Tigers need one more trade to become World Series contenders insider says originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

It wasn’t long ago the Tigers were sellers again. At last year’s trade deadline, they moved Jack Flaherty and quietly slipped out of the race, setting their sights on 2024 like so many Detroit summers before.

This year, there’s no white flag. There’s only a growing sense that the Tigers are finally here—and not just to make noise. To win.

As Bob Nightengale framed it in USA Today, this might be “the finest team in all of baseball.” That’s not hyperbole. That’s a national writer pointing to Detroit and saying: watch out.

The Tigers sent six players to the All-Star Game. They have the best pitcher on the planet in Tarik Skubal, who leads the AL in ERA and is chasing his second straight Cy Young. Riley Greene is becoming a star. Colt Keith is settling in. Jake Rogers, Matt Vierling, and Justyn-Henry Malloy have all delivered timely sparks.

The bullpen has held, but the final piece might still be out there. What this team needs isn’t a full-blown overhaul—it’s a finisher. A swing-and-miss closer who can shut down October lineups and give Skubal & Co. the reward their dominance deserves.

And for the first time in decades, Detroit has the capital to get it done. They’ve got young, controllable talent. They’ve got leverage in a seller-light market. And maybe most important, they’ve got belief—inside the clubhouse and across the fanbase.

If president Scott Harris can land that final piece, the Tigers won’t just be contenders. They’ll be dangerous.

Forty years after their last title, Detroit is chasing another. And this time, they’re not just hoping. They’re built for it.

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 21, 2025, where it first appeared.