Yankees' Brian Cashman said Tigers wanted 'certain player' for Tarik Skubal ahead of George Lombard Jr.'s promotion

Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News on Aug 4, 2026

Published in Baseball

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NEW YORK — Trade talks between the Yankees and Detroit Tigers about all-world ace Tarik Skubal didn’t get very far.

“They did have some asks our way that we were unwilling to do,” Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said Monday, shortly after the MLB trade deadline passed.

“But it was a very specific ask and a certain player — and a player we weren’t willing to play with in that arena on Tarik Skubal, despite how great of a pitcher he is.”

Cashman never specified the player the Tigers asked for, but the assumption is that it was 21-year-old shortstop George Lombard Jr., the Yankees’ touted top prospect.

Lombard’s father is the Tigers’ bench coach.

Making a trade like that for only two-plus months of Skubal — a free agent after the season — would have represented a risky mortgaging of the future for the Yankees, who view Lombard as their long-term solution at shortstop.

And as it turns out, it would have had dramatic ramifications on the Yankees’ present, too.

The Yankees were set to call Lombard up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre ahead of Tuesday night’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals in the Bronx for his MLB debut.

Following Monday night’s series-opening loss to the Cardinals, the Yankees optioned three players to Triple-A, including shortstop Anthony Volpe, who has batted .240 with a home run and a .646 OPS over 56 games in the majors this season.

Lombard, the Yankees’ first-round pick in 2023, hit .268 with six home runs and an .845 OPS in 56 games at Triple-A this year and is considered a stellar defender at shortstop.

MLB Pipeline ranks Lombard as the sport’s No. 20 prospect and as the Yankees’ only farmhand within the top 50.

For reference, the Los Angeles Dodgers acquired the left-handed Skubal from the Tigers for three prospects, including Double-A outfielder Zyhir Hope (No. 25 in MLB Pipeline’s overall rankings) and Triple-A right-hander River Ryan (No. 68).

Hope was the No. 5 prospect in the Dodgers’ well-regarded minor league system.

“They set a high price, and to be honest, we weren’t able to get them off of what they said ‘might’ work,” Cashman said of the Tigers.

“But at the same time, they were communicating that it also might not even win the day. And then they kind of went silent, I think after they got what they were looking for.”

Skubal, the back-to-back American League Cy Young Award winner, went 7-5 with a 2.79 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 96 2/3 innings with the Tigers this year.

He is expected to command a historic contract this winter.

The Yankees’ pre-deadline deal-making ultimately focused on bolstering their injury-ravaged lineup, as they acquired lefty-swinging slugger Luis Garcia Jr. from the Washington Nationals and righty-hitting outfielder Heliot Ramos from the San Francisco Giants for prospects rated much lower than Lombard.

The promotion of Lombard could help boost the Yankees’ offense, too, and it allows José Caballero — who has spent considerable time at shortstop — to return to his super-utility role.

“Clearly, pitching is a strength of ours, and our needs were in different categories,” Cashman said.

“But because of how great [Skubal] is, we definitely made our phone calls, and I talked to [Tigers president of baseball operations] Scott Harris several times about it.”