Motor City Magic: Skubal Steering Tigers to the Top

For the first time since May 2014, the Detroit Tigers hold the best record in Major League Baseball. Riding the dominance of ace Tarik Skubal, this 2025 squad is proving last year’s playoff run was no fluke.

Skubal, fresh off his 2024 AL Cy Young Award, hasn’t missed a beat. He’s opened the season with a 4–2 record, racking up 79 strikeouts to just seven walks over 59.2 innings—numbers that firmly plant him in the conversation for a second consecutive Cy Young.

Over his last three starts, Skubal has gone at least 5.2 innings each outing while recording 8+ strikeouts and issuing only two walks in total. His most dominant performance came on May 9 against the Texas Rangers: 7.0 innings, 12 strikeouts, two hits, one earned run, and zero walks.

While no contract extension has been finalized between Skubal and the Tigers front office, it’s hard to imagine Detroit letting its best pitcher since the Justin Verlander–Max Scherzer era hit the open market.

But Skubal isn’t carrying the team alone. A revitalized Javier Báez and a breakout campaign from Spencer Torkelson have powered a Tigers offense that ranks among the league’s best.

Báez, who signed a six-year, $140 million deal with Detroit in 2022, had been trending downward since signing that deal and missed most of the 2024 season due to hip surgery. Many wondered if his career was fading.

Now, he looks like the electric, free-swinging star fans fell in love with in Chicago. Over his last 30 games, Báez is batting .269 with 6 home runs, 24 RBIs, and a .788 OPS—his best stretch since 2021.

Torkelson, meanwhile, is finally living up to his billing as a former No. 1 overall pick. The 25-year-old first baseman is slashing .249/.532/.866, all career highs, and has already surpassed his 2024 totals with 12 home runs and 39 RBIs.

Detroit has assembled one of the most well-rounded rosters in baseball. With a top-five offense, defense, and pitching staff, the Tigers are in prime position to contend deep into the season—and potentially into October.

A 2025 postseason appearance would mark the franchise’s first time reaching the playoffs in back-to-back years since 2014.