Tarik Skubal Wants to Sign Before the Lockout

Tarik Skubal has short-, medium-, and long-term goals for 2026.

In the short term, the pitcher's goal is clearly to get back in shape. He hasn't been pitching up to his potential since arriving in L.A.

In my opinion, he just needs time to adjust.

He's the first to admit it: he needs to step up his game. He needs to stay on the mound a little longer to help the Dodgers win.

In the medium term, his goal will be to win the World Series. That's why the guys play and why the Dodgers went out and got him.

That said, other players will need to step up in L.A. in the meantime to make that happen. Edwin Diaz, Kyle Tucker, and Mookie Betts are examples.

And in the long term, his goal will be to sign a contract.

We know that many players don't hesitate to wait a long time before signing a contract as a free agent in MLB.

But that wouldn't be Skubal's goal this winter.

According to reports, he'd like to sign before a potential lockout. The collective bargaining agreement expires on December 1.

A few years ago, some stars waited until after the lockout ended to sign, but there was also a wave of signings just before the lockout began.

Max Scherzer (Mets) is a good example.

Scott Boras is Skubal's agent, and the information about when the pitcher will sign comes from Jon Heyman, who has good connections with Boras.

We'll see how this plays out in due time. But in any case, we're keeping an eye on the Dodgers and the Mets in this situation.

Created by humans, assisted by AI.