GM Meetings Day 2: Tigers ace Tarik Skubal wins back-to-back Cy Young Awards; Red Sox receiving trade interest on a surplus of outfielders

Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet’s first season in Boston was a massive success, but it wasn’t good enough to win the American League Cy Young Award.

Those honors went to Tigers’ Tarik Skubal, who captured the award for a second straight season. Skubal was the first pitcher to win the award in consecutive years since Red Sox Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez won it in 1999 and 2000. He joins Denny McLain (1968, 1969) as the only Tigers pitcher to win it more than once.

Skubal, a unanimous choice for the award in 2024, got 26 of 30 first-place votes, beating out Crochet (four first-place votes, 26 second-place votes) and the Astros' Hunter Brown.

The dominant left-hander recorded a 6.5 WAR and a 2.21 ERA, leading the American League. He struck out 241 batters in 195 1/3 innings, which were both career highs. Skubal had a 32.2% strikeout rate and a 4.4% walk rate, and the Tigers were 21-10 in his 31 regular-season starts last season.

The ninth-round pick out of Seattle University in 2018 has turned into one of the game’s premier pitchers, going 31-10 with a 2.30 ERA while leading the AL both seasons in ERA.

"It doesn't matter where you come from," Skubal said after winning the award while on MLB Network. "I had one offer out of high school [in Arizona], and it's not a Power 5 school by any means, but look at me now. So, I think that's the beauty of the game of baseball. It doesn't matter if you're good at 12 or good at 24 or 25. There's a ton of stuff to happen, and just take your career day by day."

Skubal has been the subject of trade talks this offseason due to having one year left of control, and he could become a free agent at the end of next season.

Tigers GM Jeff Greenberg reiterated the team isn't commenting on their plans.

"We know what he's meant to this organization, especially over the last couple of years," Greenberg said Wednesday from the GM Meetings. "We're not going to talk about our players in the context of trade or extension. That's in fairness to him and the Tigers. He's a Tiger. We're happy to have him."

Despite the trade noise, Skubal wants to remain a Tiger.

"I've given everything I have to this organization. I want to be a Tiger for a very long time. ... I love Detroit. Hopefully, I'm here. That's where I'm at with all of that."

Crochet was equally as dominant, going 18-5 with 255 strikeouts and a 2.59 ERA in 32 starts. He ranked in the 90th percentile or better in pitching run value (99th), fastball run value (95th), breaking run value (99th), expected ERA (91st), and chase percentage (90th), according to Statcast.

In the National League, Pirates ace Paul Skenes captured his first Cy Young Award, winning unanimously and beating out Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sanchez and Los Angeles’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

Skenes is just the third pitcher in history to win Rookie of the Year and Cy Young within their first two MLB seasons. He led Major League Baseball in ERA (1.97), WHIP (0.95), FIP (2.36), and ERA+ (217), and his 7.6 WAR ranked only behind the likes of Aaron Judge, Sanchez, and Shohei Ohtani.

The righty ultimately went 10-10 and struck out 216 batters while walking 42 over 187 2/3 innings in 32 starts.

BRESLOW POISED TO BE BOLD

The message this offseason has been clear: the Red Sox intend to be bold this winter.

After making the postseason this October for the first time since 2021, Boston has a handful of needs to round out its roster, and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow is poised to make the necessary upgrades to get his team back to the playoffs.

One glaring need for the Red Sox is adding another front-of-the-rotation pitcher to pair with Crochet. 

Breslow was bold last December when he sent four prospects to the White Sox to land Crochet. This winter, he willing to trade more prospects to land the right starting pitcher, while also stressing he is being “mindful of keeping one eye on the future.”

“We also don’t want to be in a position where we’re having to do that year over year,” Breslow said to the media during the GM Meetings.

If the Red Sox choose to take an aggressive approach and trade from their abundance of top prospects, Breslow possesses the necessary tools to secure another ace. Boston has six of Baseball America's Top 100 prospects in shortstop Marcelo Mayer (No. 9), left-handed pitcher Payton Tolle (No. 38), shortstop Franklin Arias (No. 48), righty Kyson Witherspoon (No. 62), who the Red Sox drafted last July, outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia (No. 76), and lefty Connelly Early (No. 100), who made his debut towards the end of last season and started Game 3 of the American League Wild Card series versus the Yankees.

“It would certainly put a dent in our system, making a trade like that (for a second straight offseason),” Breslow said. “I have a ton of confidence in both the acquisition and development spaces that we can continue to identify players that can thrive in our system and continue to make them better. Trading is certainly one way of improving our short-term outlook, but free agency is another. I think if that situation is in front of us, we’ll make whatever we believe would be the best decision for the organization.”

It seems inevitable that the Red Sox will land the Twins' ace Joe Ryan after pursuing the right-hander ahead of the trade deadline. Ryan makes a ton of sense for the Red Sox and would be the perfect No. 2 in the rotation behind Crochet. He made his first All-Star team last season and finished with a 3.42 ERA and 1.035 WHIP in 30 starts.

The Twins have publicly said they will listen to Ryan, but they prefer to keep him for next season.

