Is this the year Alex Anthopoulos finally makes a big swing at the trade deadline? MLB insider Jeff Passan is pushing that narrative, as his latest trade deadline preview includes a section explaining why the Atlanta Braves should make a blockbuster deal this summer.
The player Passan is campaigning for Atlanta to acquire is Tigers ace, Tarik Skubal. The American League's 2024 and 2025 Cy Young winner is sure to be the biggest name on the market this summer, as Detroit has been one of the most disappointing teams in baseball and is looking more like an eventual deadline seller by the day.
The Braves have the best record in baseball, and a blockbuster deal like this would signal they are all in on winning a World Series this season. The cost is sure to be steep for Skubal (despite being a free agent at the end of this season), but the Braves' rising farm system does possess the ammunition to get a deal like this done.
Tarik Skubal, K'ing the Side in the 7th pic.twitter.com/sg2xSx5K6W
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 30, 2026
Tarik Skubal will be the big prize at the deadline, but will the Braves meet the asking price?
Before any trade talks gain serious traction, teams need to see a healthy Skubal back on the mound looking like his dominant self. Skubal was sidelined after his start against the Braves back in late April due to surgery he had to remove loose bodies in his pitching elbow. Through seven starts this season Skubal owns a 2.70 ERA and 2.11 FIP.
As of now, Skubal seems to be ramping up. He completed a four-inning sim game on Monday in which he threw 64 pitches. Reports came back that Skubal's velocity was at his normal high end, and his next step could be a rehab start with Detroit's Triple-A affiliate.
Should the Tigers fall further out of the AL playoff picture, and Skubal return to the majors effectively before August, teams will flood Detroit's line. Passan linked eight different contenders who could make a play for Skubal this summer, and Atlanta's deal was centered around some of their top-rated pitching prospects.
Names included in a potential Skubal deal were: Cam Caminiti (Braves No. 1 Prospect), J.R. Ritchie (Braves No. 2 Prospect), and current bullpen weapon and 20 year-old phenom Didier Fuentes. Headlining a trade package with any one of these exciting prospects is a steep cost for what's sure to be a two-month rental, but elite starting pitching never comes cheap at the trade deadline.
We have not seen Anthopoulos pull off a deadline deal to this magnitude during his Braves tenure, but if there is ever a time to get hyper-aggressive, it's the season in which you hold the best record through the first two months. The Braves' GM has already indicated he is trying to acquire that difference-making starter, but only time will tell if Anthopoulos will swim in the waters where a big fish like Skubal resides.
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