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1 likeliest outside suitor for Tarik Skubal has been revealed
by Darryn Albert
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Tarik Skubal will likely be staying in the National League one way or the other.
The New York Mets are the most “obvious” suitor for the star pitcher Skubal along with the incumbent Los Angeles Dodgers, Jeff Passan of ESPN reported on Monday. Passan adds that Skubal is expected to sign a new deal before the impending Dec. 1 MLB lockout.
Skubal, 29, is a two-time Cy Young Award winner as well as a former Pitching Triple Crown winner. As the gem of a weak free agent class, Skubal is expected to command a record-breaking new contract this offseason.
As for the Mets, they led Major League Baseball last season with a payroll of $346.7 million. Though that only managed to get them 74 wins and no playoff berth, it does demonstrate the financial resources that the Mets have.
The Mets could also benefit from the fact that the Dodgers might be surprisingly conversative in their efforts to retain the lefty Skubal. A report last month suggested that the Dodgers could only be willing to bid for Skubal up to a certain point.
Some dark horse teams have also entered the mix in recent weeks for Skubal. But it appears that the spend-happy and pitching-needy Mets are the non-Dodgers frontrunners right now to ultimately land Skubal’s signature.
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