Tigers Get Major Tarik Skubal Health Update After Elbow Surgery

The Detroit Tigers are not in the best place right now as a baseball franchise.

Most of their pitchers are injured, including their ace and back-to-back American League Cy Young winner, Tarik Skubal.

And their big offseason acquisition, Framber Valdez, who many teams passed on due to his immaturity, is currently suspended due to throwing an intentional ball at a Boston Red Sox player.

So, yeah, things aren’t looking great in the Motor City right now unless you’re watching the Detroit Pistons.

Yet, there might be a tiny glimmer of light at the end of the dark tunnel on Thursday, as MLB reporter Jon Heyman of the New York Post announced on social media that Skubal’s recent elbow surgery was a massive success and could mean a much quicker return to the mound than first expected.

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“Tarik Skubal elbow surgery was such a success he could start working out within days, and two months is even seen as a conservative estimate for the 2-time Cy Young winner to return,” said Heyman on X. “4 to 6 weeks possible. One relatively small loose body was removed.”

Skubal was sidelined with loose bodies in his elbow, which could have seen him out far past the All-Star break and closer to the end of the summer.

Although it might be better for Skubal to take his time getting back on the mound, there is pressure for the flamethrower to make it back this regular season, as he is set to be a free agent this offseason.

And in an offseason where it’s one of the weakest free agent classes of the past decade, Skubal, if he can show he’s healthy, would be in line for possibly the biggest contract a pitcher has ever received in the sport’s long history.

For the Tigers, they need Skubal back to have any shot of making the playoffs, even in an extremely weak American League.

For Skubal, the difference between him showcasing that he’s fully healed and still in elite form at the end of 2026, playoffs or not, and having questions hanging over his arm could mean the difference between hundreds of millions of dollars.

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This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 5:12 PM.