3 priorities for Detroit Tigers in 2026, including George Springer

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The calendar has changed from 2025 to 2026.

The Detroit Tigers enter the new year in search of an American League Central championship (and a deeper run in the postseason after being eliminated in the ALDS in each of the past two years). The upcoming season for the Tigers will be the fourth with president of baseball operations Scott Harris and the sixth with manager A.J. Hinch.

Here are three New Year's resolutions that the Tigers should prioritize in 2026:

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Sign veteran George Springer for leadership

The Tigers need a veteran leader.

It's something they've been missing for too many years.

The best fit is third baseman Alex Bregman, but if the Tigers don't sign him this offseason after finishing as the runner-up for his services last offseason, then outfielder George Springer will emerge the next-best fit – once he reaches free agency after the 2026 season. The Tigers haven't signed a free agent to a contract longer than two years during Harris' three-year tenure, and they haven't signed a position player in free agency beyond one year, making Springer an appealing option for both Harris and Hinch; he won't command a lengthy (or expensive) commitment entering his age-37 season.

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George Springer #4 of the Toronto Blue Jays celebrates in the dugout after hitting a three-run home run against the Seattle Mariners during the seventh inning in game seven of the American League Championship Series at the Rogers Centre on October 20, 2025 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

Hinch has a longstanding relationship with Springer.

It's unmatched among active players.

During the 2020-21 offseason, Hinch – who managed Springer from 2015-19 with the Houston Astros, winning the 2017 World Series – pushed to bring him to Detroit in Springer's first trip through free agency, which coincided with Hinch's first season as the Tigers' manager. Instead, Springer signed a six-year, $150 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. He becomes a free agent again in November 2026 after the World Series ends.

Over the years, Springer has established himself as a leader with the Blue Jays.

"He has done a phenomenal job of setting the tone for us, not just at the plate, but in the clubhouse," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Oct. 29 before Game 5 of the World Series, with the Los Angeles Dodgers ultimately winning in Game 7. "He keeps tabs on guys. It's been fun to watch him. The production is the production, but how he goes about his day-to-day with everyone in there is just as important."

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In 2025, Springer hit .309 with 32 home runs, 69 walks (11.8% walk rate) and 111 strikeouts (18.9% strikeout rate) across 140 games, producing a .959 OPS. He finished seventh in AL MVP voting, marking his highest placement since 2019 with the Astros.

He made only 51 starts in the outfield, worth a career-worst minus-7 defensive runs saved in fewer than 450 innings. His other 80 starts occurred as the designated hitter. By 2027, he could transition into a nearly full-time designated hitter role.

Springer, a four-time All-Star in his 12-year MLB career, would give the Tigers a high-walk, low-strikeout top-of-the-order bat to replace second baseman Gleyber Torres, who is also set to become a free agent after the 2026 season, along with the potential for a .250 batting average and 25 home runs. He has a track record of elite swing decisions – and clutch performances throughout the postseason, including a .351 batting average and a 1.172 OPS across 19 games in the World Series.

Most importantly, Springer would step in as the veteran leader the Tigers have been missing in the clubhouse.

"He cares about his players as humans," Springer said in March 2023, discussing his relationship with Hinch. "He wants to know how you're doing off the field. He finds a way to connect to you and knows that every player is not the same. It makes you feel like a human."

Extend top prospect Kevin McGonigle

Smart teams extend their rising stars.

Only five players in MLB history have received a contract of $100 million or more at age 21 or younger. All of them are position players: Ronald Acuña Jr. (Atlanta Braves) for $100 million in 2019, Roman Anthony (Boston Red Sox) for $130 million in 2025, Jackson Merrill (San Diego Padres) for $135 million in 2025, Wander Franco (Tampa Bay Rays) for $182 million in 2021 and Julio Rodríguez for $210 million in 2022.

Those deals were bets on the future.

Detroit Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle with Double-A Erie in the 2025 season.

Can the Tigers strike a similar deal with top prospect Kevin McGonigle?

The Tigers will put themselves in the same conversation as those forward-thinking organizations by signing McGonigle to a long-term extension in 2026, doing so before he turns 22 in mid-August. Not only is McGonigle the Tigers' No. 1 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, but he is the No. 2 prospect in baseball.