“Our focus, and my goal, has been figuring out how to add around the group we already have,” Twins front office head Derek Falvey said to FanSided’s Robert Murray this week at the GM Meetings. “We think our starting pitching is the strength of this team. We know Pablo (Lopez) and Joe have been real anchors for us the last couple years when healthy."

According to The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey, Boston was unwilling to trade Jarren Duran or Wilyer Abreu at the deadline when talking about Ryan. Fast-forward to November, the Sox have a logjam in their outfield and should move on from one of their outfielders in a potential trade.

Boston has five outfielders who all could start for other teams around the league in Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela, Abreu, Roman Anthony, and Masataka Yoshida. The issue at hand is the Sox are too left-handed heavy and need to balance out the mix and figure out which player to trade while improving the roster.

“I think it’s a good sign when other teams in the league express interest in our guys,” Breslow said. “And I think that’s a product of talent and successful seasons. So we’ll have to be open-minded about how we might be willing to use what would be depth in one position to address holes in the roster elsewhere. But at the same time, don’t feel overly compelled to move anybody.”

Anthony would be the only player of that mix to be untouchable after the Rookie of the Year finalist signed an eight-year, $130 million extension this last summer. The team would love to move on from Yoshida, who, at this point, has been a designated hitter after coming off shoulder surgery last season. One factor that complicates a possible Yoshida trade is the left-handed hitter still has two years and $36 million left on the books. Boston attempted to move Yoshida last winter by attaching first baseman Triston Casas in a deal with the Mariners, but nothing materialized.

Rafaela might fetch the Red Sox a better return or, at the very least, reduce the prospect pool they’d need to trade in a blockbuster deal to land another key starter. He has turned into one of the game’s premier defenders in center field, won his first Gold Glove in center field last week.

“Going back to the trade deadline, teams have expressed interest in some of our players,” Breslow said. “I don’t think that’s surprising. And other teams recognize where we are. So we’ll stay open-minded with those conversations, but again, we’re going to hold a really high bar.”

If the Red Sox opt to keep their prospects and sign a free agent, they are top options on the market, which includes Framber Valdez, Ranger Suárez, Dylan Cease, Michael King, Zac Gallen, Shota Imanaga, and Brandon Woodruff. All seven of those players received a qualifying offer from their respective teams, and the Sox would have to part with draft pick compensation.

“We have to determine how we value those things relative to each other and how we value one player vs. the alternatives that are available to us,” Breslow said about weighing whether to give up draft pick compensation as opposed to prospects already in the system. “We’re in a position where we need to improve our 2026 roster, and that means that there are certain trade-offs that we have to accept, and I think we’re prepared to do that.”

The Sox may have an in-house option to replace an outfielder on the 26-man roster.

Boston must decide what to do with Kristian Campbell and where he will play in 2026. The Sox could move him off second base and into the outfield in an attempt to find him a permanent position in 2026.

“That’s something we’re actively discussing,” Breslow said on Tuesday. “Even if that may not be the case long-term, perhaps in the short-term, just giving him some stability and certainty as to where he’s going to play and maybe easing some of the kind of mental demands of trying to play multiple positions at the same time.”

Campbell earned a contract extension from the Red Sox at the beginning of last season, signing an eight-year, $60 million contract, but struggled and spent the last 3 1/2 months with the WooSox.

The Sox could use Campbell at second base again next season, but they also need to find a spot for Mayer, who is expected to come to camp healthy and compete to make the Opening Day roster.

According to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo, the Red Sox front office views Campbell as a left fielder — which likely is his best long-term position. If the Sox were to move Duran in a deal this offseason, Campbell would be a logical choice to fill the void.

“In terms of the position, that’s an ongoing conversation, and some of it might be dictated by the roster construction as well as what we believe to be best for him,” Breslow said. “I think he is incredibly athletic. Sometimes, the way he goes about the swing or defense is a bit unorthodox in terms of the optics, but he has been a good defender in the upper levels of the minor leagues. Whether that ultimately is in the infield or the outfield, we’ll figure it out.

“In 2024 (in the minors), we saw him play above-average defense at second base. He played a little bit of shortstop and some outfield. Last year, he struggled in the big leagues at second base. If you think about where his athleticism may play in the short-term, I think in the outfield, he feels pretty comfortable (with it) as a chance to just kind of let the instincts take over.”

If Breslow wants to land a pitcher via the trade market, the Nationals are a fit, especially if the Red Sox want MacKenzie Gore. The Nationals' new front office leader, Paul Toboni, knows the Red Sox farm system better than any other executive in the game. Former Sox director of amateur scouting, Devin Pearson, also joined Toboni in Washington, and he led the draft the year Boston selected Campbell.

There’s nothing to suggest the Red Sox would move Campbell in a trade for a starter, but the young player is already working on getting into better shape ahead of next season.

“We saw a glimpse of what that upside could be in his 2024 season in totality and then the first month of the season in 2025,” Breslow said. “It’s not a secret that he struggled after that, and some of those struggles continued when he went down to Triple-A. But we still are incredibly optimistic and confident about what that upside looks like.

“He spent a couple days in Fort Myers last week with some of our hitting group, and he looks big and strong and is back to the size and frame that he was last year. He’s swinging the bat fast again. I think the offseason, to have both a mental and physical reset, has been really valuable for him.”