DETROIT -- For the first time in a quarter century, an American League pitcher has won back-to-back Cy Young Awards. Tarik Skubal repeated the feat, beating out Boston’s Garrett Crochet and Houston’s Hunter Brown in voting announced on Wednesday.
Skubal is the first repeat AL Cy Young winner since Pedro Martinez in 1999 and 2000. He joins Denny McLain as the only Tigers to win multiple Cy Youngs with Detroit. Like Skubal, McLain won his consecutively, in 1968 and '69. Hall of Famer Hal Newhouser won back-to-back AL MVP Awards in 1944 and '45, a decade before the Cy Young Award was created.
“It means a lot,” Skubal said on a conference call with reporters after the announcement. “Anytime you accomplish an award of this presence, honor, it's really cool. And to be the first one in the American League since Pedro [to win back-to-back] is even more special, obviously.”
Skubal wasn’t a unanimous winner this year, but he received 26 of 30 first-place votes (198 points), with the other four going to Crochet (132 points). The two southpaws were first or second on all 30 Baseball Writers' Association of America ballots.
Though Skubal didn’t repeat his American League pitching Triple Crown, he was arguably better in some aspects, allowing him to stand out in a strong field of candidates on the AL side. His 6.5 bWAR topped last year (6.4), outpacing fellow finalists Crochet (6.3) and Hunter Brown (6.1). Skubal’s 2.21 ERA was nearly a quarter of a run better than the second-place Brown (2.43). Skubal's 2.45 FIP far outpaced second-place Brown (2.89). His 7.3 strikeout-to-walk ratio was nearly two better than Crochet's at 5.54. Skubal’s 187 ERA+ was the best by an AL pitcher since Justin Verlander in 2022.
“I think a lot of it is not being complacent with who I am today,” Skubal said. “I still think there's more to tap into. I still think that I'm not the finished version of myself. When I retire, that'll be the finished version of myself. I'm still looking to get better each and every single day. That's what my teammates bring out of me, that's what our coaching staff brings out of me, and just the relationships that I have with those people I think bring out the best in everybody. That's just who we are as a team.”
It wasn’t just the full-season dominance, but the stretches within it. Skubal was one of five AL pitchers to toss a shutout this season, but his complete-game two-hit blanking of the Guardians on May 25 was a masterpiece, with no walks and 13 strikeouts. His 94th and final pitch of the day was a 102.6 mph fastball for a strikeout, the hardest pitch of his career. It was the best outing by an AL pitcher this season, according to game score.
“Sitting in my chair, one of the easiest things to do and one of the most exciting things to do is hand the ball to the best pitcher in baseball,” manager A.J. Hinch said before Game 5 of their AL Division Series against the Mariners. “He obviously is somebody deeply trusted in our clubhouse to bring intensity, to bring high-end pitching and bring results.
“We win together, we lose together, but he leads us.”
Skubal tossed seven or more scoreless innings in nine of his 31 regular-season starts. He allowed one run over 30 2/3 innings during a four-start stretch from May 25-June 12, then tossed 19 more scoreless innings from late June into July.
Skubal was better against teams with winning records (7-4, 1.90 ERA, .868 WHIP, 7.6 K/BB ratio) than against sub-.500 opponents (6-2, 2.75 ERA, .931 WHIP, 6.85 K/BB). He beat every AL Central rival once and didn’t allow a run to an AL East opponent except the Red Sox, combining for 25 scoreless innings against the Blue Jays, Yankees and Orioles (he didn’t face the Rays). The only opponent to beat him twice was Seattle.
“In terms of what I've accomplished individually, it’s great. I take a ton of pride in it,” Skubal said. “But it's not an individual sport, it's a team sport. And as a team, I just wanna win. That's kind of where I'm at. However I can help our team win, that's what I'm gonna do. That's kind of how I approach things.”
Even on pure stuff, Skubal stood atop his peers. His changeup was the dominant pitch by run value (25) among Major League pitchers, producing a 46.8 percent whiff rate and a .154 batting average allowed. He had the 10th-best four-seam fastball among AL pitchers at +12 run value. Overall, his +51 run value easily topped the Majors, outpacing Yoshinobu Yamamoto and 2025 NL Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes at 42. No one else topped 40.
“He put it all out on the line all season,” catcher Dillon Dingler said after the Tigers’ Game 5 loss. “That’s the kind of pitcher he is. ... He’s awesome. I’m sure I’ll always remember this season and what he accomplished. I’ll remember last year, but it was first-hand experience for me this year, catching him. It was awesome.”
Dingler will have more than memories out of this season with Skubal, who values his catchers. After Skubal won last year’s Cy Young Award, he bought matching watches for himself and catcher Jake Rogers, and presented them in Spring Training. Though Skubal doesn’t take things for granted, he planned ahead this time around.
"I think I've set the precedent for what happens when I win Cy Young Awards,” Skubal said. “They both play such an influential role in who I am. … So they'll both have a nice present in their locker in Spring Training. This year, I took the approach of just kind of letting them go online and pick what they want. That way, we can all just get what we want, and however we're gonna wear it, we’re gonna wear it.
“A little bit different approach, not much of a surprise this year, but I've set the precedent of what I gotta do. And however many more of these I can win, I'll gladly buy the catchers a watch.”