The Tigers’ pitcher not named Tarik Skubal who Brewers should target at 2026 trade deadline

What if I told you there was a 29-year-old pitcher on the Detroit Tigers playing on a rental contract who will more than likely be made available at the trade deadline? Most baseball fans who know the age of Tarik Skubal would think I'm talking about him.

However, there's another who fits that narrow description, and he figures to be a lot cheaper to acquire despite his elite pedigree. Casey Mize, the former No. 1 overall pick in 2018, is in the midst of a career-best season ahead of his own venture into free agency. Like Skubal, the Tigers' shocking struggles this year should render Mize an intriguing trade candidate.

With the Milwaukee Brewers barreling toward yet another division title, would it be wiser to trade for Mize and leave room for other moves, rather than pooling all their resources together for a Skubal splash?

Casey Mize, not Tarik Skubal, is the Tigers pitcher the Brewers should target at the trade deadline

Skubal is, of course, the big fish on the trade block. Winning back-to-back Cy Young Awards will earn you that distinction, $32 million salary and elbow injury be damned.

However, that track record is going to cause his price tag to skyrocket in trade talks, despite his bloated salary, injury concerns, and relatively meager performance this year. The Brewers would obviously benefit from slotting him atop the rotation next to Jacob Misiorowski and Kyle Harrison, but it's hard to imagine Matt Arnold parting with so much controllable prospect talent for a few months of a pitcher that he has no hope of re-signing.

Whereas Skubal is working with a 3.15 ERA and 3.11 FIP this year, Mize is actually outperforming him with a 2.63 ERA and 2.51 FIP. The right-hander did also suffer an injury earlier in the year, though adductor strains are far less terrifying than anything involving a pitcher's elbow. Plus, his expiring $6.15 million salary is less than 20% of Skubal's contract this year.

Mize's upside is obviously less than that of his teammate, but there's no shame in being a former first overall pick who is deserving of his second consecutive All-Star nod.

The question, then, is if the Brewers need a starter badly enough to justify paying a reduced (but still ultimately costly) prospect price for a pitcher like Mize. They already have three stars with an ERA below 3.00 in the rotation (Miz, Harrison, and Brandon Woodruff), plus some exciting depth in Brandon Sproat, Logan Henderson, and Shane Drohan.

Then again, injuries are a concern for most of those names, and it remains to be seen how Misiorowski and Harrison hold up under the burden of a full season workload. Adding another pitcher capable of leading the rotation -- and one who eliminates the need for Sproat or Henderson to become a playoff-caliber arm by October -- would be a prudent move, especially if they cost less to bring in than Skubal.

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