An extension for McGonigle would likely require a commitment of $100 million from the Tigers, just like the contracts for Acuña with the Braves, Anthony with the Red Sox, Merrill with the Padres, Franco with the Rays and Rodríguez with the Mariners.

In 2025, the Tigers promoted McGonigle (alongside fellow top prospects Max Clark and Josue Briceño) from High-A West Michigan to Double-A Erie in early July. For the SeaWolves, he hit .254 with 12 home runs, 33 walks (16% walk rate) and 26 strikeouts (12.6% strikeout rate) across 46 games, posting a .919 OPS. He made 39 starts at shortstop, plus seven starts at designated hitter.

Based on his performance, the 21-year-old has been compared by FanGraphs' ZiPS projection system to three MLB greats over the past two years: Bregman, Mookie Betts and Gary Sheffield, along with three not-so-great players David Fletcher, Russ Adams and Rance Mulliniks.

Is McGonigle the next Bregman, Betts or Sheffield?

"I wouldn't go as far as that when you're talking about an average outcome, but that's a possibility," FanGraphs senior writer Dan Szymborski said Dec. 22 on the Free Press' "Days of Roar" podcast. "No one comes out of the minors with a Hall of Famer as their baseline expectation, but there are a lot of signs that he's going to be a really good player for a long time."

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The Tigers haven't committed to McGonigle on the 2026 Opening Day roster – because they're planning to start him at Triple-A Toledo in 2026 in an effort to prioritize his development.after he finished in Double-A in 2025.

Everyone knows McGonigle will make his MLB debut at some point in the 2026 season, but the uncertain timeline of his arrival could create leverage for the Tigers in any contract negotiations.

"We've got a lot of decisions to make," Hinch said Dec. 9 at the MLB Winter Meetings. "I think his development is super-important. He's got to go step-by-step to make the impact that so many people are predicting that he can do. I don't think anything has been ruled out. I also don't think anything is necessarily in the works as we get closer to spring."

Prepare for life without ace Tarik Skubal

Left-hander Tarik Skubal – the reigning back-to-back AL Cy Young winner – is about to walk away from the Tigers.

He becomes a free agent after the 2026 season.

What does Skubal's future look like?

"I see a 10-year deal for a minimum of $450 million," USA TODAY Sports MLB columnist Bob Nightengale said Dec. 12 on the "Days of Roar" podcast. "You're going to have the (New York) Mets, the Dodgers, and that's about it. You have two or three teams maximum who are going to take on that type of contract: 10 years at $450 to 500 million."

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Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal at Little Caesars Arena for the game between Michigan State and Oakland in Detroit on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025.

As for the Tigers' future, life without Skubal (and fellow impending free agents Casey Mize and Jack Flaherty) leaves a starting rotation headlined by Jackson Jobe, Reese Olson and Troy Melton. The trio carries significant uncertainty due to Jobe's swing-and-miss struggles, Olson's injury history and Melton's reliever risk.

But there's an even bigger concern.

The Tigers don't have a top-ranked starting pitching prospect in their farm system.

Left-hander Andrew Sears – ranked No. 14 in the organization – has generated internal buzz as an underrated arm to watch, but even he struggled in six Double-A starts +in 2025, posting a 5.02 ERA with seven walks (5.7% walk rate) and 29 strikeouts (23.8% strikeout rate) across 28⅔ innings. The 23-year-old still has a lot to prove before he joins the Tigers.

Clearly, the Tigers are not prepared for life after Skubal.

It's not too late to fix that problem.

The best path forward is a rare prospect-for-prospect trade, with the Tigers leveraging their surplus of offense-first position players with defensive concerns – such as Josue Briceño, Thayron Liranzo and Max Anderson – to acquire an MLB-ready starter capable of joining the rotation by the second half of the 2026 season. The next-best option is to spend big in free agency to sign a proven frontline starter, either this offseason or next offseason.

The third option?

Trade Skubal for pitching prospects.

The Tigers must confront reality: The long-term plan for a future without the best pitcher in baseball needs to be developed and executed within the next 10 months – and that plan can't hinge solely on Jobe replacing Skubal as the ace.

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

Listen to our weekly Tigers show "Days of Roar" every Monday afternoon during the season and Tuesday afternoon during the offseason on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: New Year's resolutions for Detroit Tigers in 2026: George Springer

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