilarious realities that will kill any Tarik Skubal dreams

For a couple years now, New York Yankees fans have been eyeing the 2025 and 2026 offseasons because of Tarik Skubal. The Detroit Tigers star was once believed to be a trade candidate after the 2025 campaign, and will be a free agent when 2026 is finished.

But fans who have followed the Yankees closely knew that this was never going to be a reality for New York. Brian Cashman and the front office do not overextend themselves with trades, nor do they pay top dollar to free agents anymore. In fact, they're lucky Aaron Judge only landed a $360 million contract. We're still not sure how that happened.

For anybody still holding out hope for either scenario, we have bad news. Thursday confirmed that the Yankees will never have a chance at Skubal. And that's not pessimism, it's just what the current landscape will likely dictate.

First off, Yankees (and MLB insider) Jon Heyman reported that the Yankees "checked in" with the Tigers on a potential trade for Skubal. Unfortunately, Cashman "got the impression" that it would cost the Yankees "half their team." As many suspected, Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris is not playing around. If somebody wants Skubal, they will pay arguably the most steep price ever, and those are not waters the Yankees swim in.

Yankees Rumors: Tarik Skubal trade price something Brian Cashman would never pay

Ok, fine, no trade. Not many expected the left-hander to get dealt anyway since the Tigers are AL contenders. But what about next offseason when Skubal hits the open market and Detroit inevitably can't afford him? That should give the Yankees a prime opportunity to swoop in, flex their big market muscles, and land one of the best talents in the game.

Except ... we just got a preview of what Skubal's free agency is going to look like with agent Scott Boras heading the negotiations. The left-hander is in his third and final year of arbitration eligibility and filed for a $32 million salary, up from $10.15 million in 2025. That's more than triple he was making, which would be an unprecedented and historic amount.

Boras is trying to treat the arbitration process like free agency to further drive up Skubal's price when every team is able to bid. And that's also not a game the Yankees play anymore.

Though they tried with Juan Soto, there was always the likely outcome Steve Cohen would take the bidding to new heights to get him on the Mets. Maybe the Yankees knew that all along, which is why they offered the $760 million, knowing it would be good optics but ultimately would fall short enough so they wouldn't be on the hook for the biggest contract in MLB history.

We are 10 months out from Skubal's free agency and an impending lockout, and Boras is already setting the table for what could be one of the most aggressive pursuits for a pitcher in baseball history. With all the money the Yankees have tied up, plus the fact they largely refuse to chase such candidates unless there's a clear path to their terms being met, fans can expect silence on this front ... especially if this dead offseason was any indication.