The New York Yankees enter the 2026 season in a position where they’re good, but can still get better. While the organization will be in a position to win, the pitching staff has more questions early on than some want to admit.
In recent years, the Yankees have leaned heavily on elite starting pitching to boost their World Series hopes, but injuries have changed that, as Carlos Rodon and Gerrit Cole will both be out early on.
Ben Bloom recently proposed a trade that would reshape the Yankees’ rotation entering the season, but it’s probably a tad unlikely.
Yankees Acquire: • Tarik Skubal (LHP) • Matt Vierling (UTIL)
Tigers Acquire: • Jasson Domínguez (OF) • Spencer Jones (OF) • George Lombard Jr. (SS) • Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz (RHP)
“The Yankees head into 2026 with significant uncertainty in their starting rotation. Gerrit Cole is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery suffered in March 2025 and isn’t expected to return until May or June. Carlos Rodón underwent elbow surgery in October and is projected back in late April, while Clarke Schmidt is also recovering from Tommy John. That leaves Max Fried—coming off a brilliant 2025 season with 19 wins and a 2.86 ERA—as the lone fully healthy ace available on Opening Day.
“Adding Skubal gives the Yankees the bonafide No. 1 starter they need. He’s one of just 12 pitchers in MLB history to win back-to-back Cy Young awards. When healthy, the rotation would roll out Skubal, Fried, Cole, and Rodón — a lefty-lefty-righty-lefty combination that would be the envy of baseball.”
The proposal shows just how highly Skubal is valued around the league. A back-to-back Cy Young winner entering his prime doesn’t become available often, and as crazy as it might sounds, this deal might not even get it done for the Yankees.
Skubal would not only help the rotation early in the season but also take pressure off pitchers returning from injuries. To put it lightly, even with how good Cole is, Skubal would easily be the No. 1.
Dominguez, Jones, and Lombard wouldbe a LOT to give up, but prospects are just that at some point. If the Yankees could get a guarantee from Skubal that he’d extend upon arrival, making the deal makes sense. If not, trading all of the top prospects in the system wouldn’t make sense.