Skenes and Skubal Win Cy Young Awards as Future Uncertainty Grows
On Wednesday night, the National and American League Cy Young Awards went to Tarik Skubal of Detroit and Paul Skenes of Pittsburgh. These prizes go to the best pitchers in baseball. Even on a night when they were playing their best, both pitchers knew that the future of their teams was uncertain.
Skenes became the first pitcher since Dwight Gooden in the mid-1980s to win both Rookie of the Year and Cy Young in back-to-back seasons at the age of 23. He won the Cy Young trophy unanimously at the end of his first full season in the Major Leagues. The right-handed pitcher quickly became one of the best in the MLB, finishing 2025 with a league-best 1.97 ERA and 216 strikeouts in 187⅓ innings.
Skenes denied claims that he wanted to leave Pittsburgh as soon as possible, even though he had a great season.
Skenes said after the news came out, "The goal is to win, and the goal is to win in Pittsburgh." "I want to be one of the twenty-six men who change the way people talk about this team."
Skubal, who is 28 years old and from Detroit, won the AL Cy Young Award for the second year in a row after once again dominating the Tigers' rotation. He got 26 of 30 first-place votes because he had a 13–6 record, a 2.21 ERA (the best in the AL), and 240 strikeouts.
The Tigers and Skubal, who will be the team captain for the last time in 2026, both know how hard it is to have a great pitcher on your team.
People are still talking about Detroit's close loss in the playoffs. Skubal's 14-strikeout performance helped the Tigers win the Wild Card, but they lost the Division Series to Cleveland after giving up a 15½-game lead.
