How Cubs inadvertently helped Dodgers trade for Tarik Skubal
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How Cubs inadvertently helped Dodgers trade for Tarik Skubal originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Chicago Cubs' path to the World Series just got a lot harder this season, as their top competition, the Los Angeles Dodgers, acquired Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers.
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It was a blockbuster trade, and one that, while shocking, wasn't a total surprise given how strong the link between Skubal and the Dodgers was. But, from the Cubs' perspective, this trade is a bad one for a few reasons.
Obviously, their road to the World Series is more challenging, but as Jim Bowden of The Athletic highlighted, the Cubs actually helped the Dodgers land Skubal. But, how? It's simple: the top prospect the Dodgers gave up for Skubal initially came from the Cubs.
How Cubs helped Dodgers trade for Tarik Skubal
"So the Dodgers acquired Zyhir Hope from the Cubs for Michael Busch and River Ryan from the Padres for Meatt Beatty and drafted Brady Smith in the 3rd round of '23 and turned them into Tarik Skubal. Got it," Bowden writes.
Back in January of 2024, the Cubs swung a trade with the Dodgers for first baseman Michael Busch. Chicago got Busch and Yency Almonte in exchange for two prospects: Jackson Ferris and Zyhir Hope.
A little over two years later, the Dodgers have now flipped Hope as the headline prospect in a trade to acquire two-time, back-to-back Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal from the Tigers ahead of the 2026 MLB trade deadline.
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By trading for Busch two years ago, the Cubs have inadvertently helped the Dodgers land Skubal in one of the biggest blockbuster trades in recent MLB history.
Busch has been solid for the Cubs during his time with the team, and the trade itself wasn't a bad idea. But their deal with the Dodgers has helped create an even more egregious superteam after the Skubal trade.
They weren't alone in helping this blockbuster deal happen, as the San Diego Padres' decision to trade River Ryan to the Dodgers also helped set up this deal.
This isn't the Cubs' fault, but there's no denying that the Cubs did help the Dodgers, at least a little bit, land Skubal ahead of the 2026 trade deadline.
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