Dodgers beat writer warns LA not to let Braves, Padres or Phillies trade for Tigers’ Tarik Skubal originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Dodgers every offseason are able to land the top free agent in the class. They did it again this season when they signed Kyle Tucker.

Tucker hasn’t gotten off to the best start, but he has been able to maneuver some things around. Signing with LA marked the third offseason in a row the Dodgers signed the top free agent.

“Kyle Tucker, the consensus best player available in free agency, agreed to join the Dodgers on Thursday, sources told ESPN, a little more than a month after star closer Edwin Díaz did the same. Tucker’s deal is for four years at $240 million and includes opt-outs after the second and third seasons, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Jesse Rogers,” ESPN’s Alden González wrote.

This summer, they are going to be putting all their chips in the pot, going after Tarik Skubal at the trade deadline, the biggest name on the market.

“Now that it’s becoming inevitable that the free-falling Detroit Tigers may have no choice but to trade two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal at the deadline, rival executives believe the bidding will come down to four finalists that not only can afford the remainder of his $32 million contract, but will also be willing to give up prized prospects: The Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres,” USA Today’s Bob Nightengale wrote.

The Dodgers could very well land Skubal—there is no denying that—but there are plenty of teams expected to pursue him. Dodgers beat writer Blake Harris has warned LA not to let Skubal end up in the NL if the Dodgers can’t land him.

“You can’t bank on getting lucky and having an entire starting rotation healthy in October again Not to mention, you have to try and prevent Skubal from landing in PHI, ATL, MIL, SD Would be brutal having to face him twice in one playoff series,” Harris posted.

Health has been a major issue for the Dodgers this season, and Harris raises a valid concern that it could again be a factor in October. If LA isn’t fully healthy and Skubal is pitching elsewhere in the NL, it could leave another contender with a dominant rotation.

If the Dodgers are forced to face Skubal in a best-of-five series where he would likely start twice, the matchup becomes extremely difficult. The biggest issue is that the Dodgers still haven’t gotten two of their top starters back for meaningful stretches this season. Missing out on Skubal would be a dangerous outcome, especially with LA viewed as one of the frontrunners to land him.

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