We know Tarik Skubal is a game-changer. So which MLB team wants to go get the best player on the trade market?

Tarik Skubal is a needle-mover, a game-changer, a franchise-altering player.

That has never been in question. In fact, it’s the reason that from now until the trade deadline at 6 p.m. ET Monday (or until a Skubal trade happens), there will continue to be nonstop rumors and speculation about where he’ll make his next start. And despite all the hyperbole about what a Skubal trade could mean in the grand scheme of baseball, what’s not hyperbolic is his monumental impact for prospective clubs.

This caliber of starter hasn’t been moved at the trade deadline since Hall of Famer CC Sabathia was traded from Cleveland to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2008. It’s just not often that back-to-back Cy Young Award winners are available, but when one is, it could mean the difference between a team merely reaching the postseason and believing it can win the World Series.

Looking at the landscape of the league, a Skubal trade could shift the balance of power in an entire league, especially given that the teams interested in the Tigers’ ace are already some of the best in the sport.

For a team such as the Milwaukee Brewers, a trade for Skubal would show the rest of the National League that they’re not messing around in 2026. After getting swept by the Dodgers in the 2025 NLCS, Milwaukee would be declaring its intention to return as a challenger to L.A.

The Brewers have shown in recent years that they can win in the regular season. But adding Skubal to a rotation that already features NL Cy Young Award front-runner Jacob Misiorowski, breakout arm Kyle Harrison and rookie right-hander Logan Henderson would take them from a solid postseason rotation to one that can beat any offense in the sport. Not to mention, they have the type of farm system that makes acquiring a Skubal a real possibility.

The Tampa Bay Rays are in a similar position in the American League, as legitimate contenders with a deep farm system. Having been the best team in the AL for the majority of this season, the Rays adding Skubal would set them apart even more in an American League that looks to be theirs for the taking.

Teams in win-now mode such as the Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies also have something significant to gain by adding Skubal to their roster. For these three, not only would adding Skubal make their team even better, but it would also prevent the other challengers in the league from acquiring that type of talent.

Then there’s the team that many opposing teams and baseball fans fear is inevitable in the Skubal conversation: the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Dodgers are always lurking in the shadows, waiting to make their next monster move, and this time is no exception. You could make an All-Star team made up of just players the Dodgers currently have on the injured list. That’s how stacked their roster has become over the past several years.

And like it or not, the Dodgers are arguably the strongest trade partner of any team looking at the two-time Cy Young Award winner. While the money they spend gets most of the attention, L.A. has arguably the strongest farm system in baseball, which allows them to be opportunistic when players such as Skubal become available.

Everyone wants to know: What uniform will Tarik Skubal be wearing for his next start?

(Hassan Ahmad/Yahoo Sports)

But one thing that has undoubtedly shifted the Dodgers’ thinking is the unknown nature of Shohei Ohtani’s balky knee. Ohtani, who was having the best season of his career from a pitching perspective, has had to take a step back from the mound in recent weeks, including missing the All-Star Game to get treatment on his knee.

With starters Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow working their way back from the 60-day IL, all of a sudden, starting pitching has gone from an area of strength to an area of need for L.A.

“There just aren’t that many star-level players in the game,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told reporters this week. “Any time one is available, we’re always going to participate in those conversations. We’ve shown to be very aggressive in the past.”

When the Dodgers want somebody, they usually get them. The question is: Which MLB executive will be willing to go toe-to-toe with Freidman to get Skubal?

We have about 72 hours to find out.

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