Tarik Skubal Wins Back-to-Back AL Cy Young for Detroit Tigers

This article dives into the historic achievements of two pitchers who absolutely dominated the 2025 Major League Baseball season. Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers snagged his second straight American League Cy Young Award, becoming the first AL pitcher to repeat since Pedro Martinez did it over twenty years ago.

In the National League, Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates swept all 30 first-place votes to grab the Cy Young in just his second big-league season. Their performances brought a rare overlap of pitching brilliance in both leagues—setting up some fascinating storylines for the future.

Tarik Skubal’s Historic Back-to-Back Cy Young Wins

For the second year in a row, Tarik Skubal stood at the top of the American League pitching world. His 2025 campaign showed off consistency and dominance, earning him 26 first-place votes over Boston’s Garrett Crochet and Houston’s Hunter Brown.

Skubal, now 28, finished with a 13–6 record and a sharp 2.21 ERA. He led the AL in several key stats—WAR, strikeout rate, and ERA among them.

One of the wildest parts of Skubal’s season was how he kept opponents off the board for long stretches. He put up 12 scoreless starts of at least six innings, breaking a Detroit Tigers franchise record and marking the most such starts in MLB since 2014.

This kind of sustained excellence anchored Detroit’s rotation. People couldn’t help but compare him to Pedro Martinez, the last AL pitcher to win back-to-back Cy Youngs in 1999 and 2000.

The Keys to Skubal’s Success

Skubal credits a lot of his success to the work he did during his 2023 injury rehab. The Tigers zeroed in on pitch design, especially fine-tuning his changeup.

That improved pitch let him handle right-handed hitters and keep everyone guessing. With just a year left before free agency, Detroit faces a tough call: lock down their ace long-term or maybe trade him for young talent to speed up a rebuild.

Paul Skenes Sweeps the National League Vote

While Skubal was cementing his place among the veterans, Paul Skenes kept rising fast in the National League. The 23-year-old righty didn’t just win the NL Cy Young Award—he did it unanimously, sweeping all 30 first-place votes.

Skenes joined a pretty exclusive club of pitchers who’ve won the award in their first or second MLB season. That just adds to his growing reputation.

He finished with a 10–10 record, mostly because the Pirates’ offense struggled to give him support. Still, Skenes led the NL in ERA (1.97), WHIP, and FanGraphs WAR.

He struck out 216 batters and showed off elite command and overpowering stuff. If anything, his season proved that win-loss records don’t always tell the whole story.

All-Star Game Connection

Both Skubal and Skenes started the 2025 All-Star Game. That made it only the second time in MLB history that the same starters later won the Cy Young Awards in their leagues.

It’s a rare intersection of talent that really highlights how much these two pitchers shaped the year.

Impact on the Future

Skubal and Skenes’ accomplishments raise some interesting questions for both franchises—and honestly, the league in general. Detroit’s front office has to figure out what to do about Skubal’s looming free agency, a decision that could change their direction for years.

For Pittsburgh, Skenes is the clear centerpiece of their future. He’s the young ace they can build around, and maybe, just maybe, turn the Pirates into contenders again.

Key Takeaways from Their Seasons

From a broader perspective, these Cy Young wins reflect trends in modern pitching:

• Advanced pitch design is becoming a critical factor in sustained success.
• ERA and WHIP still define dominance, no matter what the win-loss records say.
• Younger pitchers are breaking into elite status earlier than ever. They just don’t seem to need years of slow development anymore.
• Franchise decisions about top-tier arms can shape a team’s competitive window for years.

The 2026 season is almost here, and everyone’s watching Skubal and Skenes. Will the Tigers finally lock down their ace? Can Skenes build on his wild start and actually push Pittsburgh into the playoffs? Guess we’ll find out soon enough.

 
Here is the source article for this story: Tigers ace Skubal repeats as AL Cy Young winner